Allison Glenn Named Curator of 2026 Toronto Biennial
146Feb. 28, 2025
The organizers of theToronto Biennial of Arthave announcedAllison Glennas the curator of the event’s fourth edition, slated to take place September–December 2026. Glenn brings fifteen years of experience to the role, having begun her career at the Hammer Museum in Los Angeles in 2011 before going on to serve as director of Monique Meloche Gallery and senior curator at the Public Art Fund, and then as associate curator of contemporary art at the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in Bentonville, Arkansas. She is currently artistic director of the Shepherd in Detroit. Among the exhibitions she has curated are the widely lauded group show “Promise, Witness, Remembrance.” Opening at the Speed Art Museum in Louisville, Kentucky, in 2021, the exhibition centered the killing by police of Breonna Taylor in her own home and featured the work of over twenty artists, including Glenn Ligon and Amy Sherald.
“Allison has a strong track record of collaborating with artists to develop ambitious ideas and realize transformative projects,” said Toronto Biennial founder and executive director Patrizia Libralato in statement. “She has focused on art in public spaces as a means to connect intergenerational audiences with impactful and accessible contemporary art. Her thoughtful approach, as well as her deep interest in Canada having grown up in nearby Detroit, will no doubt allow her to seamlessly work with artists and partners from across the country as well as internationally to create a powerful Biennial for Toronto.”
Glenn will be supported in her role by a five-person National Curatorial Advisory comprising David Diviney, chief curator at the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia in Halifax; Eva Respini, deputy director and director of curatorial programs at the Vancouver Art Gallery; independent curator Heather Igloliorte, a professor of visual arts at the University of Victoria; Léuli Eshrāghi, curator of Indigenous practices at the Musée des beaux-arts de Montréal; and Michelle Jacques, director of exhibitions and collections and chief curator at Saskatoon’s Remai Modern.
“Toronto is one of the most diverse cities in the world and is located on the Great Lakes waterway—a system that contains 20 percent of the world’s freshwater. This will undoubtedly impact the curatorial framework,” said Glenn in a statement. “I am honored to be invited to consider a city so close to home, and to learn from the vast histories of the region while working closely with the brilliant members of the National Curatorial Advisory, enthusiastic TBA team, and dedicated partners of the 2026 Toronto Biennial of Art.”