Relying on the shared geographies of the Great Lakes as a place of departure, this Biennial, curated by Allison Glenn, traces relationships between the expansive but interconnected waters of the Great Lakes region and over sixteen global waterways that span five continents. Things Fall Apart considers ideas of syncopation and disruption through the lens of shared thematics that emerged from artists’ voices: diaspora through movement and migration, syncretic traditions, notions of borders, water networks, maritime histories of empire, corporeality, calls to action, global climate justice, genocides, speculative and science fictions, material memory, the transformation of knowledge, and both water and land as conceptual links.

Things Fall Apart is organized in three parts: a central exhibition that grounds itself in methodologies of collectivity, sovereignty, reflection, and refusal; a series of performances and artist-led programming that invites embodied engagement with these practices; and a collaboratively curated gathering.

The Art Museum at the University of Toronto is the main exhibition site partner for TBA 2026, and will present works by over 20 artists across both the University of Toronto Art Centre in University College and the Justina M. Barnicke Gallery in Hart House.

Featuring works by Andrés Ramírez Gaviria, Antonio Obá, Bonnie Devine, Cameron Harvey, Carole Harris, Carolina Fusilier, Céline Semaan and Jean-Marc Bullet, Charisse Pearlina Weston, Chiedza Pasipanodya, Dala Nasser, James Perkins, Julianknxx, Julien Creuzet, Kent Monkman, Lindsay Katsitsakatste Delaronde, Naotaka Hiro, Rebecca Belmore, Solange Pessoa, Taqralik Partridge, Underground Resistance presents Drexciya and beyond, Wen Liu.

Opening Weekend Public Programs:

Opening Party
Friday, September 25, 7pm–11pm
Art Museum at the University of Toronto
This is a ticketed event. For more information, visit Toronto Biennial of Art’s website.

Rebecca Belmore: Gichigami  
Saturday, September 26, 12pm  
University of Toronto Art Centre, 15 King’s College Circle
Free and open to the public; registration is required.

Opening Remarks 
Saturday, September 26, 1:30pm 
7 Hart House Circle
Free and open to the public; no registration required.

Raphaël Barontini: Konvwa libèté  
Saturday, September 26, 2pm  
Meeting point in front of Hart House, 7 Hart House Circle
Free and open to the public; registration is required.

Our Supporters
The Art Museum gratefully acknowledge operating support from the Canada Council for the Arts, the Ontario Arts Council, the Government of Ontario, and the Toronto Arts Council.

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About the Toronto Biennial of Art
The Toronto Biennial of Art’s mission is to make contemporary art accessible to everyone. A twelve-week event every two years, the Biennial commissions artists to create new works for a city-wide exhibition in dialogue with Toronto’s diverse local contexts. The Toronto Biennial of Art is open from September 26 to December 20, across 13+ exhibition sites across Toronto.

Please visit torontobiennial.org for more information, including a schedule of Biennial programs.

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Image: Julianknxx, What Colors Can We Dream from a Night Filled With Salt, 2025. Still from 4k video and 16mm film transferred to 4K with 5.1 surround sound, 11 minutes 4 seconds, English and French. Courtesy of the artist.