British Pavilion Venice 2023, Architect News, Photos, UK Architecture Design Installation in Italy
British Pavilion 2023 Venice
21 February 2023
British Council announce initial plans for the UK at the 18th International Architecture Exhibition –
La Biennale di Venezia
20 May to 26 November 2023
Pictured (from left) for the announcement are Jayden Ali, Joseph Henry, Meneesha Kaur Kellay, Sevra Davis (Director of Architecture Design Fashion at the British Council) and Sumitra Upham:
photo courtesy of the British Council
British Pavilion 2023 Venice Biennale
The British Council and the commissioned curators – Jayden Ali, Joseph Henry, Meneesha Kellay and Sumitra Upham – today announce their preliminary plans for the British Pavilion at the 18th International Architecture Exhibition of La Biennale di Venezia 2023. Their exhibition, Dancing Before the Moon, will present a series of installations featuring new work by six artists and designers and a new film and soundscape.
The exhibition promotes the idea that everyday rituals (from growing food and cooking to playing games and dancing) are tools for diasporic communities to establish spaces and present new ways of thinking about architecture and the built environment. Through a series of installations, a group of UK-based artists and architects will transform the pavilion to represent a future for British architecture – one where social practices are celebrated for binding communities and transforming space.
As visitors approach the entrance of the British Pavilion, they will immediately encounter a new exterior installation designed by Jayden Ali. The main hall of the pavilion will consist of a large cinematic installation with a film developed by the curators and collaborators, highlighting the central role that rituals play in reflecting the traditions and community values of people living in the UK.
Inside the pavilion, the galleries will focus on objects conceived and produced by five UK-based artists and architects, with an interest in materials and making: Yussef Agbo-Ola, Mac Collins, Shawanda Corbett, Madhav Kidao and Sandra Poulson. The objects will reflect global cultural practices that impact space.
Collectively, this exhibition champions an expanded notion of architecture. One that is intangible, that cross-pollinates with performance, craft and other creative disciplines, and that is shaped by people.
This installation responds to the wider themes of the Biennale Architettura 2023 – The Laboratory of the Future – giving audiences a chance to imagine different futures where collaboration, experimentation and equity are prioritised in the planning of space in the UK.
Sankofa Docks by JA Projects (Alongside BIG and Harrison Stringfellow + Team), 2021:
photo © Gary W Smith
Jayden Ali, Joseph Henry, Meneesha Kellay and Sumitra Upham said:
“The British Pavilion at the Biennale Architettura 2023 is a space for rethinking the role that people play in shaping the built environment. It demonstrates the need for architecture to look beyond buildings and economic structures and towards everyday social practices, customs and traditions in order to meaningfully reflect how people use and occupy space.”
Jayden Ali is the Founding Director of interdisciplinary practice JA Projects and a Senior Lecturer at Central Saint Martins; Joseph Henry is a designer and urbanist, co-founder of platform Sound Advice and is the Capital Development Manager in the Culture and Creative Industries Team at the Greater London Authority; Meneesha Kellay is a curator and commissioner, currently Senior Curator, Contemporary Programme at the V&A; and Sumitra Upham is a curator and writer, currently Head of Programmes at the Crafts Council.
Yussef Agbo Ali, Nono, Soil Temple, Palais de Tokyo, 2022:
photograph courtesy of the British Council
Sevra Davis, Director of Architecture Design Fashion at the British Council and Commissioner of the British Pavilion said:
“We are delighted that the British Council Commission for the 18th International Architecture Exhibition will look at architecture and the built environment in a new way, advocating for rituals as a way of changing spaces. This newly commissioned installation presents a radically different vision for the UK – encouraging us to reconsider our customs and traditions and create more innovative, forward-thinking places.”
The British Council has been responsible for the British Pavilion at the International Art and Architecture Exhibitions organized by La Biennale di Venezia since 1937, showcasing the best of the UK’s artists, architects, designers and curators. These exhibitions, and the British Council’s Venice Fellowships initiative introduced in 2016, help make the British Pavilion a major platform for discussion about contemporary art and architecture. They also continue the British Council’s work in supporting peace and prosperity by building connections, understanding and trust between people in the UK and countries worldwide.
From the first International Architecture Exhibition at the pavilion in 1991, the British Council has invited high-profile names to curate and show. Zaha Hadid, Richard Rogers and Norman Foster have all contributed alongside other emerging and established architects, designers, artists and engineers. The British Pavilion at the Biennale Architecture aims to create debate that both challenges and influences the future of British architecture.
Since 2012 the British Council has commissioned the exhibition through an open call. Curators have been encouraged to use the pavilion as a space for research, alongside showcasing pioneering architecture and challenging ideas.
Background
Dancing Before the Moon:
“There is a reason, after all, that some people wish to colonize the moon, and others dance before it as an ancient friend.” James Baldwin
About the exhibition title, the curators said: “In many countries, the moon is celebrated as a symbol of life. To us, the quote reflects a longing and appreciation for global rituals and everyday practices that demonstrate an appreciation of soil and the cosmos. It proposes an alternative way of considering collective relationships to land and geography, and how communities come together to hold space through making and social practices. Importantly it speaks to both the past and the future.”
Exhibition details
The 18th International Architecture Exhibition – La Biennale di Venezia, 20 May – 26 November 2023
The British Pavilion is commissioned and managed by British Council Architecture.
Commissioner: Sevra Davies, Director of Architecture, Design and Fashion at British Council.
For latest news on the British Council commission: https://venicebiennale.britishcouncil.org/
Accreditation information
Press accreditation from La Biennale is needed to access the official Pavilions of 18th International Architecture Exhibition – La Biennale di Venezia ahead of the public opening. For more information on how to apply, please contact: archpress@labiennale.org
About the British Pavilion Selection Committee
The UK’s presentation at the International Architecture Exhibition of La Biennale di Venezia is selected by an advisory panel of leading architecture professionals, from across the UK. The panel membership changes for every edition of the Biennale Architettura. The panel selecting the 2023 pavilion was chaired by Sevra Davis, Director of Architecture Design Fashion at the British Council and Commissioner of the British Pavilion and also included:
Simon Allford, President RIBA
Gus Casely-Hayford, Director V&A East
Carole-Anne Davies, Chief Executive, Design Commission for Wales
Anab Jain, Co-Founder and Director, Superflux
Chithra Marsh, Associate Director, Buttress Architects
Dr. Agustina Martire, Senior Lecturer in Architecture, Queen’s University Belfast
Vanessa Norwood, Creative Director, Building Centre
Dr. Neal Shasore, Head of School and Chief Executive Officer, London School of Architecture
About the Venice Fellowships
The Venice Fellowships enable students and volunteers to spend a month in Venice during one of the world’s most significant art and architecture biennales:
venicebiennale.britishcouncil.org/fellowship/how-apply
Acknowledgements
The British Pavilion is made possible through the generosity of the following organisations whose financial and in-kind contributions support the curators’ vision:
Gold Sponsor:
Therme Group
And those who wish to remain anonymous
Curators:
Jayden Ali is an architect, artist, and filmmaker whose interdisciplinary practice, JA Projects, works internationally on public-facing, cultural projects that strengthen communities and actively reflect on society. He is a lecturer at Central Saint Martins, a trustee of Open City, and a Design Advocate for the Mayor of London. He has been recognised by numerous publications as a key voice shaping the life of cities and is on the Architects’ Journal’s prestigious ‘40 Under 40’ list. He is an alumnus of the Architectural Association, The Cass and the University of East London.
Joseph Henry is a designer, urbanist and writer whose practice advocates for equitable processes for making cities. Joseph works at the Greater London Authority as Capital Development Manager in the Culture and Creative Industries Unit. He previously led the Ecological Urbanism research inquiry, where he developed planning policy and guidance to embed circular economy principles into London’s planning system. Joseph, alongside Pooja Agrawal, co-founded Sound Advice, an extra-institutional platform that explores new forms of spatial practice through music. Sound Advice develops projects that foreground narratives and culture critical to designing a more progressive and plural urban environment. Joseph has written for titles such as Dezeen and Casabella. He is a trustee of the Russell Maliphant Dance Company and an advisor to Thearum Mundi.
Meneesha Kellay is a curator and commissioner working across art, architecture, design, and performance. Currently the Senior Curator, Contemporary Programme at the Victoria and Albert Museum (V&A), she supports emerging creative practice through commissioning exhibitions, installations, performances, and events. Previously she was Public Programmes Curator at the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA), Assistant Director of the AA Night School at the Architectural Association, and led Open House London 2014. She has worked on projects for the Africa Architecture Awards and the Baltic Pavilion at the 15th International Architecture Exhibition of La Biennale di Venezia in 2016. She holds a Masters in Cultural and Critical Studies from Goldsmiths, University of London, and a Bachelors in Architecture from the University of Manchester. Meneesha is a steering committee member for Design Can and a key advocate of the V&A’s anti-racism efforts.
Sumitra Upham is a curator and writer interested in spatial and discursive practices and the social value of making. Currently Head of Programmes at the Crafts Council, she oversees its contemporary craft collection and an interdisciplinary programme of exhibitions and events. Previously she was Senior Curator of Public Programmes at the Design Museum (2017–21); Curator of Programmes for the 5th Istanbul Design Biennial, Empathy Re-Visited: Designs for more than one (2019–20); and Associate Curator at the Institute of Contemporary Arts (ICA), London (2012–16). Sumitra holds a Masters in Curating Contemporary Design from Kingston University and a Graduate Certificate in History of Art and Architecture from Birkbeck, University of London. In 2020 she joined the board of Trustees at Cubitt, an artist-run gallery and cooperative.
Artists:
Yussef Agbo-Ola, founder of Studio Olaniyi, is an architect and artist living between London and the Amazon. His practice questions how art, architecture, and anthropological research can create experimental environments that challenge the ways we experience geological conditions and living ecosystems. His research manifests through architectural pavilions, photographic journalism, material alchemy, interactive performance, experimental sound design, and conceptual writing. Agbo-Ola holds a Masters in Fine Art from the University of the Arts London and a Masters in Architecture from the Royal College of Art. He has led art and architectural commissions for the United Nations; the Institute of Contemporary Arts (ICA), London; the Serpentine, London; Sharjah Architecture Triennial; TEDxEastEnd, London; the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC); Venice Architectural Biennale; and Palais de Tokyo, Paris, among others. Agbo-Ola is an Adjunct Assistant Professor of Architecture at Columbia’s Graduate School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation (GSAPP), where he directs an experimental design studio within the Advanced Architectural Design programme.
Mac Collins is a British designer and artist committed to designing and making narrative-led and impactful furniture and objects that explore intersections of culture. As an artist of dual heritage, Collins draws on his British Jamaican lineage to create artefacts informed by the stories and experiences of his intertwined community. He graduated with a degree in 3D Design from Northumbria University, Newcastle, and is the recipient of the London Design Festival’s Emerging Design Medal (2021) and the Ralph Saltzman Prize (2022), which culminated in a solo exhibition at the Design Museum, London. Recent group exhibitions include: Discovered: Designers for Tomorrow at the Design Museum, London, in partnership with American Hardwood Export Council (AHEC) and Wallpaper* (2021); and Radical Acts: Why Craft Matters at Harewood House, Leeds (2022).
Shawanda Corbett, New York-born artist Shawanda Corbett spent much of her life in Mississippi. Her wide-ranging practice covers performance and pottery through a ‘cyborg’ perspective, looking at the relationships between differently abled and abled bodies. Her colourful, sculptural ceramic vessels feature paired forms in curious communion. She is currently studying for her doctorate in Fine Art at the Ruskin School of Art at the University of Oxford. Her work is represented in the collections of the Fitzwilliam Museum, the Harris, and the Arts Council Collection, all in the UK. She is the recipient of the Kleinwort Hambros Emerging Artist Prize (2021) and the Tate’s Turner Bursary (2020). Recent solo exhibitions include: Art Now: Shawanda Corbett, Tate Britain, London; and Body Vessel Clay: Black Women, Ceramics & Contemporary Art, Two Temple Place, London (2022). She lives and works in Oxford, England.
Madhav Kidao is an Indian-born British architect and co-founder of London-based architecture, design, and art studio Nebbia Works alongside Brando Posocco. Kidao and Posocco’s work explores the peripheries of architecture and is driven by an interest in the idiosyncrasies, contradictions, and undefined boundaries of our world. They investigate tools, narratives, technology, and materials to fabricate new public and cultural environments with a particular focus on craft and process. A graduate of the Bartlett School of Architecture, University College London, Kidao previously worked at Heatherwick Studio (2013–17). Although an architect by training, his practice includes collaborations with artists, musicians, and theatre companies, as well as art direction for film. He has a particular interest in imagination-led design, performance, experimental technology, and craftsmanship.
Shandra Poulson, Angolan artist Sandra Poulson lives between London and Luanda. She holds a Masters in Fashion from the Royal College of Art and a Bachelors in Fashion Print from Central Saint Martins. Her work discusses the political, cultural, and socio-economic landscape of Angola to analyse the relationship between history, oral tradition, and global political structures. Her practice draws upon inherited societal memories of colonial Angola and its civil war to dismantle contemporary narratives through semiotic and archaeological studies. She is the recipient of the MullenLowe NOVA Award and the Central Saint Martins Dean’s Award (2020). Her work has been exhibited in various exhibitions internationally, most recently at the Lagos Biennial (2019) and Bloomberg New Contemporaries at the South London Gallery (2021). She has had solo presentations at ARCOmadrid (2021); V.O Curations, London (2022); and Bold Tendencies, London (due to open in 2023).
About the British Council
The British Council is the UK’s international organisation for cultural relations and educational opportunities. We support peace and prosperity by building connections, understanding and trust between people in the UK and countries worldwide. We do this through our work in arts and culture, education and the English language. We work with people in over 200 countries and territories and are on the ground in more than 100 countries. In 2021-22 we reached 650 million people
Previously on e-architect:
British Council, 1 Redman Place Stratford, London, E20 1JQ, United Kingdom
25 February 2022
British Council Announces team for British Pavilion 2023 at the Venice Architecture Biennale
The British Pavilion is commissioned by the British Council.
Pictured (from left) are: Joseph Henry, Meneesha Kaur Kellay, Sumitra Upham, Jayden Ali and Sevra Davis ((Director of Architecture Design Fashion at the British Council):
British Council announces curatorial team for British Pavilion at the 18th International Architecture Exhibition at la Biennale di Venezia
British Pavilion 2023 at the Venice Architecture Biennale
The British Council announces today that a team of architects and curators has been selected to represent the UK at the 18th International Architecture Exhibition of La Biennale di Venezia 2023. The curatorial team selected is Jayden Ali, Joseph Henry, Meneesha Kellay and Sumitra Upham.
The exhibition will explore non-extractive material culture ¬- revealing how diasporic craft and material cultures can help foster a more sustainable future for British architecture, built on principles of care and equity over extraction and exploitation.
The curators will transform the British Pavilion into celebratory spaces, collaborating with architectural practitioners, researchers, and makers. The exhibition design intends to embrace collective construction methods and processes that avoid exploiting people and the planet.
Jayden Ali is the Founding Director of interdisciplinary practice JA Projects and a Senior Lecturer at Central Saint Martins; Joseph Henry is a designer and urbanist, co-founder of platform Sound Advice and works as part of the Culture and Creative Industries Team at the Greater London Authority; Meneesha Kellay is the Contemporary Programme Curator at the Victoria and Albert Museum (V&A); and Sumitra Upham is a curator and writer, currently Head of Public Programmes at the Crafts Council.
Jayden Ali, Joseph Henry, Meneesha Kellay, and Sumitra Upham said:
“We want to thank the Selection Committee for inviting us to curate the British Pavilion for la Biennale di Venezia 2023.
“Our exhibition will explore architecture of the diaspora through a pre-colonial lens, celebrating the spectrum of architectural philosophies, making practices and material knowledge within those communities.
“Foregrounding their currency at a time of growing social polarisation and ecological degradation, we intend to amplify voices and perspectives that have been previously overlooked in British architecture. Our pavilion will readdress the architectural canon through a joyful celebration of pluralism.”
The British Council has been commissioning the British Pavilion in Venice since 1937, showcasing the best of the UK’s artists, architects, designers and curators. These exhibitions, and the Venice Fellowships initiative introduced in 2016, help make the British Pavilion a platform for discussion on contemporary art and architecture.
Pictured (from left) for the announcement are Sumitra Upham, Jayden Ali, Sevra Davis (British Council, Director of Architecture Design Fashion at the British Council), Joseph Henry and Meneesha Kaur Kellay:
Sevra Davis, Director of Architecture Design Fashion at the British Council said:
“The British Council is delighted to announce the winning proposal for the British Pavilion at the Biennale Arte 2023. In releasing the open call, we were looking forward to proposals directly addressing the urgent challenges facing society today and that would demonstrate how architecture can proactively respond. I would like to thank everyone who rose to this challenge and for the time, thinking and inventiveness that went into the proposals.”
“The British Pavilion presents a unique opportunity to reach an international audience on the world’s most prestigious platform for architecture. This commission will demonstrate how we can rethink our built environment and the architectural canon through a decolonial lens and learn from diaspora communities and cultures to create a more equitable, sustainable, healthier and joyful future.”
A panel of architecture and design specialists from across the UK selected the winning team from a shortlist of five proposals. The Committee members included:
Carole-Anne Davies, Chief Executive, Design Commission for Wales:
“This proposal immediately stood out among a range of incredibly stimulating submissions. The team clearly articulated their concept with a powerful combination of gravitas and irresistible enthusiasm. Their fresh, distinctive approach offers vital creativity and a compelling, critical proposal addressing the importance and impact of genuinely sustainable architecture and construction practice. It showcases an extremely talented team, engaging seriously and imaginatively with a key challenge of our age.”
Chithra Marsh, Associate Director at Buttress, Diversity Network:
“This was an incredibly strong submission. The team demonstrated high energy and infectious enthusiasm for marrying the challenges of diaspora communities with sustainable architecture, while highlighting a global need to hear diverse voices through innovative thought-provoking proposals. I wish them every success in the delivery of the exhibition and look forward to seeing it flourish. I have no doubt that it will bring joy and generate animated debate among visitors to the British Pavilion at the 2023 Venice Biennale”
Dr. Agustina Martire, Senior Lecturer in Architecture, Queen’s University Belfast:
“This commission was one of a series of excellent, engaging and challenging proposals. The exhibition stood out by highlighting the need for a more sustainable, more diverse and inclusive practice of architecture, putting people first and presented with joy and enthusiasm. I look forward to the exhibition and the impact it may have on the Venice Biennale.”
Vanessa Norwood, Creative Director of the Building Centre:
“The exhibition will be a timely, provocative, and engaging look at the future of architecture. A bright star in the Venice biennale firmament.”
This year, the British Council also shares details of four other projects that were shortlisted for the commission. They are:
Project title: Moving Monuments
Team: Yinka Ilori Studio
Synopsis: Moving Monuments explores the typology of the pedestal as a spatial tool to elevate a hero and to create a physical manifestation of praise and celebration. Drawing from the Black Lives Matter movement and the removal of Edward Colston’s statue in Bristol, Moving Monuments serves to trigger reflection on the way that contemporary needs, equality and political/social engagement are accomplished through everyday rituals. The physical manifestation is a shift of focus that occurs from the statue to the pedestal, creating a space for questioning what society should celebrate today.
Title: Material Reform
Team: Summer Islam, Paloma Gormley, George Massoud (Material Cultures) and Charlotte Malterre-Barthes
Synopsis: In light of the current social and environmental breakdown, Material Reform imagines a decarbonised and decolonised future. The proposal asks how we can critically reassess our relationships to the world by engaging with our landscapes in a holistic sense, through a better understanding of their geography, materiality, ecology, and place. The proposal focuses on identifying material shortcomings within the construction industry in the UK and highlighting the points of leverage from which change can be driven.
Title: Listen Up!
Team: Dinah Bornat, Jo McCafferty, Cordula Weisser, Alexis Kalli, Giovanna Celeghin, Naomi Rubbra,
Jessica Mitchell, Basil Anuar, Sally Bradforth, Barry McCullough
Synopsis: Listen Up! will occupy the British pavilion by showcasing work being carried out with young people across the UK. Their stories and lived experiences will be revealed, displayed, and broadcast – through models, drawings and film. Visitors will be introduced to new ways of working with young people, guided through best practice and inspired to try different approaches themselves. Young people working on the project will feel empowered and heard and there will be ways of working together with pupils and students from Italy as the project evolves.
The data and narratives collected will form the basis of a powerful lobbying tool for this cohort of young people to instigate the changes they want to see. A tool for young people to engage with us, on their terms.
Title: Grenfell Residents and Stories of the Home
Team: A Small Studio with Empathy Museum: Dr. Helena Rivera, Clare Patey, Kalliopi Bouzounieraki, Iria Suárez Martínez, Alice Kim and Jesse Lawson
Synopsis: The exhibition proposal Grenfell Residents and Stories of the Home aims to unpack the interconnected themes of housing, poverty, social injustice, racial inequity and the role of the architect. Through the lens of the Grenfell tragedy the exhibition aims to tell a personal story about people, communities and their homes.
About the winning commission
The exhibition (titled to be announced) will explore the architecture of the British diaspora through a postcolonial lens to present architecture as a form of material and immaterial cultural expression. It will reveal how respecting and learning from diasporic craft and material cultures can help foster a more sustainable future for architecture, one that is built on principles of care and equity over extraction and exploitation.
Dates
The 18th International Architecture Exhibition of la Biennale di Venezia will be held from Saturday 20 May to Sunday 26 November, 2023.
Follow updates on the #BritishPavilion via: twitter.com/British_Design and www.instagram.com/british_design/
Team of architects and curators who will represent the UK at the 18th International Architecture Exhibition at La Biennale di Venezia 2023 Meneesha Kellay, Jayden Ali, Joseph Henry and Sumitra Upham plus Sevra Davis, British Council Commissioner of the Bratish Pavilion and British Council Director of Architecture, Design and Fashion.
Winning Curatorial team bios
Jayden Ali is the Founding Director of interdisciplinary practice JA Projects and works at the meeting point of architecture, urban planning and art, focusing on public facing, cultural projects that strengthen communities and enrich society. Approaching a decade of working; previous projects range from architectural masterplans, new builds, refurbishments and exhibitions, through to the production of documentaries, urban research and the establishment of community institutions. He is a Senior Lecturer on Central Saint Martins’ MArch Architecture course, is a trustee of Open City/Open House and a columnist at Elephant Magazine. He is part of the Hackney Regeneration Design Advisory Group and sits on the London Legacy Development Corporation Quality Review Panel. Jayden has been recognised as a key voice in architecture ‘shaping a new future for London’ by the Design Museum, Wallpaper Magazine and the Architecture Foundation, and is included within the Architects’ Journal’s prestigious ’40 Under 40’ list.
Joseph Henry is a designer, urbanist and writer whose practice involves working closely with institutions to be more progressive in how they shape our urban environment. Joseph works at the Greater London Authority as Capital Development Manager in the Culture and Creative Industries Unit. He previously led the Ecological Urbanism research inquiry, where he developed planning policy and guidance to embed circular economy principles into London’s planning system.
Joseph, alongside Pooja Agrawal, co-founded Sound Advice, an extra-institutional platform that explores new forms of spatial practice through music. Sound Advice develops projects that foreground narratives and culture critical to designing a more progressive and plural urban environment. Joseph has written for titles such as Dezeen and Casabella He is a trustee of the Russell Maliphant Dance Company, an advisor to Thearum Mundi and an associate lecturer on the MArch course and Central Saint Martins.
Meneesha Kaur Kellay is a London based curator and writer. She is currently the Contemporary Programme Curator at the Victoria and Albert Museum (V&A), where she commissions projects and installations, and curates Friday Lates alongside the museum’s participation in the London Design Festival, biennales and other one-off exhibitions and displays. Previously she was Public Programmes Curator at the RIBA; led Open House London 2014; produced talks and events at the Architectural Association and was also the Assistant Director of AA Night School. Meneesha has conducted independent projects with Museum of Architecture, London College of Fashion and the Baltic Pavilion at the 15th International Architecture Exhibition of La Biennale di Venezia 2016. After studying architecture at the Manchester School of Architecture, Meneesha specialised in curating visual cultures at Goldsmiths, University of London. Meneesha has sat on the RIBA Architects for Change Advisory Board, was appointed on the 2019 London Festival of Architecture Curation Panel and is a Steering Committee Member for Design Can. She is part of the V&A Anti-Racism Taskforce and is passionate about decolonising cultural institutions.
Sumitra Upham is a London-based curator with an interest in making as a tool for social justice. She is currently Head of Public Programmes at the Crafts Council where she leads the team responsible for the collection, exhibitions and events. From 2017-2021 she was Senior Curator of Public Programmes at the Design Museum, where she was responsible for leading an interdisciplinary programme of events, residencies and temporary projects. Sumitra joined the Board of Trustees at Cubitt, the artist- run gallery and cooperative, in 2020. In 2019 she was appointed Curator of Programmes for the 5th Istanbul Design Biennial, titled Empathy Re-Visited: Designs for more than one led by Mariana Pestana. Previously, Sumitra was Associate Curator at the Institute of Contemporary Arts, London where she curated educational projects and exhibitions including Radical Disco: Architecture and Nightlife in Italy, 1965 – 1975 in collaboration with Dr Catharine Rossi, See Red Women’s Workshop and Shout Out! UK Pirate Radio in the 1980s. Prior to this, Sumitra was part of the exhibitions team at White Cube. She holds an MA in Curating Contemporary Design from Kingston University in partnership with the Design Museum, London.
British Pavilion Venice Selection Panel
The UK’s presentation at the International Architecture Exhibition of La Biennale di Venezia is selected by an advisory panel of leading architecture professionals, from across the UK. The panel membership changes for every edition of the Biennale Architettura. The panel selecting the 2023 pavilion was chaired by Sevra Davis, Director of Architecture Design Fashion at the British Council and Commissioner of the British Pavilion and also included:
• Simon Allford, President RIBA
• Gus Casely-Hayford, Director V&A East
• Carole-Anne Davies, Chief Executive, Design Commission for Wales
• Anab Jain, Co-Founder and Director, Superflux
• Chithra Marsh, Associate Director, Buttress Architects
• Dr. Agustina Martire, Senior Lecturer in Architecture, Queen’s University Belfast
• Vanessa Norwood, Creative Director, Building Centre
• Dr. Neal Shasore, Head of School and Chief Executive Officer, London School of Architecture
About the Venice Fellowships
The Venice Fellowships enable students and volunteers to spend a month in Venice during one of the world’s most significant art and architecture biennales. venicebiennale.britishcouncil.org/fellowship/how-apply
Find out more about previous architecture exhibitions at the British Pavilion: venicebiennale.britishcouncil.org/history and the work of the Architecture Design Fashion team at the British Council: design.britishcouncil.org/
British Council
The British Council is the UK’s international organisation for cultural relations and educational opportunities. We build connections, understanding and trust between people in the UK and other countries through arts and culture, education and the English language.
In 2019-2020 we reached over 75 million people directly and 758 million people overall including online, broadcasts and publications. Founded in 1934 we are a UK charity governed by Royal Charter and a UK public body. We receive a 14.5 per cent core funding grant from the UK government. www.britishcouncil.org
British Council, 1 Redman Place Stratford, London, E20 1JQ, United Kingdom
British Pavilion at the Venice Architecture Biennale
British Pavilion attracts 145,620 visitors at the Venice Architecture Biennale
photo James O Jenkins_courtesy British Council
British Pavilion Venice by muf
Location: Venice, Italy, southern Europe
Venice Architecture
Venice Architecture Designs – chronological list
Venice Architecture Walking Tours
Venice Biennale – Exhibitions, Designs, Images : main page
Venice Biennale Architectural Designs – architectural selection:
The Japan Pavilion
Japan Pavilion Venice Biennale 2021
The Majlis: a meeting place, San Giorgio Maggiore
photo courtesy of architects office
The Majlis at San Giorgio Maggiore
La Biennale di Venezia Pavilion of Slovenia 2021
photo Courtesy of Božidar Jakac Art Museum, Kostanjevica na Krki (photo: Lado Smrekar)
Venice Biennale Slovenia Pavilion 2021
The Pavilion Of Turkey – by curator Neyran Turan:
photo courtesy of IKSV
Venice Biennale Turkey Pavilion 2020
Venice Architecture Biennale Danish Pavilion
Venice Architecture Biennale Irish Pavilion
Comments / photos for the British Pavilion 2023 at the Venice Architecture Biennale page welcome