Joining the ranks of Sou Fujimoto (2013), Herzog & de Meuron and Ai Weiwei (2012),Peter Zumthor (2011),Jean Nouvel (2010),SANAA (2009),and more, little-known Chilean architect Smiljan Radic will be the fourteenth architect to design London's Serpentine Gallery Pavilion. Renderings of his design reveal a semi-translucent, cylindrical structure that rests on large quarry stones.The pavilion, to open June 26th, will remain in Kensington Gardens for four months.
Although Radic has constructed little outside his home country, his work has gained attention due to its versatility and attention to context. If you're unfamiliar, we recommend checking out Mestizo Restaurant, which similarly incorporates stone into its design, as well as his most recent. Julia Peyton-Jones, Director, and Hans Ulrich Obrist, Co-Director, of the Serpentine Galleries explained their choice:
We have been intrigued by [Radic’s] work ever since our first encounter with him at the Venice Architecture Biennale 2011 [sic]. Radic is a key protagonist of an amazing architectural explosion in Chile. While enigmatically archaic, in the tradition of romantic follies, Radic’s designs for the Pavilion also look excitingly futuristic, appearing like an alien space pod that has come to rest on a Neolithic site. We cannot wait to see his Pavilion installed on the Serpentine Gallery’s lawn this summer.
Radic had this to say about his design:
“Externally, the visitor will see a fragile shell suspended on large quarry stones. This shell - white, translucent and made of fibreglass - will house an interior organised around an empty patio, from where the natural setting will appear lower, giving the sensation that the entire volume is floating. At night, thanks to the semi-transparency of the shell, the amber tinted light will attract the attention of passers-by, like lamps attracting moths.”
Last year, Japanese architect Sou Fujimoto's Serpentine Gallery design, a semi-transparent, gridded-gathering space, was visited by almost 200,000 people (the most of any Pavilion). As it did for the Sou Fujimoto project, AECOM will provide engineering and technical design services for the Radic pavilion.
To learn more about Smiljan Radic, check out his projects on AD:
