The Homo Faber Biennial returns to Venice for its fourth edition this fall, continuing its commitment to contemporary craftsmanship with “An Island of Light.” On view from September 1-30 and organized by the Michelangelo Foundation for Creativity and Craftsmanship in partnership with Fondazione Giorgio Cini, this year’s presentation will transform the grounds of San Giorgio Maggiore through a series of 15 immersive installations conceived in collaboration with the British artist and designer Es Devlin. Bringing together more than 800 objects by artisans from more than 70 countries, the exhibition places handmade creation at the center of an experience shaped by light and materiality, while live demonstrations, workshops, and citywide programming further animate Venice’s craft legacy.
As Homo Faber expands its international reach—including the launch of its American chapter in New York this year—the presentation continues to champion craftsmanship not as nostalgia, but as a vital contemporary language. Ahead of the 2026 opening, Whitewall spoke with Alberto Cavalli about this year’s edition, the evolving role of artisans within contemporary culture, and why the future of luxury increasingly lies in the handmade.
Collaborating with Es Devlin
Alberto Cavalli, portrait by Laila Pozzo, courtesy of Homo Faber.
Madoda Fani, “Sul’inyembezi” (WipeYourTears). © Hayden Phipps & Southern Guild, courtesy of Homo Faber.
WHITEWALL: The exhibition starts with the title, “An Island of Light” and leads into subchapters with other names. Why was this the starting point?
ALBERTO CAVALLI: Es Devlin has, from the first room up until the labyrinth, focused on a number of subjects. The general topic is “An Island of Light” because, of course, she’s the high priestess of light. This is extremely fitting for the historical moment we are living in—light in both a physical and metaphorical way. Physical, because light will play a pivotal role in the sonography of Es Devlin. In every room, light will determine the state of mind, the silhouette, the shapes. It will not only be a scenographic aspect, but really a way to nourish the beauty and the meaning of the art.
The more the darkness pushes us into a state of confusion, the more an exhibition like Homo Faber can inspire a new light. The small island of San Giorgio can become the source of a new light that allows human talent to shine through these dark moments—not to ever forget that no machines can ever dispose of intuition. That no machines will ever be able to perform the crafts that we will see at San Giorgio. And that machines do not really care at all if we are starving for beauty or not. Well, we do.
The light that we are going to shine on this world of craft is also very much about showing that there can be a more human and a more meaningful way of working, of producing, of purchasing, of creating.
“She is determined to transmit her vision, her light, her human values,”
-Alberto Cavalli.
WW: How did Es Devlin help shape this? What did working with someone like her present for this exhibition?
AC: Es Devlin in this has been a guardian angel because her vision—so clean, so refined, so human—has shaped Homo Faber, and has morphed it into a truly immersive experience.
She knows how to work with other artists—how to put her practice in dialogue with somebody else’s, especially artists with strong personalities like all of the artists she’s been working with. She’s a person with a very strong sense of space—she knows well what it means to work in theaters or in spaces that present constraints. She is driven to perform in the best possible way. This is like an engine that keeps the whole machine going.
She is determined to transmit her vision, her light, her human values. She really knows what it means to take an ephemeral community, like the one that is formed during the time of the exhibition, and make that moment remain and linger in visitors’ memories forever.
Making Process Visible
Juliette Frescaline, “Bord de route,” courtesy of Homo Faber.
Seokhyun Jang, “Pure” (푸레), jar with white clay, courtesy of Homo Faber.
WW: The exhibitions span many rooms, and the presentations are specifically lit to highlight different facets of the creative’s work. How did you and Devlin work together to light these lesser-seen details?
AC: One of the key factors of Homo Faber is authenticity. We promise to you that you’re going to see the most inspiring artisans in the world, but we are also here to create a different point of view about craft art. We want to invite people to move from the contemplation of beauty to the understanding of meaning.
Homo Faber shows the beauty of the making, with the artisans alive, but also with a representation of the places they work, the atelier, with tools that are often fabricated by the artisans themselves, which are unique—like calligraphy instead of using a fountain pen.
Artisans make mistakes, so they change, and from mistakes today, something new can come tomorrow. We felt it was necessary not to create a fake working environment, but to evoke an atmosphere. Process must be at the center of the conversation as much as the product.
A Reverence for Materials
“Night Flower,” Artwork by Andriy & Olesya Voznicki. © Andriy & Olesya Voznicki. Courtesy of Homo Faber.
“Kantharos I,” Artwork by Leonardo Cappellini, courtesy of Homo Faber.
WW: There are installations like “The Library of Lungs,” which shows wooden sculptures, and “Full Moon Rising,” presented in a former swimming pool, which highlights the simplicity of the vessels seen in the space, which are typically used to transport water. Can you share more about this?
AC: This used to be the first public swimming pool in Venice. Many Venetians learned to swim there, also because the alternative was the lagoon. The swimming pool was closed, but it remained as an exhibition space of extreme beauty and magnetic power. Es has decided to bring water back into the basin, and in three-quarters of the basin, there will be this half-moon that will rise and set, and the reflection on the water will create this full moon. On the shelves of the moon, you will only find vessels, moon jars in particular—so this round-shaped vase that has long been used to store or to transport water. The moon governs the waters, and the swimming pool is a place where water naturally finds its place, so everything is very consistent.
We have selected vessels only in the colors of water, a color gradient, from the deep blue to the white of the foam. Every artisan has to send two. One will be placed on the moon and one will be placed on the perimeter, so that visitors can see them from a close distance. Even if the shapes are quite similar, the materials and the techniques are different. It will be a room of arresting beauty and of great meditative power.
“Materials are precious. Inspiration is precious.”
-Alberto Cavalli.
WW: We’re speaking about water, and an exhibition being presented in the sun. And when we talk about handmade things, there’s a tie to the Earth. I’m curious to hear how you thought about Earth’s elements when putting together this exhibition.
AC: With extreme respect because this is something that we learn from the artisans. Even if we are not artisans yet, there is always something we can learn from them: the extreme respect for the materials. For the Japanese, it’s even more immediate because according to the Shinto belief system, God is everywhere—so nature is God and the natural elements are somehow divine. Every time that you approach lacquer or wood or ceramics, you are somehow crafting something divine that was given to you as a gift, along with your talent. This approach is not limited to Japanese artisans. All the artisans that we selected have a reverence for the materials that they have chosen to work with—natural, recycled, unexpected, or innovative. Craft artists know that time is limited and precious. Materials are precious. Inspiration is precious. That’s why their production is so precious because it condenses a huge respect for all of this.
