Istanbul Biennial: Dates, Venues and Tickets

Updated on October 4, 2026

The Istanbul Biennial is one of the major contemporary art events of the eastern Mediterranean. Organised since 1987 by İKSV (the Istanbul Foundation for Culture and Arts), it takes place every two years, from mid-September to mid-November, in venues spread across the city. The 19th edition is announced for 18 September to 14 November 2027, curated by Liu Ding and Carol Yinghua Lu; professional previews come before the public opening (14 to 17 September 2027). The title, theme and venues will be announced later (information taken from the biennial's website in October 2026). So there is no biennial to see in Istanbul in 2026: the 18th edition, presented in 2025, is over. If you are visiting before September 2027, look instead at the city's contemporary art museums.

Highlights

An exhibition in unexpected places

The biennial rarely settles into a single museum: depending on the edition, it takes over warehouses, former industrial buildings, museums and downtown galleries. İKSV publishes the venue map and tickets a few weeks before the opening, on the biennial's website.

Exhibitions around the biennial

During the biennial, Istanbul's museums and galleries stage their own shows: Istanbul Modern, Arter, SALT Galata and the Pera Museum make a route you can cover on foot or by tram across Beyoğlu and Karaköy.

The public programme

The biennial comes with guided tours, an education programme and a membership card with discounted rates (the "Tulip Card"), described on the biennial's website.

Infos pratiques

Tips

The ticket price and free-entry conditions for the 19th edition had not been published in October 2026: do not count on any figure until the programme is announced. To choose your travel dates, see our guide to the best time to visit Istanbul. For all the city's contemporary art, including outside the biennial, read our guide to contemporary art in Istanbul.

How to get there

The venues of the 19th edition have not been announced yet. Previous editions were mostly concentrated around Beyoğlu and Karaköy, well served by the M2 metro (Şişhane station), the T1 tram (Tophane or Karaköy station) and the F2 funicular from Karaköy.