Etxepare Basque Institute presents I Baschi alla Biennale 1976/2026 in Venice

In 1976, amid the uncertainty and the struggle for freedom that characterised the Spanish transition to democracy following the death of the dictator Francisco Franco, a group of Basque artists, musicians, poets and civil society gathered in Venice using art as a means of collective expression. At this historical moment, marked by political transformation and the emergence of democratic demands, la Biennale became a stage for international projection. Rather than standing for a consolidated institutional representation, the seminars held under the slogan Amnistia denontzat (Amnesty for All) in the context of la Biennale stemmed from a collective drive that combined political enthusiasm and commitment to articulate various forms of public expression. Fifty years later, the Basque Country returns to Venice with the project I Baschi alla Biennale 1976/2026, a cultural programme that connects memory and artistic practice, departing from a reflection on the role of a