Friday, September 19, 2008

VENICE: 11th Biennale of Architecture: OUT THERE: ARCHITECTURE BEYOND BUILDING

“SPACE” # 2 - The Belgium Pavilion. 1907… after the party, project by Office Kersten Geers David Van Severen – curator Moritz Kung. 1907 … after the party, the figures in the title refer to the year when the Belgium Pavilion was built – the first foreign one in the Giardini, designed by the architect Leon Sneyers. The project is a tribute to the historical pavilion and puts it on show in its purest form as a monument, accessible from all sides, empty and stripped of all secondary additions. This is achieved, from the outside, by means of a seven-meter high double walled façade in galvanized steel, which does not allow the visitor an initial view from the promenade. This architecture, which looks both solid and filigreed, provides the setting, like a new pavilion, for what is being exhibited, which is the architecture of the existing Belgium pavilion. Between the building and the added facades, the existing rooms and the new patio, there is an empathic interaction between an inversion of the interior and exterior spaces. This impression is enhanced by the confetti scattered around the site and randomly positioned chairs. The monumental enclosure raises not only topical political, social and ecological issues, but also evokes a sentimental sense of a party that is over: the celebration of the centenary of the Belgium pavilion in 2007, which never actually took place.A detail. The confetti scattered on the ground evoke a sentimental sense of a party that is over: the celebration of the centenary of the Belgium pavilion in 2007, which never actually took place.
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