Alfredo Jaar, Biennale installation The End of the World in Venice
Published on 08/28/2026 at 16:58 | Editorial responsibility: Rafael MĂĽller, Editor-in-Chief AD HOC NEWS
Alfredo Jaar is present in Venice with the installation The End of the World at the 61st International Art Exhibition of La Biennale di Venezia. As the official Biennale description and gallery announcements state, the work is part of the main exhibition In Minor Keys curated by Koyo Kouoh.
The Venice Biennale installation
In The End of the World (2023-2024), Jaar compresses cobalt, rare earths, copper, tin, nickel, lithium, manganese, coltan, germanium and platinum into a four-centimeter-square cube, evoking the material basis of digital technology. The cube is presented within a sparse installation that underscores the extraction violence behind everyday devices.
The work appears in the Arsenale section of In Minor Keys, where curator Koyo Kouoh gathers practices that address global inequality and structural silencing. According to the official exhibition text, Jaar’s piece reflects on planetary limits and the cost of connectivity, extending his long-standing interest in the politics of images and information.
Biennial & fair presence in 2026
The 61st Venice Art Biennale runs from May 9 to November 22, 2026, giving collectors and professionals a prolonged window to experience Jaar’s installation within one of the most visible biennial platforms. For the artist, this marks his fifth participation in Venice after earlier appearances in 1986, 2007, 2009 and 2013.
Galleries representing Jaar emphasize that this renewed Venice presence coincides with a broader 2026 program, including solo exhibitions in Lausanne and Salt Lake City, reinforcing his international visibility across Europe and the United States. Against this backdrop, the Biennale installation functions as a conceptual anchor for his current cycle of work around climate and resource extraction.
Further coverage on Alfredo Jaar’s Biennale year
For more news, background and market context on Alfredo Jaar and his current exhibitions, the AD HOC NEWS archive offers analyses across biennials, museum shows and commissions.
The work core around The End
Parallel to Venice, Jaar’s series The End addresses the disappearance of Utah’s Great Salt Lake through small-format photographs and installations in Salt Lake City and international venues. The images document a loss of around 73 percent of the lake’s water due to extraction and drought.
At the Utah Museum of Contemporary Art, the exhibition Alfredo Jaar: The End runs from June 26 to September 5, 2026, presenting these works in a focused institutional setting. The museum highlights how the project intertwines environmental data with affective visual narratives, a hallmark of Jaar’s practice.
Where the artist stands now
Within the current 30-day window, Alfredo Jaar’s work is publicly on view in the solo exhibition The End at the Utah Museum of Contemporary Art in Salt Lake City, running through September 5, 2026.
Key facts on Alfredo Jaar
- Artist: Alfredo Jaar
- Medium / Genre: Installation, photography and conceptual art
- Born: 1956, Santiago, Chile
- Place(s) of practice: Studio practice currently based in Portugal and active internationally
- Active since: Early 1980s, with first significant projects addressing Chile under dictatorship
- Key work groups: The Rwanda Project, A Logo for America, The Sound of Silence, The End
- Current/last exhibition: Alfredo Jaar: The End, Utah Museum of Contemporary Art, Salt Lake City, June 26–September 5, 2026
- Major collections: Tate (London), MoMA (New York), Centre Pompidou (Paris), PĂ©rez Art Museum Miami (Miami)
- Awards: Prix Pictet 2026 (for the series The End), among others
- Next date: September 5, 2026, closing of Alfredo Jaar: The End at Utah Museum of Contemporary Art, Salt Lake City
Frequently asked questions about Alfredo Jaar
Where can Alfredo Jaar’s work be seen in late summer 2026?
In late summer 2026, Alfredo Jaar’s installation The End of the World is on view at the 61st Venice Art Biennale, while his exhibition Alfredo Jaar: The End is presented at the Utah Museum of Contemporary Art in Salt Lake City.
What is the focus of Alfredo Jaar’s installation at the Venice Biennale?
At the Venice Biennale, Jaar’s installation The End of the World compresses multiple mined minerals into a small cube to highlight the material and geopolitical costs of digital technology, situating environmental crisis within global extraction economies.
Which recent award highlights Alfredo Jaar’s environmental work?
In 2026, Alfredo Jaar received the Prix Pictet for his photographic series The End, which portrays the shrinking Great Salt Lake and reflects broader climate concerns within a rigorously researched visual framework.
This article was produced with a.i. support and editorially reviewed. All statements without guarantee; auction results, exhibition dates and awards may change at short notice.
