The Lagos Biennial has said Swiss-based curator Adam Szymczyk will lead its inaugural Curatorial Lab Lagos, a three-day intensive programme running from November 16–18, 2026, immediately following the biennial’s opening weekend.
Conceived as an experimental platform to question inherited exhibition models, the lab responds to the biennial’s 2026 theme, “The Museum of Things Unseen.”
The programme invites participants to investigate how curatorial practice can rewrite institutional histories and invent new forms of cultural imagination through site visits, workshops and collective discussions.
The initiative is open to international early- and mid-career curators aged 20–35. Twelve successful applicants will receive fully funded international return flights, local transportation, and participation coverage, while being responsible for their own accommodation, visa fees, and upkeep.
Applications close on September 15, 2026, with successful candidates notified on September 22, 2026. Interested applicants must submit a one-page motivation letter and a CV to applications@lagos-biennial.org.
Szymczyk brings extensive international experience to the role, having served as artistic director of documenta 14 and director of the Swiss Architecture Museum in Basel.
The curatorial lab concept first originated during the 2019 edition of the Lagos Biennial.
•Featured image: Adam Szymczyk/Lagos Biennial