Becoming Ocean: a social conversation about the Ocean

An exhibition at Villa Arson, on the occasion of the 3rd United Nations Ocean Conference, Nice 2025

8 May – 24 August 2025

"Sea Lovers," 2020. Commissioned by TBA21–Academy. Written and directed by Ingo Niermann.

Exhibitions NICE2025 Past

From May 8 to August 24, 2025, Villa Arson, TBA21 Thyssen-Bornemisza Art Contemporary, and Tara Ocean Foundation, in collaboration with Schmidt Ocean Institute, present Becoming Ocean: a social conversation about the Ocean, a major exhibition exploring the main challenges facing the Ocean in a choral way. More than 20 international artists are taking part in the exhibition through critical and documentary approaches as well as more sensory, poetic, or speculative expressions. The exhibition is part of the program for the Nice Biennial of Arts and the Ocean, organized as part of the United Nations Conference on the Oceans (UNOC3) to be held in Nice from June 9 to 13, 2025.

The exhibition is co-curated by three international institutions to underline the essential role of collaboration and the conviction that art and culture are drivers of social and environmental change.

Becoming Ocean: a social conversation about the Ocean will feature artists from the TBA21 Thyssen-Bornemisza Art Contemporary Collection, such as Seba Calfuqueo, Anne Duk Hee Jordan, Simone Fattal, Sonia Levy, Armin Linke, Ingo Nierman, Diana Policarpo, or Allan Sekula, and participants in the Tara Ocean Foundation's artists-in-residence program, such as Antoine Bertin, Samuel Bollendorff, Nicolas Floc’h, Christian Sardet, Robertina Sebjanic or Laure Winants. The exhibition is also organized in collaboration with the Schmidt Ocean Institute, which presents a new work by Max Hooper Schneider.

Throughout the three-month exhibition, a rich program of public events will offer engaging opportunities to experience and explore art in new ways.

BOOKLET

CURATORS

Hélène Guenin, Director of the Biennale des Arts et de l'Océan de Nice

Chus Martinez, Associate Curator – TBA21 Thyssen-Bornemisza Art Contemporary

Sébastien Ruiz, General Secretary of the Tara Ocean Foundation

Marie-Ann Yemsi, Director of the Villa Arson Art Center

LOCATION

20 avenue Stephen Liégeard
06100
Nice, France

Access:
Tramway line n°1 - Station Le Ray
Bus n°8, direction Las Planas / Sappia - station Deux avenues

OPENING TIMES

The exhibition will be open to the public every day except Tuesday, from 2pm to 6pm (2pm to 7pm in July and August).

Admission is free, and no reservation is required.

ACCESSIBILITY

Outside areas (gardens and terraces) and exhibition rooms are largely accessible to people with reduced mobility.

Villa Arson, TBA21 and ACTeon, with the support of Point Parole, are organising tours of the exhibition Becoming Ocean for children and neurodivergent persons. Guided tours of four selected works from the exhibition for these audiences (developed by TBA21 museum accessibility expert Valeria Bottalico) in ‘easy-to-read’ and ‘augmented and alternative communication’ (AAC) versions are also available.

You can access the easy-to-read and AAC versions of the guides here.

See more about accessible tours here.

ABOUT THE NICE BIENNIAL OF ARTS AND OCEAN

In June 2025, Nice will host the 3rd United Nations Ocean Conference (UNOC 2025). This international summit will bring together leaders and governments from around the world to debate and decide on the future of our planet.

To mark the occasion, the City of Nice is placing its 6th Biennial of Arts under the banner of the Ocean, uniting cultural players, institutions and partners around this project.

The co-curators, Jean-Jacques Aillagon, former French Minister of Culture and Communication, and Hélène Guenin, Director of the MAMAC, are proposing an original program to match the event and its stakes:
- 11 exhibitions with installations and associated events in 7 museums in the city of Nice, as well as at 109, the city's third venue, and at the Villa Arson;
- a trail of works of Art in the city, a major new feature of this edition;
- two international foundations, Tara Ocean Foundation and TBA21 Thyssen-Bornemisza Art Contemporary, are also partners.

The exhibition Becoming Ocean: a social conversation about the Ocean is one of the main events presented in the city as part of the Nice Biennial of Arts and the Ocean.

ABOUT VILLA ARSON

Under the supervision of the French Ministry of Culture and became a legal entity of the University Côte d'Azur in 2020, Villa Arson was conceived in the 1960s by André Malraux, then Minister of Cultural Affairs, as part of a major cultural decentralization program. Inaugurated in 1972, Villa Arson was designed from the outset as a highly innovative establishment that fulfilled several essential and complementary functions in support of creation: teaching, research, experimentation, production, distribution, promotion and support. The uniqueness of Villa Arson also lies in the association of its different areas of activity (the contemporary art center, the school, the library, research and residencies), whose actions intersect and enrich experiences. The Villa Arson Art Center offers an exhibition program that is broadly open to the international scene and focuses on emerging creations. It aims to highlight the crossroads between creation, research, experimentation and transmission.

ABOUT THE TARA OCEAN FOUNDATION

The Tara Ocean Foundation is the first public interest foundation in France dedicated to the Ocean. For over 20 years, it has been striving for a revolution to preserve life, convinced that the Ocean is essential to the equilibrium of our planet. Exploring the Ocean and sharing scientific discoveries to raise collective awareness is at the heart of the foundation's mission. It leads scientific expeditions, in partnership with leading international research laboratories, to study marine biodiversity and understand the impacts of climate change and pollution. It raises public awareness, from the younger generation to political decision makers. Thanks to its UN Special Observer Status, the foundation plays an active role in international Ocean governance. Exploring, sharing and protecting this living Ocean is more vital than ever. Together, let's defend life. Let's protect the Ocean.

ABOUT SCHMIDT OCEAN INSTITUTE

Schmidt Ocean Institute was established in 2009 by Eric and Wendy Schmidt to catalyze the discoveries needed to understand our Ocean, sustain life, and ensure the health of our planet through the pursuit of impactful scientific research and intelligent observation, technological advancement, open sharing of information, and public engagement, all at the highest levels of international excellence. The Schmidt Ocean Institute Artist-at-Sea program, launched in 2015, engages art to illuminate a deeper understanding of and connection with the Ocean. The program is uniquely positioned to facilitate collaborations between artists and the world's leading marine scientists, providing the Research Vessel Falkor (too) as a
platform for advanced technology-based ocean research, that lends to artistic exploration and dialogues across disciplines. This artist-led, cross-disciplinary approach encourages explorative perspectives and rekindles a connection to the marine world, sharing new understandings and discoveries that will impact our world today and in the future.