TBA21 at the 3rd United Nations Ocean Conference, Nice 2025

May 8 – June 9, 2025

Janaina Tschäpe: Dormant, 2014. TBA21 Thyssen-Bornemisza Art Contemporary Collection

Programming

TBA21–Academy

NICE2025

Art and culture are not peripheral to policy—they are essential engines of transformation in democratic and ecological governance. At this year’s United Nations Ocean Conference in Nice, TBA21 is partnering with a network of agents to advocate for a new paradigm for public policy—one where artists shape climate and ocean governance alongside scientists and legal experts. Through exhibitions, workshops, public programs, and participatory campaigns, this effort aims to foster emotional and sensory engagement with the Ocean by showcasing artistic works that translate scientific, ecological, and cultural knowledge into affective experiences, cultivating kinship with marine life.

The exhibition Becoming Ocean at Villa Arson, organized with Tara Ocean Foundation and with the participation of the Schmidt Ocean Institute, initiates a public conversation that challenges dominant narratives of extraction, commodification, and control over the Ocean, inviting visitors to imagine more reciprocal relationships with marine environments. The exhibition’s two-day public program Porous, organized as part of the European Commission’s initiative S+T+ARTS4WaterII, reimagines ports as porous spaces of interspecies cohabitation. The workshop OcéanoFuturismos: Science Fiction Prototyping Future Ocean Imaginaries, organized by Radical Earth Futures, TBA21–Academy, and Inferstudio, explores the potential of science fiction as a mechanism for prototyping alternative futures for the Ocean. UNOC3 will also mark the launch of The Protection Principle Task Force, hosted by the Let’s Be Nice to the Ocean initiative, a multidisciplinary body charged with developing practical pathways for ocean regeneration that will report its findings at next year’s UNOC. In La Baleine, the Green Zone of the United Nations Ocean Conference, the public will be able to experience a curated program of TBA21–Academy’s artist films, dedicated to exploring the state of the Ocean and advocating for a more-than-human sensitivity to underwater life. Alongside these collaborations, panel discussions, screenings, and conferences in association with the Schmidt Ocean Institute, the Tara Ocean Foundation, Université de l'Ocean (City of Nice), and Seas at Risk, among others, reiterate our commitment to collaborative practice addressing the most pressing issues facing the Ocean today.

Supporting the goals of the United Nations Ocean Conference, our program in Nice brings together diverse actors and audiences—policymakers, citizens, and creatives alike—in order to rethink and reform our relationship with the Ocean, advocating for ethical and sustainable ocean stewardship through the lens of art and culture.

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PROGRAM

EXHIBITIONS

Becoming Ocean
May 8–August 24, 2025, Villa Arson - Nice, France
Organized by Villa Arson, Tara Ocean Foundation, and TBA21 with the collaboration of Schmidt Ocean
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TIDAL SHIFTS
June 7–13, 2025, NEO – art & culture lab x VogelART - Nice, France
TBA21 presents the movie Prospecting Ocean by Armin Linke, alongside three prints by artists from Papua New Guinea.

EVENTS

JUNE 3

One Ocean Science Congress

11.20 am, Port Lympia - Nice, France

Innovating Ocean Governance: Affective Bureaucracies and the Wisdom of Lived Experience

OcéanoFuturismos: TBA21 in Nice to Imagine Other Futures for the Ocean
Conference

3 pm, Pavilion of the Nice Côte d'Azur Metropolis and the Southern Region - Nice, France
Organized by TBA21–Academy and City of Nice

JUNE 4

OcéanoFuturismos: Science Fiction prototyping future Ocean imaginaries

Workshop

10 am, Centre Universitaire Méditerranéen - Nice, France

Organized by Radical Ocean Futures, TBA21–Academy, and Inferstudio, in collaboration with l’Université de l’Océan, MAMAC and CUM

L'océan Un Tresor á Protéger
Panel discussion

7 pm, l’Artistique - Nice, France

Organized by Tara Ocean Foundation

In collaboration with TBA21–Academy, l’Université de l’Océan, Nice City Council.
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JUNE 6
One Ocean Science Congress

11.20 am, Port Lympia - Nice, France

The Case for Deep Sea Rights: A Path to Equitable and Sustainable Ocean Stewardship

Becoming: Benthos, Creatures of Twilight
Presentation, screening, and Q&A
4 pm, l’Artistique - Nice, France
Organized by Schmidt Ocean Institute in collaboration with TBA21 and the Université de l'Ocean (City of Nice).
A parallel event to the exhibition Becoming Ocean at Villa Arson.

JUNE 7

Ocean Rise and Coastal Resilience Coalition Summit

11 am, UNOC Blue Zone - Nice, France

Panel discussion with POROUS artist Siobhán McDonald

POROUS — Ports as Interspecies Dwelling Day 1
Symposium & Live Program
Villa Arson - Nice, France
On the occasion of World Ocean Day, the United Nations Conference on the Oceans & Biennale des Arts et de l’Océan 2025
Curated by María Montero Sierra (TBA21)
A project within the European Commission’s S+T+ARTS4Water II initiative
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JUNE 8

POROUS — Ports as Interspecies Dwelling Day 2
Symposium & Live Program
Villa Arson - Nice, France
On the occasion of World Ocean Day, the United Nations Conference on the Oceans & Biennale des Arts et de l’Océan 2025
Curated by María Montero Sierra (TBA21)
A project within the European Commission’s S+T+ARTS4Water II initiative
See more

JUNE 9

G20 OCEAN 20 Processing from dialogue to action (accreditation required)

4:45–7 pm, UNOC Blue Zone - Nice, France

Protection Principle Task Force (by invitation only)
6–8 pm, Villa Arson - Nice, France

Organized by Varda Group

In collaboration with TBA21 Thyssen-Bornemisza Art Contemporary and Tara Ocean Foundation

TBA21 Abyss Talks / A Late Night Series at the 3rd UN Ocean Conference (by invitation only)

7 pm, Bar Povera - Nice, France

Organized by TBA21–Academy

JUNE 10

Panel SiDS Alliance for Action - Leveraging Partnerships to Advance Ocean-based Economies in Small Island Developing States (accreditation required)
2 pm, UNOC Blue Zone, Room 3 - Nice, France

Abecedarium and Ocean Schools: the importance of Blue education and inclusion
Workshop
4:30 pm, La Baleine (Green Zone) - Nice, France

With Valeria Bottalico

TBA21 Abyss Talks / A Late Night Series at the 3rd UN Ocean Conference (by invitation only)

7 pm, Bar Povera - Nice, France

Organized by TBA21–Academy

JUNE 11

The ReefLine Salon
6 pm, NEO – art & culture lab x VogelART - Nice, France
The event is organized as part of the TIDAL SHIFTS exhibition and symposium.

Organized with the support of TBA21 and Francesca Thysssen-Bornemisza.

TBA21 Abyss Talks / A Late Night Series at the 3rd UN Ocean Conference (by invitation only)

7 pm, Bar Povera - Nice, France

Organized by TBA21–Academy

JUNE 12

It's the (blue) economy, stupid! Marine regeneration and prosperity beyond growth

2:15 pm, La Baleine (Green Zone) - Nice, France

With Louise Carver among other speakers. Organized by Seas at Risk

Navigating futures: Presenting Oceanographies

4 pm, La Baleine (Green Zone) - Nice, France

Créer pour Préserver : les acteurs culturels au service de la protection de l’Océan [Creating to Preserve: Cultural Actors in Service of Ocean Protection]

Conference

6 pm, salle Manta, La Baleine (Green Zone) - Nice, France

Organized by TBA21 and Tara Ocean Foundation

MEDiverSEAty: In quest of the human dimensions of Mediterranean Marine Biodiversity (Virtual round table)

6 pm, Online - TBA21 ocean comm/uni/ty

Protéger l’Océan par la Culture : Une alliance nécessaire [Protecting the Ocean through Culture: A Necessary Alliance]

Private event
7:20 pm, Villa Arson - Nice, France

JUNE 13

Ocean Imagination and Ocean Action

Artistic film program
4:30 pm, La Baleine (Green Zone) - Nice, France

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