Boris Brorman Jensen and philosopher Kristoffer Lindhardt Weiss have been appointed to curate the Danish contribution to the 2016 Venice Biennale. Their exhibition will centre on the theme of 'humanism', a "central leitmotif in Danish architecture," which "promotes a sense of community and expresses civic pride." Although it is top of the agenda, they state that "there is not much agreement on how, when and by what means this 'humanistic architecture' should be realised."
The curators "want to present a dynamic snapshot of Danish architecture and urban planning, but we also intend to dig deeper. It is our ambition to explore, dissect and discuss some of the paradoxes and conflicts that come with a new humanism in contemporary architecture."
The architecture and urban spaces of the Danish welfare state are designed with humanism as their ideological sounding board. From schools, city halls and hospitals to affordable housing, climate adaptation, recreational areas, parks and infrastructure - everything is associated with humanistic ideas.
The Danish appear to be committed to creating architecture that improves quality of life, appeals to the human senses and embodies the principles of individual rights and freedom upon which Danish society is built.The exhibition seeks to explore and present good examples at all levels of architectural interpretation of the humanistic principles brought into play by contemporary architecture.
According to Kent Martinussen, CEO of the Danish Architecture Centre, the curators "will be working together to create a dynamic universe that exhibits the diversity of innovative thinking and architectural development of new Danish humanistic architecture. With Boris Brorman Jensen and Kristoffer Lindhardt Weiss spearheading the Danish contribution to the Architecture Biennale in 2016, we can expect fresh insights into how new Danish architecture has been influenced by critics of the modernist approach, with Jan Gehl as the standard bearer, as well as a stunning snapshot of contemporary Danish architecture - at home and out in the world."
You can read more about the curators, here.
