Fondazione Dries Van Noten presents The Only True Protest Is Beauty, opening 25 April 2026 in Venice, an exploration of beauty as a force of provocation and transformation. Drawing its title from a line by 1960s activist songwriter Phil Ochs, the exhibition — curated by Dries Van Noten and Geert Bruloot — treats beauty not as mere prettiness but as a charged, disruptive encounter capable of unsettling norms and opening space for the new. Spanning 20 intuitively composed rooms across Palazzo Pisani Moretta, it brings together over 200 works in fashion, jewellery, art, collectible design, photography, glass, and ceramics, placing archive pieces from established houses alongside emerging and experimental voices in a dialogue shaped by instinct rather than rigid logic. Together, these works affirm the Fondazione's mission: to honour the human dimension of making and the stories embedded within each object.
| Hours | 11:00 PM – 11:00 PM |
| Venue | Palazzo Pisani Moretta |
| Type | Exhibition |
| Duration | 162 Days |
| City | Venice |
About
Fondazione Dries Van Noten
Founded by Dries Van Noten and Patrick Vangheluwe and housed within the historic Palazzo Pisani Moretta overlooking the Canal Grande, Fondazione Dries Van Noten celebrates craftsmanship as a vital language of cultural identity. Here, ideas take form through material, gesture, and the patient passage of time, as mind and hands meet in the act of creation. The Fondazione inhabits a space of transition, carrying traditions forward while continually reinventing them. Opening in April 2026, the Fondazione brings together established voices and emerging creators alike across art, design, fashion, architecture, food, and beyond. By encouraging cross-pollination between disciplines, it sparks fresh perspectives, bridges history with the present, and connects creativity rooted in place with global perspectives.
