Constructing La Biennale: the "behind the scenes" of La Biennale Architettura di Venezia

Based on this research on the historical evolution of La Biennale Architettura and its intricate ecology, the data of the current edition – e.g. the number of participating architects, the size and origin of the teams, the projects and their themes – were processed in data clusters, maps and diagrams. Another 23-metre wall offers a critical visualisation of the curatorial process of this year's exhibition: Intelligens. Natural. Artificial. Collective. The range of selected proposals and projects is explored from an ethnographic point of view: the curatorial team and the many other actors contributing to this edition were interviewed, followed, filmed. The result is an unprecedented representation of a complex network of people, works and themes that have coagulated, stratified (or dissipated) over time.

Thus, invisible negotiations, mediations and technical efforts emerge, but also working materials (sketchbooks, plans, sketches, models, prototypes), as well as the interaction between global networks, local contexts and interdisciplinary diplomacy, which often remains hidden behind the scene.

"The presence of Politecnico di Torino at La Biennale Architettura di Venezia demonstrates Politecnico's great consideration of construction and technological innovation in this sector, which is key for providing concrete answers to the challenges posed by the ecological and energy transition, and sustainability," comments Deputy Rector of Politecnico di Torino Elena Baralis. She then continues: "Our University has coordinated four contributions that converge in La Bienniael's installation: that of Network Science, with the Barabasi Lab in Boston; that of Information Design from Northeastern University; the ethnographic one by Albena Yaneva, and finally the architectural design curated by the designers themselves from the Department of Architecture and Design. A group of excellence from an academic point of view, using quantitative-technological methods based on big data and networks, and qualitative-humanistic methods of the ethnography of architecture”'.

"Since in previous Biennale it was the figure of the curator who attracted most of the attention and emphasis, this time we explicitly announce the presence of a complex machine, made up of over two thousand people, including those who participate, those who curate, those who build and those who promote. This collective intelligence is represented as faithfully as possible by our installation”, said Michele Bonino, Director of the Department of Architecture and Design and curator of the project.

The presence at La Biennale will be an occasion for visibility not only for Politecnico, but for the City of Turin and its tradition in the fields of architecture and construction. This year’s edition sees for the first time an architect from Turin, Carlo Ratti, as the exhibition curator (since 2000, the edition directed by Massimiliano Fuksas, there were no more Italian curators). 

Photo gallery by Pietro Merlo