The Biennale of Contemporary Keramics (BCK) 2026 returns for its second edition
under the title “Where the Day Starts”, transforming the Medieval City of Rhodes into
an international meeting point for contemporary ceramic art from 6 June to 31 October
2026. The opening will take place on Friday, 5 June at 19:00, at the Archaeological
Museum of Rhodes, marking the beginning of a three-day programme of events
including curator-led tours, talks, site-specific performances and guided walks
throughout the Medieval City. In collaboration with the Ephorate of Antiquities of the
Dodecanese, BCK unfolds across five emblematic and historical venues, shaping for
the visitor an experience of exploration, a map within the map of the Medieval City.
Curated by Stamatia Dimitrakopoulos (GR), Loukia Thomopoulou (GR) and Anissa
Touati (FR), BCK 2026 highlights contemporary ceramics as a dynamic and evolving
medium of artistic expression, as well as a meaningful vehicle for intercultural dialogue
across the Mediterranean. Taking Rhodes, at the easternmost edge of Greece, as its
point of reference, and drawing from its UNESCO World Heritage Medieval City, the
Biennale engages with a place where - according to the ancient Greek mythology- “the
day begins”. It draws upon the island’s light, geography and layered historical fabric to
shape a coherent curatorial framework that connects past and present.
The Sun, as a universal symbol of life and transformation, runs through this year’s
Biennale as a central narrative thread, illuminating the multiple dimensions of ceramic
practice and positioning Rhodes as a place where history, light and contemporary
creation coexist.
This year’s edition brings together 42 artists from 18 countries, forming a polyphonic
field of contemporary practices and artistic approaches. Participating artists include:
Etel Adnan (LB), Myrsini Alexandridi (GR), Darien Arikoski-Johnson (US), Elysia
Athanatos (CY), Leonardo Bartolini (IT), Elina Belou (FR), Emmanouil Bonis (GR),
Robert Brambora (DE), Jorge Cabieses-Valdes (CL), Meriem Chabani - Gorbon
Ceramics (DZ), Chous Ceramics (GR), Katya Desnenko (UA), Mauro Fariñas (ES),
Malek Gnaoui (TN), Kyriaki Goni (GR), Luke Edward Hall (GB), Dionysis Kavallieratos
(GR), Lynn Kodeih (LB), Tülay Kulbay (SE), Vasiliki Kyriaki (GR), Anne Kwasner (AU),
Lucile Littot (FR), Lilian Lykiardopoulou (GR), Atalanti Martinou (GR), Fatima Mohisen
(PS), Asunción Molinos Gordo (ES), Kostas Neofytou (GR), Ben Wolf Noam (US),
Menandros Papadopoulos (GR), Zoë Paul (GB), GianMarco Porru (IT), Myrsini
Roumelioti (GR), David Scanavino (US), Terpsichori Savvala (GR), Ayla Tavares (BR),
Natalia Triantafylli (GR), Alban Turquois (FR), Lucille Uhlrich (FR), Elif Uras (TR),
Giorgos Vavatsis (GR), Vuslat (TR) and Zoe Williams (FR).
The selection of artists emerged through an international Open Call that received more
than 300 applications, as well as through invitations by the curators, mapping a
dynamic coexistence of emerging and established voices in contemporary art.
