spatial experience narrative and architecture - Architecture Insights

SPATIAL EXPERIENCE, NARRATIVE & ARCHITECTURE - BYERA HADLEY REPORT 72.0 CASE STUDIES2.012TH INT. ARCHITECTURE EXHIBITION2.1 12th International Architecture ExhibitionThe experience and observation of a majorarchitectural exhibition (12th International ArchitectureExhibition, Venice Biennale 2010) was used toaid in understanding the architectural possibilitiesof the spatial sequence of temporary structures.The Director of the 12th International Architectureexhibition “People meet in Architecture”, KazuyoSejima of SANAA stated, “The 2010 edition of theBiennale is an exhibition about finding architecture;to reconsider the potential of architecture incontemporary society”. 1 The exhibition, ‘People meetin Architecture’ showcased 48 participants: firms,architects, engineers and artists from around theworld and ran from 29th August-21st November 2010at the Giardini and the Arsenale and in various othervenues in Venice. 2The Arsenale site:The South-East area of the historic Arsenale sitehas become the stable site of the Biennale activitiessince 1999, with exhibition spaces such as: Corderie,Artiglierie, Gaggiandre, Tese Cinquecentesche, andTese delle Vergini. 3 Kazuyo Sejima invited theparticipants of this group exhibition to explorethe relationship between architecture and humaninteraction. Many architects were also invited to studytheir own work in films in an attempt to explore howpeople within the space make the space itself. 4 Theresulting collection of temporary installations at theArsenale was extremely diverse.”Individuals will be showing their position towards theinteraction of new social and natural environments; allof which means that each person is his or her owncurator. This way the atmosphere of the exhibitionitself will be achieved through multiple points of viewrather than a single orientation” (Sejima). 5 While thecollection of installations infused the historic site withnew life, they read as separate parts. The spatialsequence of the exhibition as a whole seemed quitearbitrary over the five exhibition spaces on the South-East end of the Arsenale. The most engaging of theworks was ‘Cloudscapes’ by Transolar and TetsuoKondo Architects. This installation successfullyacknowledged the space and materiality of thebuilding it inhabited, and encouraged increaseddegrees of interactivity (refer Section 2.2).The Giardini site:The Giardini site housed the various Nationalexhibitions. Sejima stated, “This exhibition allowspeople to acknowledge various ideas from diversebackgrounds and will reflect the present, which initself encapsulates future potential. (Her) hope wasthat the show would be an experience of architecturalpossibilities; about an architecture created bydifferent approaches, expressing new ways of living.” 6The French and the Netherlands pavilions used theirexhibition to rethink the way in which architecturedeals with spatial sequence and spatial narrativein cities. Both these exhibitions framed this ideathrough the focus on empty and available spaces inthe urban environment and how these spaces mightbe productively re-integrated for urban renewal (referSection 2.3-2.4).PICTUREDLocation photograph Arsenalesite