The Basque Government, through the Etxepare Basque Institute, which serves as an ambassador to Basque culture by encouraging international inclusion of Basque artists from all artistic mediums, has launched ZABAL: a global program determined to host international curators in the Basque Country.
This program has been designed and is coordinated by Artingenium.
ZABAL aims to showcase Basque art by hosting yearly international curators, art critics, and museum directors in Spain. The program is primarily focused in creating encounters between these guests and the Basque artistic community in order to promote Basque work globally. Each year has presented new opportunities for Basque artists because of the new connections established with an international network during their visits.
Ryan Inouye and Liz Park, the co-curators of the 59th Carnegie International Curatorial Team of the Carnegie Museum of Art (Pittsburgh), visited Spain in February 2025 to engage with Basque art and culture.
During their trip, the curators participated in events and attended exhibitions showcasing Basque artists, which provided the platform for discussions on collaborations. These interactions strengthened their connection with the Basque art scene, language, and contemporary issues, and allowed for new opportunities for future projects.
Anton Vidokle, curator of the 14th Shanghai Biennale, met numerous Basque creators and visited contemporary art centres in Bilbao, Donostia/San Sebastián and Vitoria.
Anton Vidokle analyzes critical discourses around culture and art theory and his research focuses on understanding the cosmos that conditions society.
The curators of the Sydney Biennale , Cosmin Costinas and Inti Guerrero, have met during these days numerous Basque creators and contemporary art centers in Bilbao, Donostia-San Sebastián and Vitoria-Gasteiz.
They investigate traditions that reflect the pagan and carnival, pre-Christian pagan cultures and the expression of the world’s cultural diversity.
The 35th edition of the São Paulo Biennial will be held in 2023 and its curators have visited the Basque Country these days to know first-hand the context of the Basque artists and creators/as/as of the performative and audiovisual arts fields. The capitals of Álava, Bizkaia and Gipuzkoa have hosted Manuel Borja-Villel, art historian and Director of the Reina Sofía Museum; Diane Lima, independent curator, writer and researcher; and Hélio Menezes, anthropologist, critic and researcher.
Rahul Gudipudi, curator of Art Jameel, visited the Basque Country to learn first-hand about the local artistic context.
During his visit, in addition to visiting museums, creative centers and artistic institutions, he has shown interest in meeting artists who work with public art projects and integrate nature and communities into their practices. Agriculture, climate crisis, food systems, water rights, land sovereignty, governance, rurality, collective practices or indigenous knowledge systems.
David Teh, curator of the Istanbul Biennale, visited the Basque Country to get to know the local artistic context first-hand.
During his stay, he has known museums, creative centers, artistic institutions and artists and creators/ whose research refers to regionalism, in a broad and inclusive sense, and its connection with contemporary art. His interest also lies in the intersections between experimental art and literature.
June Crespo’s participation in the Venice Biennale is a result of the ZABAL programme launched by the Etxepare Euskal Institutua. Through this project, the curator of the Venice Biennale, Cecilia Alemani, had the opportunity to learn about the work of several Basque creators, being one of the results the invitation of June Crespo to participate in the exhibition.
Marina Otero, co-curator of the 13th Biennial of Shanghai. Her stay in the Basque Country will take place from the 15th to the 17th November, 2021. During her stay, Marina Otero will make an open presentation on the 13th Biennial of Shanghai, on the 16th November, at the Artium Museum, in Vitoria-Gasteiz.
Ruangrupa, curators of documenta 15, Kassel. The stay of Ade Darmawan, Indra Ameng and Ayse Gülec took place from the 16th to the 22nd of February, 2020. During their stay, they made a public presentation of documenta 15, on the 18th of February, at the Fine Arts Museum, in Bilbao.
As a result of this visit, the publisher and independent public space of Bilbao, Consonni, has been chosen to participate in the renowned international exhibition Documenta 15, which will open in June 2022 in Kassel, Germany.
Ruth Estévez, co-curator of the 34th Biennial of Sao Paulo. Her stay in the Basque Country took place from the 18th to the 21st of November, 2019. During her stay, Ruth Estévez made an open presentation on the 34th Biennial of Sao Paolo, on the 20th of November, at the Fine Arts Museum, in Bilbao.
