Business
& Labor
Images from the 10th International Venice Architecture Biennale
(archrecord.construction.com - 09/15/2006)
Organized by editors of Architectural
Record and administered by the Bureau of Educational
and Cultural Affairs of the U.S. Department of State, the
U.S. Pavilion at the 10th International
Venice Architecture Biennale will feature the exhibition
After the Flood: Building on Higher
Ground.
The exhibition presents innovative architectural
proposals for rebuilding New Orleans and the U.S. Gulf Coast
in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, including winning designs
of an international design competition organized by Architectural
Record and the Tulane
School of architecture.
For its Tenth anniversary, the architectural
Biennale has grown into THE architectural scene-with 250,ooo
visitors pouring through the gates at the giardini, or wandering
through the cavernous Arsenale, la serenissima becomes a
floating, movable feast. This year, the show took a decided
turn, addressing Architecture, Cities, and Society--a serious
topic chosen by Richard Burdett of the London School of
economics. If some years the pavilions veer toward the artsy
or the wacky, this year pragmatic might apply. The ArsenaleM
for example, was lined with case studies, city after city,
of rapidly advancing metro population centers. Most arresting
moment? A field of towers showing density of people per
square meter, dramatically lighted like ice sculptures.
Who knew that Istanbul had grown that dense?
The american pavilion, which we curated,
contained several of the few examples of architecture in
sight. In fact, that criticism may be levelled at what is
actually an interesting show-the lack of 3-dimensional representation.
In some cases, a visitor might well look for the textbook.
If you stay home, however, you miss
the interactions, the adventure, and the sensual delights
of one city, it is safe to say, as felicitous as any place
on earth.
—Robert Ivy, FAIA, Editor in Chief
All photography © Michael Goodman
PAST COVERAGE: Click
here to see our 2004
Biennale special section—;see the projects that transcend
type, listen to the participating architects, and review the
events of this year's international architecture celebration.
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