A few hours before Pakistan’s Pavilion at the Venice Biennale 2026 opened to the public, I found myself at a lunch organised by Pakistan’s Ambassador to the European Union (EU), H.E. Rahim Hayat Qureshi, and Dr Yaqoob Bangash, Commissioner of Pakistan’s Pavilion at La Biennale di Venezia.

Among those gathered were many of the people responsible for making the pavilion a reality, alongside well-wishers, such as myself. Sitting amongst this company, I thought about the pressure of representing a country through art, but also about the extraordinary effort it must have taken to get here.

The exhibition itself, ‘Punj•AB — A Sublime Terrain’, featured the work of artist Faiza Butt, curated by Beatriz Cifuentes Feliciano. Pakistan’s participation at the historic biennale was greenlit by Islamabad a mere six months before the opening at Venice, which made this milestone even more impressive.

In 2021, I was part of the team curating Pakistan’s Pavilion at the World Expo in Dubai, and that experience has since profoundly influenced how I see public exhibitions, their role in society and the huge personal effort it takes from each person involved in making these public-private partnerships happen.

Pakistan has made its second-ever official appearance at the Venice Biennale with a pavilion featuring the work of artist Faiza Butt. The story behind how the Pakistan Pavilion came to be is as compelling as the art itself

Pakistan has made its second-ever official appearance at the Venice Biennale with a pavilion featuring the work of artist Faiza Butt. The story behind how the Pakistan Pavilion came to be is as compelling as the art itself

This is Pakistan’s second participation at Venice, following the inaugural pavilion in 2019, which featured Naiza Khan’s work and was curated by Zahra Khan. In Pakistan, building a national pavilion remains a labour of love. Unlike........

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