What Graphics Library To Use?

Hi, people! I am writing a simple game engine in VB.Net. So far I have gotten away with using the built-in GDI, but it is really starting to bog down my engine. I have googled around a fair bit and from what I've read XNA is dead. Is there a way to get OpenGL in VB.Net? DirectX seems like the best choice right now. What would you use if you had to right a game engine?

From,
Philip