Invited Architects at the 2021 Venice Architecture Biennale: Exhibitions Through the Lens of Laurian Ghinitoiu

Other than the contribution of national participations, the 2021 Venice Architecture Biennale invites architects and researchers to exhibit their work between the Central Pavilion at the Giardini, the Arsenale, and Forte Marghera, seeking to answer the general theme of “How will we live together?”, set by curator Hashim Sarkis. With 113 Participants from 46 countries, and an increased representation from Africa, Latin America, and Asia, these architectural contributions underline worldwide and contextual challenges as well as present multidisciplinary and inventive solutions.

The 17th International Architecture Exhibition, running from 22 May to 21 November 2021, divides these projects amongst the following titles: Co-Habitats, Stations, Among Diverse Beings, As New Households, As Emerging Communities, Across Borders, and As One Planet, How Will We Play Together? After having explored the recurring qualities observed in the national pavilions, this feature highlights the rest of the interventions through the lens of Laurian Ghinitoiu.

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We need a new spatial contract. In the context of widening political divides and growing economic inequalities, we call on architects to imagine spaces in which we can generously live together -- Hashim Sarkis.

CO-HABITATS

"Showing how we do live together in Addis Ababa, the Azraq Refugee Camp, Beirut, Hong Kong, the India-Pakistan corridors, a Lagos squatter settlement compared to one in Cairo and another in Guadalajara, New York, Pristina, Rio de Janeiro, and the Sao Paulo area", Co-Habitats highlights contextual research work. From exploring conflicts of territorial existence to presenting case-based projects, this section is anchored in the urban conflicts of the world.

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Daniel Talesnik and Andres Lepik "Access for All: São Paulo’s Architectural Infrastructures". Image © Laurian Ghinitoiu
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Marc Angélil, Katharina Blümke, Dirk Hebel, Jenny Rodenhouse, and Bisrat Kifle Woldeyessus "Quo Addis? Conflicts of Coexistence". Image © Laurian Ghinitoiu

AMONG DIVERSE BEINGS

"Imagining spaces in which we can generously live together as human beings who, despite increasing individuality, yearn to connect with one another and with other species across digital and real space". This section of the international exhibition showcases innovative approaches such as a new direction for probiotic buildings and multispecies architecture or a gathering place created by soaring floating columns and cloud-like canopies. The interventions go beyond simple and monodirectional systems and introduce hybrid environments, exploring the relationship among natural elements, technology, and living structures.

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Peju Alatise of Art Accent Studio "Alasiri: Doors for Concealment or Revelation". Image © Laurian Ghinitoiu
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MAEID "Magic Queen". Image © Laurian Ghinitoiu
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Refik Anadol Studio and Gökhan S. Hotamışlıgil "SENSE OF SPACE ​Connectome Architecture + Molecular Architecture". Image © Laurian Ghinitoiu
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The Living "Alive: A New Spatial Contract for Multispecies Architecture". Image © Laurian Ghinitoiu
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Studio Ossidiana "Variations on a Bird Cage". Image © Laurian Ghinitoiu

AS NEW HOUSEHOLDS

"Imagining spaces in which we can generously live together as new households looking for more diverse and dignified spaces for inhabitation", the 2021 Venice Biennale also encourages architects to imagine new material cultures, rethinking the physical substrate for living together on the level of the household and habitat. From biotechnological architecture to reinterpreting basic building blocks, this section examines all the components that would generate a household.

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ecoLogicStudio "BIT.BIO.BOT. A Collective Experiment in Biotechnological Architecture". Image © Laurian Ghinitoiu
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ICD Institute for Computational Design and Construction and ITKE Institute of Building Structures and Structural Design "Material Culture: Rethinking The Physical Substrate For Living Together". Image © Laurian Ghinitoiu
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Lina Ghotmeh "Resilient Living — An Archaeology of the Future". Image © Laurian Ghinitoiu
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OPAFORM Architects "Make a Space for My Body". Image © Laurian Ghinitoiu

AS EMERGING COMMUNITIES

"Imagining spaces in which we can generously live together as emerging communities that demand equity, inclusion, and spatial identity", As Emerging Communities pushes the boundaries of learning from each other. In fact, in this section, the exhibitions explore a design process based on several principles: nature, communities, context, etc. Some projects tackle life beyond earth whereas others focused on the “New Normal", asking how can technology save us? 

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Alejandro Aravena/ eLEMENTAL "KOYAÜWE". Image © Laurian Ghinitoiu
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raumlaborberlin "Instances of Urban Practice". Image © Laurian Ghinitoiu
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Enlace Arquitectura "The Complete City: La Palomera, Acknowledgement and Celebration". Image © Laurian Ghinitoiu
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Manuel Herz Architects and Iwan Baan "The Many Lives of Tambacounda Hospital". Image © Laurian Ghinitoiu
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Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM) "Life Beyond Earth". Image © Laurian Ghinitoiu
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OMA "Hospital of the Future". Image © Laurian Ghinitoiu

ACROSS BORDERS

"Imagining spaces in which we can generously live together across political borders to imagine new geographies of association", Across Borders tackles worldwide challenges such as climate change or preservation of heritage, through different angles. Some interventions in this section study the possibility of repurposing plastic bags to help build a more inclusive, regenerative world that imagines a fossil fuel-free future, while others question refugee camps and their history.

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AAU ANASTAS “All-Purpose”. Image © Laurian Ghinitoiu
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Aerocene Foundation "Museo Aero Solar For an Aerocene Era". Image © Laurian Ghinitoiu
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Yoldas Lab "Hollow Ocean". Image © Laurian Ghinitoiu

AS ONE PLANET

"Imagining spaces in which we can generously live together as a planet facing crises that require global action for all of us to continue living at all", this section looks at the globe as a whole. Some perceive an architecture, as the earth is constantly metamorphosing, others crack open the world, we think we know, seeking to reveal other possibilities located somewhere between reality and speculation. 

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Cave_bureau "The Anthropocene Museum: Exhibit 3.0 Obsidian Rain". Image © Laurian Ghinitoiu
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Daniel López-Pérez and Reiser+Umemoto "Geoscope 2: Worlds". Image © Laurian Ghinitoiu
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Kei Kaihoh Architects "Melting Landscape". Image © Laurian Ghinitoiu
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Plan B Architecture & Urbanism "The World Turned Inside Out". Image © Laurian Ghinitoiu

We invite you to check out ArchDaily's comprehensive coverage of the Venice Architecture Biennale 2021, and watch our official playlist on Youtube featuring exclusive interviews with architects and curators of the Biennale.

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Cite: Christele Harrouk. "Invited Architects at the 2021 Venice Architecture Biennale: Exhibitions Through the Lens of Laurian Ghinitoiu" 14 Jul 2021. ArchDaily. Accessed . <https://www.archdaily.com/964064/invited-architects-at-the-2021-venice-architecture-biennale-exhibitions-through-the-lens-of-laurian-ghinitoiu> ISSN 0719-8884

EFFEKT Architects "Ego to Eco". Image © Laurian Ghinitoiu

摄影作品:2021威尼斯建筑双年展 / Laurian Ghinitoiu

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