Constructing la Biennale
Audience and professionals arriving from all over the world to Venice for the upcoming edition of the Architecture Biennale (May 10-November 23, 2025) will be able to visit the project drawn up by PoliTO Department of Architecture and Design-DAD, which is coordinating the design and curatorship of an installation at one of the most important venues of the event, the facade of the Central Pavilion at the Giardini, for the 2025 edition.
The special project “Constructing la Biennale”, developed by DAD in collaboration with the Barabasi Lab and the Center for Design at Northeastern University in Boston, USA, interweaves architectural design with scientific research, bringing together architects, graphic designers, experts in network science, information design and data visualization, and architecture ethnographers in a multidisciplinary group.
Through this interdisciplinary approach, “Constructing la Biennale” tells the backstory of the upcoming Architecture Biennale - "INTELLIGENS. NATURAL. ARTIFICIAL. COLLECTIVE" curated by Carlo Ratti, one of the most famous PoliTO alumni - delving into the curatorial process as a collaborative enterprise. Following the work of the curatorial team and using both big-data and ethnographic tools, the project captures the complexity behind the “construction” of a Biennale.
Biennales are pivotal to architectural discourse, acting as platforms for debate, critique and global exposure. Yet, their operational complexity and the dynamics shaping their outcomes often elude mainstream narratives.
Starting from research conducted on the historical evolution of the Architecture Biennale and its intricate ecology, data from the current edition - for example, the number of participating architects, the size and origin of the teams, the projects and their topics – have been processed into maps and diagrams. The curatorial team and other players who are contributing to this edition were interviewed and filmed. The result is an unprecedented representation of a complex network of players, works and topics that have coagulated, layered (or dissipated) over time.
Invisible negotiations, mediations and technical efforts emerge, as does the interplay between global networks, local contexts and interdisciplinary diplomacy that often remains hidden behind the show.
"This year the Central Pavilion at the Giardini is closed due to construction works. Our project involves the creation of a new façade that wraps around the one under restoration, supporting the narrative of the curatorial process through diagrams, maps, films and comics: the Biennale's ‘big construction site’ overlaps the restoration site of its most iconic place, letting the audience catch a glimpse of it." Stated Michele Bonino on behalf of the entire working group.
The project is coordinated by Michele Bonino, director of DAD, together with Albena Yaneva (architecture ethnography) from the same department and Albert-László Barabási (network science) and Paolo Ciuccarelli (information design and data visualization) from Northeastern University.
The team is composed of Edoardo Bruno, Valeria Federighi, Camilla Forina, Monica Naso, Alp Arda (with Noah Lenz and Zhenyi Chai) Micol Rispoli, Alessandro Armando from DAD; Benjamin Blackwell from Manchester University; Todd Linkner, Matthew Blanco, Rodrigo Dorantes Gilardi, Yixuan Liu, Csaba Both, Alice Grishchenko and Daria Koshkina from Northeastern University.
Also participating: SABO. branding + digital project; Multimedia Lab, DAD, Politecnico di Torino; Geomatics for Cultural Heritage Lab, DAD, Politecnico di Torino.