Venice: The Latest Architecture and News

The Board of La Biennale di Venezia has just announced the appointment of Koyo Kouoh as the Director of the Visual Arts Department. Kouoh will lead the curation of the 61st International Art Exhibition, scheduled for 2026. This announcement follows a recommendation by Pietrangelo Buttafuoco, President of La Biennale, who emphasized Kouoh's extensive experience in the global art world and her ability to engage with contemporary artistic and cultural discourse. Born in Cameroon, Koyo Kouoh will become the first African woman to curate the Venice Art Biennale.

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The Fay Jones School of Architecture and Design at the University of Arkansas, in collaboration with DesignConnects and the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art, has been chosen by the U.S. Department of State's Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs to represent the United States at the 2025 Venice Architecture Biennale. The selected theme, "PORCH: An Architecture of Generosity," explores the timeless architectural and cultural significance of the American porch, showcasing its continued relevance as a space for connection, inclusivity, and civic engagement.

Brazil has just announced its participation in the 19th International Architecture Exhibition – La Biennale di Venezia, opening on May 10, 2025, with a pavilion curated by the Plano Coletivo group. Architects Luciana Saboia, Eder Alencar, and Matheus Seco will lead the project, representing Brazil with an multidisciplinary approach that bridges architecture, nature, and social infrastructure.

The 19th Biennale Architettura, set to open in Venice in May 2025, will see the Belgian pavilion transformed by an exhibition titled "Building Biospheres," curated by a team comprising landscape architect Bas Smets, climate scientist Valerie Trouet, and biologist Stefano Mancuso. Initiated by the Flemish government and the Flanders Architecture Institute, this thought-provoking exhibit will explore a transformative approach to architecture through the lens of plant intelligence.

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Architectural grafting, a concept recently popularized by Jeanne Gang in The Art of Architectural Grafting, presents a transformative approach to urban regeneration and sustainability. Drawing inspiration from botanical and horticultural practices — where new growth is added to existing plants for enhanced resilience — this architectural method integrates new structures with existing ones, allowing them to coexist and adapt. Rather than pursuing demolition, grafting prioritizes adaptation, extending the life of buildings while safeguarding their cultural and historical significance.

While Studio Gang has played a pivotal role in advancing this method, architectural grafting embodies a broader principle that architects have long used to enhance sustainability, conserve resources, and honor heritage. Across scales — from individual buildings to urban landscapes —grafting reshapes the relationship between past and present, adapting existing structures for contemporary needs while addressing environmental demands. By reimagining historic buildings for modern use, this approach fosters a sustainable evolution of cityscapes.

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Iceland has announced its National Pavilion for the 19th International Architecture Exhibition – La Biennale di Venezia, presenting Lavaforming, a project led by architect Arnhildur Pálmadóttir, founder of s.ap architects. This pavilion, commissioned by Iceland Design and Architecture, will showcase an innovative approach to creating sustainable building materials from controlled lava flows.

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The National Pavilion UAE has announced that Azza Aboualam, an Emirati architect and Assistant Professor at Zayed University, has been appointed as the curator for the UAE's participation in the 19th International Architecture Exhibition – La Biennale di Venezia, which will take place from May 10 to November 23, 2025. Aboualam's research, which explores the intersection of architecture and societal memory, will be featured in the pavilion's exhibition in Venice, accompanied by a publication. This appointment follows Aboualam's involvement with the UAE Pavilion, where she served as a Venice Intern during the 14th International Architecture Exhibition in 2014.

This article was originally published on Common Edge in 2021 to celebrate Venice's 1,600th birthday.

"We native Venetians and long-term residents number just over 50,000. We are dying out. Soon, we will disappear. The city prefers to be inhabited by someone else: not so much by other categories of human beings but by another way of being in the world.” – Tiziano Scarpa

March 25, 2021, dawned quietly in Venice. The city was still in full lockdown, a Zona Rossa. The Piazza was empty, the calli were eerily still. It was a subdued day to celebrate the birth of Venice. According to 16th century Venetian historian Marin Sanudo, the city was founded in 421 AD. In a city brought to a halt by the pandemic, the joyful clamor of bells ringing out across the city commemorating 1,600 years of existence was a welcome respite from the dreaded silence.

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A new exhibition presenting the works of artist Zeng Fanzhi has opened in the historic Scuola Grande della Misericordia in Venice, Italy. Running from April 17 to September 30, 2024, concurrent with this year’s edition of the Venice Arts Biennale, the “Zeng Fanzhi: Near and Far/Now and Then” exhibition showcases the latest breakthroughs in the artist’s practice in a space adapted by architect Tadao Ando.

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The British Council has just announced the team set to represent the United Kingdom at the 19^th International Architecture Exhibition – La Biennale di Venezia 2025. The selected team comprises experts from the UK and Kenya, including Nairobi-based Cave_bureau. Scheduled to run from May 24 to November 23, 2025, the UK Pavilion hopes to ignite meaningful conversations about architecture’s impact on communities and the planet.

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Italian architect and industrial designer Gaetano Pesce has passed away at the age of 84, as announced today on the creator's official Instagram page. Known for the famous UP5 Chair (2000) by B&B Italia which can be compressed like a sponge, and the Organic Building in Osaka, Japan (1993), with a vertical garden irrigated by a complex, computer-controlled hydration system, Pesce dedicated over six decades to his craft, accumulating a portfolio that spanned architecture, product design, and art.

During Milan Design Week 2024, a monographic exhibition titled "Nice to See You" showing at Biblioteca Ambrosiana, is set to feature unreleased works of Gaetano Pesce. Additionally, Gaetano was presenting "L’Uomo Stanco" an outdoor installation in Piazza San Pio XI.

“Reinventing Cities,” C40’s renowned global design competition, has just announced its fourth edition. The competition’s main goal is to “transform underutilized sites or buildings into beacons of sustainability and resilience and act as a showcase for future zero-carbon urban developments.” This year, 15 cities have stepped up the challenge, inviting professionals from various disciplines to reimagine underutilized urban sites and design transformations prioritizing sustainability and inclusivity.

With a commitment to zero-carbon, urban resilient projects, Reinventing Cities has engaged over 3,500 businesses worldwide with 40 projects currently under development globally. This year’s competition is characterized by its ambitious environmental and social objectives; with participating cities spanning continents, including Almere, Bilbao, Bologna, Brussels, Glasgow, Milan, New York, Palermo, Renca, Rome, San Antonio, San Francisco, São Paulo, Seattle, and Venice.

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Venice authorities have launched a pilot program for their long-term discussed plan to introduce fees for day-trippers visiting the city. The program, which has been delayed several times citing logistical issues, was officially launched on January 16th, when the online payment platform became operational. While the scope of the program is expected to expand, for now, it will be applied only on certain days during the most crowded season, between April 25 and July 14.