open call for italian pavilion at venice architecture biennale extended!

open call for the italian pavilion at venice architecture biennale

designboom is the official media partner of the cino zucchi-curated italian pavilion at the 2014 venice architecture biennale, directed by rem koolhaas. entitled ‘innesti/grafting’, the exhibition elaborates on koolhaas’s overall theme of ‘absorbing modernity 1914-2014’, by demonstrating the wealth and stratification of the italian landscape; citing the protagonists of the past who have helped shape the country’s contemporary existence, and its relationship to the rest of the world. ‘innesti/grafting’ seeks to address the metamorphosis of existing structures, that while italy is deeply embedded in its roots, has managed to transform and adapt its built history, to align with today’s urban context through ‘graftings’; or different thoughts and aesthetics, layered and pieced together create a larger, more complete picture.

in not wanting to present a singular perspective, zucchi is making an open call to the public to realize his vision, which begins with the idea that: ‘italian architecture since the first world war to today, demonstrates an ‘anomalous modernity’, represented by its significant capacity to interpret and incorporate previous states through continuous metamorphosis. not adaptations of form of the new compared to the existing in retrospect, but rather ‘grafting’ an ability to transfigure the conditions of the context into a new configuration: an attitude that was once viewed by some as nostalgic or a compromise, but which today is admired by europe and the world as the most original contribution of italian design culture.’

to visually express this topic, cino zucchi is inviting artists, designers, students, videographers (everyone!) to submit videos that communicate their notions of what the ‘italian landscape’ is through moving images that interpret places of collective life in italy. from these, art collective studio azzurro will curate a selection of the entries that will comprise a greater choral work called ‘inhabited landscapes’. its focus investigates how man interacts with the transformations dictated by architecture and how they adapt it to their everyday needs.

open to all, of any nationality and age, you can participate by sending a video filmed in italy, with a duration of between two and five minutes, in color and with audio, by may 4th, 2014. read the rules and regulations at: ‘innesti/graftings‘.

‘inhabited landscapes: life adapts to spaces which adapt to life’, is the title of the final work of the italian pavilion that will be put together in a synchronous screening of the video, or rather, the ‘animated postcards’ collated from the open call. these will be selected based on their originality and expressive quality, and there ability to best interpret the theme of the project, dedicated to documenting the relationship of exchange and osmosis that is created between spaces and the lives of the people that inhabit them on a daily basis. streets, squares, historical centers or suburbs, urban or rural spaces, stadiums, shopping centers, beaches, theme parks, entertainment venues… these are the potential subjects that, whether abandoned or full of life, at various hours of the day, will help to interpret the capacity of human environments to welcome us while changing daily through small spontaneous transformations, within the choral dimension of the final work. for more information and submissions form click here.