Australia’s exhibition for the 2021 Venice Architecture Biennale will be shown in Australia for the first time due to COVID-19 travel restrictions.
The work titled Inbetween presents a series of architectural projects and processes that curators Jefa Greenaway and Tristan Wong selected for their representations of Indigenous and First Nations peoples and cultures.
“What we’re looking at through the exhibition is how architects, both non-Indigenous and Indigenous, are working with First Nations peoples – traditional owners, knowledge keepers and elders – as a way of embedding cultural authenticity into our built environment,” said Jefa Greenaway.
Originally conceived for exhibition in Australia’s pavilion at the Giardini in Venice, the work has been reimagined as an immersive, large-scale video.
“The film creates an immersive experience that engages the senses so it’s not simply about the visuals but also the connection to soundscapes and the hearing of language, creating a visceral connection to Country,” said Jefa Greenaway.
“In the international realm there are still stereotypes around how people understand Australia so we wanted to demonstrate richness and diversity – the different contexts and landscapes that exist in Australia, and more broadly in our region, and how architecture responds to that.”
“The film choreographs the journey that people go on when creating architecture that is informed by Country. At the moment everyone is going through their own learning journey and there are different levels of cultural intelligence but ultimately it’s when you work in partnership with First Nations voices that you start to have meaningful conversations and the outcome is richer as a result.”
Inbetween, Australia’s exhibition for the 2021 Venice Architecture Biennale curated by Jefa Greenaway and Tristan Wong.
Image:
Aaron Puls
The film includes 20 projects in remote, regional and metropolitan locations across all states and territories in Australia as well as New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Fiji, and Vanuatu.
It presents insights into how architects are creating new protocols for better design outcomes through meaningful co-design processes.
Tristan Wong said, “This project isn’t a collection of artefacts; it’s forward looking and presents the innovative potential in learning from Indigenous methods and ideas. Embedding practices and knowledge that has been around for more than 60000 years into the way we design buildings creates opportunities for a new kind of architecture that is better for people, cities and the environment.”
Inbetween, Australia’s exhibition for the 2021 Venice Architecture Biennale curated by Jefa Greenaway and Tristan Wong.
Image:
Aaron Puls
Inbetween premieres in Melbourne at Housemuseum Galleries on 20 May and will be exhibited at satellite events across Australia and also made available for exhibition across the region.
Over in Venice at the main exhibition curated by Hashim Sarkis, 114 participants from 46 countries have been invited to respond to the theme of How will we live together.
The works are organized into five scales which are exhibited at various locations including the Arsenale, Giardini and Central Pavilion.
Australian architects Guillermo Fernández-Abascal and Urtzi Grau are exhibiting as part of the “As Emerging Communities” collection of exterior interventions at the Giardini. Their installation explores forms of air pollution the use of the mask as a “portable form of architecture.”
Australian artist and self-described “body architect” Lucy McRae is participating in the “Among Diverse Beings” collection of installations and landscape architect Richard Weller is exhibiting in “As One Planet.”
Source: Architecture - architectureau
