On May 20, The 18th International Architecture Exhibition of La Biennale di Venezia opened in Venice. The biennial, an inspired, multi-faceted presentation, curated by Lesley Lokko, is on view to the public through November 26. With a focus on sustainability and carbon neutrality throughout the sweeping spaces of the Giardini, the Arsenale, and Forte Marghera, the six-part exhibition brings together 89 global participants and especially illuminates Africa and the African Diaspora. Lokko placed an emphasis on freedom of expression and exploration in the art of architecture, alongside dialogues into the many shades of African culture, its complex histories, ardent desires, and everlasting strength and optimism.
Installation view of the USA Pavilion at 18th International Architecture Exhibition-La Biennale di Venezia, “The Laboratory of the Future,” photo by Matteo de Mayda, courtesy of La Biennale di Venezia.
“We have deliberately chosen to frame participants as ‘practitioners’ – and not ‘architects’ and/or ‘urbanists’, ‘designers’, ‘landscape architects’, ‘engineers’ or ‘academics’ because it is our contention that the rich, complex conditions of both Africa and a rapidly hybridizing world call for a different and broader understanding of the term ‘architect’,” explained Lokko. The marvelous depths of the imagination is given the utmost importance throughout the show, dedicated to the positive impact that creativity can instill on humanity, the environment, and its precious future. The Central Pavilion in the Giardini spotlights African and Diasporic architectural production from skilled practitioners such as Blac Space of Johannesburg in South Africa, Cartografia Negra of São Paulo in Brazil, and Banga Colectivo of Luanda in Angola and Lisboa in Portugal.
Installation view of the France Pavilion at 18th International Architecture Exhibition-La Biennale di Venezia, “The Laboratory of the Future,” photo by Matteo de Mayda, courtesy of La Biennale di Venezia.
The Curator’s Special Projects in the Arsenale represent an array of timely subjects: Food, Agriculture, & Climate Change; Gender & Geography; Mnemonic; and Guests from the Future. Special Projects participants such as BothAnd Group of Dublin, Ireland, Caroline Wanjiku Kihato of Nairobi, Kenya, and the Kiran Nadar Museum of Art in New Delhi, India investigate the many shades and textures of both decarbonization and decolonization. The Applied Arts Pavilion Special Project, the notable seventh collaboration with the Victoria & Albert Museum, London, dedicates this year’s show to “Tropical Modernism: Architecture and Power in West Africa,” bringing to light a brilliant transformation of architecture from one used as colonial suppression into another that rejoiced in the livelihood and independence of Ghana in 1957. This year, the Biennale College Architettura partners with the exhibition in a momentous teaching program, hosting acclaimed tutors for a selection of 50 international students and academics.
Installation view of the Brazil Pavilion at 18th International Architecture Exhibition-La Biennale di Venezia, “The Laboratory of the Future,” photo by Matteo de Mayda, courtesy of La Biennale di Venezia.
“A laboratory of the future must necessarily begin from a specific starting point, from one or more hypotheses seeking confirmation,” stated Roberto Cicutto, President of La Biennale di Venezia. “This is a starting point that seeks to heed those segments of humanity that have been left out of the debate and opens to a multiplicity of voices that have been silenced for so long by the one that considered itself to be rightfully dominant in a vital and unavoidable contest. I believe that this is La Biennale di Venezia’s true task as an institution, and not only for Architecture.”
Installation view of the Denmark Pavilion at 18th International Architecture Exhibition-La Biennale di Venezia, “The Laboratory of the Future,” photo by Matteo de Mayda, courtesy of La Biennale di Venezia.
National pavilion titles such as Portugal’s “Fertile Futures,” Lithuania’s “Children’s Forest Pavilion,” Albania’s “Untimely Meditations or: How We learn to live in synthesized realities,” and Bulgaria’s “Education is the movement from darkness to light,” are colorful, evocative illustrations of the unbreakable bond between humankind and its environment—and the overwhelming urgency to save both for future generations. The Italian pavilion’s presentation of “SPAZIALE: Everyone Belongs to Everyone Else,” champions design as a majestically collective effort, invigorated by true innovation and experimentation. Alongside the exhibition, a steady program of singular performances, films, lectures, and panel conversations, known as “Carnival,” is an energetic addition, fostering the brightness of sharing through thoughtful exchange and creativity.
Installation view of the Egypt Pavilion at 18th International Architecture Exhibition-La Biennale di Venezia, “The Laboratory of the Future,” photo by Matteo de Mayda, courtesy of La Biennale di Venezia.
“Conceived as a space of liberation rather than a spectacle or entertainment, Carnival offers a space for communication in which words, views, perspectives, and opinions are traded, heard, analyzed, and remembered,” said Lokko. “Politicians, policymakers, poets, filmmakers, documentary makers, writers, activists, community organizers and public intellectuals will share the stage with architects, academics, and students. This public event programme is increasingly a form of architectural practice that attempts to bridge the gulf between architects and the public.”
Installation view of the Venice Pavilion at 18th International Architecture Exhibition-La Biennale di Venezia, “The Laboratory of the Future,” photo by Matteo de Mayda, courtesy of La Biennale di Venezia.
