Biennale di Venezia's Marco Polo Project Reaches Mongolia with 'Dove corrono splendidi cavalli'

The Biennale di Venezia's traveling exhibition project 'È il vento che fa il cielo. La Biennale di Venezia sulle orme di Marco Polo' has arrived in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, with its fifth stop titled 'Dove corrono splendidi cavalli' (Where Splendid Horses Run). Curated by Luigia Lonardelli, the show runs until July 20, 2026, at the Zanabazar Museum. It features works by Mongolian artists Baatarzorig Batjargal and Dolgor Ser-Od, selected for their technical mastery within the Mongol Zurag painting tradition. The exhibition dialogues with the museum's permanent collection, presenting a continuous cultural narrative rather than a Western art-historical progression. An outdoor installation by Turkish artist Cevdet Erek, 'Amfibio,' serves as a modular public stage, adapted with local carpentry techniques and hosting readings in collaboration with the Mongolian Writers' Union. The project commemorates the 700th anniversary of Marco Polo's death, initiated by the Historical Archive of the Biennale di Venezia under Debora Rossi. Previous stops included Hangzhou, Venice, Istanbul, and New Delhi. Biennale President Pietrangelo Buttafuoco noted the significance of the Mongolian leg, linking Polo's journey to the Pax Mongolica.