Further details and full list of participants have been revealed by Yvonne Farrell and Shelley McNamara, the curators of the 2018 Venice Architecture Biennale, which will be opened to the public from May 26th and November 25th, 2018 under the title of "Freespace" at the Giardini and the Arsenale.

The 16th International Architecture Exhibition, curated by Irish architects Yvonne Farrell and Shelley McNamara - co-founders of Grafton Architects, and chaired by Paolo Baratta, will explore "a generosity of spirit and a sense of humanity at the core of architecture's agenda," as stated in a press statement. 

Arsenale area. Image © Andrea Avezzu, courtesy of La Biennale di Venezia

The six-month event "Freespace" will present a series of selected projects commissioned by the Irish architects and be introduced at the Central Pavilion Giardini and the Arsenale. The exhibition will include 71 participants. The 71 participants will be joined by others gathered in two Special Sections: the first numbering, 16 participants, is titled Close Encounter, meetings with remarkable projects and will present works that originate in a reflection on well-known buildings of the past; the second which counts, 12 participants, and is titled The Practice of Teaching, will collect projects developed as part of teaching experiences.

Arsenale area. Image © Andrea Avezzu, courtesy of La Biennale di Venezia

Furthermore, the Exhibition will also include 65 National Participations in the historic Pavilions at the Giardini, at the Arsenale and in the historic city centre of Venice. 7 countries will be participating in the Biennale Architettura for the first time: Antigua & Barbuda, Saudi Arabia, Guatemala, Lebanon, Mongolia, Pakistan and the Holy See (with its own pavilion located on the island of San Giorgio Maggiore).

Yvonne Farrell & Shelley McNamara and Paolo Baratta. Image © Andrea Avezzu, courtesy of La Biennale di Venezia

"With the aim of promoting the "desire" of architecture", President Baratta explained that this edition curated by Yvonne Farrell and Shelley McNamara focuses on the question of space, the quality of space, open and free space. The fundamental parameter of reference is indicated with great clarity.

"The desire to create Freespace can become the specific individual characteristic of each individual project.But space, free space, public space can also reveal the presence or absence of architecture, if we understand architecture to be "thinking applied to the space where we live, that we inhabit," added Baratta. 

"And the International Architecture Exhibition will offer us examples, teachings, and topics of discussion. Therefore, we are thankful to Farrell and McNamara for having accepted our invitation and for the choice, which adds an important link to the chain of Exhibitions held over the years," he added.

Padiglione Centrale Giardini. Image © Francesco Galli

Yvonne Farrell and Shelley McNamara have used the Manifesto Freespace, issued in June 2017, as a reference point for putting this Exhibition together. 

"We have found it to be a robust tool," they stated. "It has acted as a measure and a guide to finding cohesion within the diversity of an Exhibition of this enormous scale."

"We are hugely appreciative of the enormous dedication and passion invested by the participants» the Curators stated. And finally, in relation to the meaning of the word Freespace, the Curators said they are "delighted with the global engagement of participants and participating counties in the process of its translation. When we were writing the Manifesto, we wanted primarily to include the word space."

Freespace undercroft. Universitta Luigi Bocconi, Milan, 2008, Grafton Architects. Image © Federico Brunetti

"We also wanted a new use of everyday words, which could somehow cause us all to re-frame the additional component that we as a profession can contribute to humanity. We see architecture as the translation of need in its widest sense into meaningful space. In the effort to translate Freespace into the many wonderful languages of the world, we hope that it prises open the ‘gift’ which architectural invention has the potential to contribute with each project."

"Translation allows us all to map and rename intellectual as well as actual territory. It is our hope that the word Freespace allows us to burrow into the aspirations, ambitions and generosity of architecture," they added.

Robin Hood Gardens designed by Alison and Peter Smithson in East London. Image © Victoria and Albert Museum

There will be two Special Projects at the Venice Architecture Biennale 2018: the Forte Marghera Special Project in Mestre, curated by Yvonne Farrell and Shelley McNamara, consists of an installation by architects Sami Rintala and Dagur Eggertsson, also built to host a series of events scheduled in Forte Marghera. 

The Special Project at the Applied Arts Pavilion in the Sale d’Armi in the Arsenale, reflects upon the future of social housing by presenting a fragment of the social housing estate, Robin Hood Gardens, which was designed by Alison and Peter Smithson in East London and completed in1972. Renewed for the third consecutive year, the collaboration between La Biennale and the Victoria and Albert Museum in London has made possible this exhibition curated by Christopher Turner and Olivia Horsfall Turner.

Landscape and housing. Ivry Sur Seine House, 1969, Jean Renaudie and Renée Gailhoustet. Image © Yvonne Farrell

Meetings on Architecture 

Venice Architecture Biennale 2018 will be accompanied throughout its duration by a programme of conversations: Meetings on Architecture, curated by Farrell and McNamara, are an opportunity to discuss the different interpretations of the Manifesto Freespace and to listen to the voices of the protagonists of the Exhibition.

The program of Meetings will be complemented by contributions from the Participating Countries and a calendar of conferences organized in collaboration with international institutions such as the London School of Economics/Cities and Alfred Herrhaussen Gesselschaft, and with the Victoria and Albert Museum in London. Finally, the Historical Archive of La Biennale di Venezia will present a meeting focused on architecture in the archives.The detailed programme will be available online in the following weeks.

Scroll down to see the full list of participants below:

1. 6a architects (London, UK)
Tom Emerson; Stephanie Macdonald; John Ross; Owen Watson

2. Alison Brooks Architects (London, UK)
Alison Brooks

3. Álvaro Siza 2 – Arquitecto, SA (Porto, Portugal)
Álvaro Siza Vieira

4. Amateur Architecture Studio (Hangzhou, China)
Wang Shu; Lu Wenyu

5. andramatin (Jakarta, Indonesia)
Andra Matin

6. Angela Deuber Architect (Chur, Switzerland)
Angela Deuber

7. architecten de vylder vinck taillieu (Ghent, Belgium)
Jan de Vylder; Inge Vinck; Jo Taillieu

8. Arrea architecture (Ljubljana, Slovenia)
Maruša Zorec

9. Assemble (London, UK)
Jane Issler Hall; Mathew Leung; Alice Edgerley; Adam Willis; Fran Edgerley; Amica Dall; Giles Smith; James Binning; Paloma Strelitz; Lewis Jones; Joseph Halligan; Louis Schulz; Maria Lisogorskaya; Karim Khelil; Anthony Engi Meacock

10. Atelier Peter Zumthor & Partner (Haldenstein, Switzerland)
Peter Zumthor

11. Aurelio Galfetti (Lugano and Bellinzona, Switzerland)

12. Barclay & Crousse (Lima, Peru)
Sandra Barclay; Jean-Pierre Crousse

13. BC architects & studies (Brussels, Belgium)
Ken De Cooman; Nicolas Coeckelberghs; Wes Degreef; Laurens Bekemans

14. Benedetta Tagliabue - Miralles Tagliabue EMBT (Barcelona, Spain; Shangai, China)
Benedetta Tagliabue; Elena Nedelcu; Joan Callís

15. BIG - Bjarke Ingels Group (New York, USA; Copenhagen, Denmark; London, UK)
Bjarke Ingels; Sheela Maini Søgaard; Finn Nørkjær; Thomas Christoffersen; Kai-Uwe Bergmann; Andreas Klok Pedersen; David Zahle; Jakob Lange; Beat Schenk; Daniel Sundlin; Brian Yang; Jakob Sand

16. Burkhalter Sumi Architekten (Zürich, Switzerland)
Marianne Burkhalter; Christian Sumi with Marco Pogacnik (Venice, Italy)

17. Carla Juaçaba (Rio de Janeiro, Brazil)

18. Caruso St John Architects (London, UK)
Adam Caruso; Peter St John

19. Case Design (Mumbai, India)
Anne Geenen; Samuel Barclay

20. Cino Zucchi Architetti (Milan, Italy)
Cino Zucchi

21. Crimson Architectural Historians (Rotterdam, The Netherlands)
Ewout Dorman; Michelle Provoost; Cassandra Wilkins; Wouter Vanstiphout; Simone Rots; Annuska Pronkhorst

22. David Chipperfield Architects (London, UK; Berlin, Germany; Milan, Italy; Shanghai, China)
David Chipperfield; Alexander Schwarz; Martin Reichert; Christoph Felger; Eva Schad; Harald Müller

23. de Blacam and Meagher Architects (Dublin, Ireland; Ibiza, Spain)
Shane de Blacam; John Meagher 

24. Diller Scofidio + Renfro (New York, USA)
Elizabeth Diller; Charles Renfro; Ricardo Scofidio; Benjamin Gilmartin 

25. DnA_Design and Architecture (Beijing, China)
Xu Tiantian

26. Dorte Mandrup A/S (Copenhagen, Denmark)
Dorte Mandrup; Frants Nielsen

27. Elemental (Santiago, Chile)
Alejandro Aravena; Gonzalo Arteaga; Juan Cerda; Diego Torres; Victor Oddo

28. Elizabeth Hatz Architects (Stockholm, Sweden)
Elizabeth Hatz

29. Estudio Carme Pinós (Barcelona, Spain)
Carme Pinós

30. Flores & Prats (Barcelona, Spain)
Eva Prats; Ricardo Flores

31. Francesca Torzo Architetto (Genova, Italy)
Francesca Torzo

32. Gion A. Caminada (Vrin-Cons, Switzerland)

33. GrupoSP (São Paulo, Brazil)
Alvaro Puntoni; Joao Sodre 

34. Gumuchdjian Architects (London, UK)
Philip Gumuchdjian

35. Hall McKnight (Belfast and London, UK)
Alastair Hall; Ian McKnight

36. Inês Lobo, Arquitectos (Lisbon, Portugal)
Inês Lobo; João Rosário

37. Jensen og Skodvin Arkitekter AS (Oslo, Norway)
Jan Olav Jensen; Børre Skodvin; Torunn Golberg; Torstein Koch

38. John Wardle Architects (Melbourne, Australia)
John Wardle, Stefan Mee, Meaghan Dwyer, Bill Krotiris, Jane Williams

39. Kazuyo Sejima + Ryue Nishizawa / SANAA (Tokyo, Japan)
Kazuyo Sejima; Ryue Nishizawa

40. Kieran Long (Stockholm, Sweden) with Johan Örn; James Taylor-Foster (Stockholm, Sweden)

41. Lacaton & Vassal Architects (Paris, France)
Anne Lacaton; Jean Philippe Vassal

42. Laura Peretti Architects (Rome, Italy)
Laura Peretti

43. Maria Giuseppina Grasso Cannizzo (Vittoria – Ragusa, Italy)

44. Marie-José Van Hee architecten (Ghent, Belgium)
Marie-José Van Hee

45. Marina Tabassum Architects (Dhaka, Bangladesh)
Marina Tabassum

46. Matharoo Associates (Ahmedabad, India)
Gurjit Singh Matharoo

47. Michael Maltzan Architecture (Los Angeles, USA)
Michael Maltzan

48. Niall McLaughlin Architects (London, UK)
Niall McLaughlin

49. O'Donnell + Tuomey (Dublin, Ireland)
John Tuomey; Sheila O'Donnell

50. Paredes Pedrosa Arquitectos (Madrid, Spain)
Angela Garcia de Paredes; Ignacio G. Pedrosa

51. Paulo Mendes da Rocha (São Paulo, Brazil)

52. Peter Rich Architects (Johannesburg, South Africa)
Peter Rich

53. Rafael Moneo, Arquitecto (Madrid, Spain)
Rafael Moneo

54. Rintala Eggertsson Architects (Oslo and Bodø, Norway)
Dagur Eggertsson; Vibeke Jensen; Sami Rintala

55. RMA Architects (Mumbai, India; Boston, USA)
Rahul Mehrotra; Nondita Correa Mehrotra; Robert Stephens; Payal Patel

56. Robert McCarter, Professor of Architecture (St. Louis, Missouri, USA)
Robert McCarter

57. Room11 Architects (Hobart, Tasmania, Australia)
Thomas Bailey; Nathan Crump; Megan Baynes

58. Rozana Montiel Estudio de Arquitectura (Mexico City, Mexico)
Rozana Montiel

59. Salter Collingridge Design (London and Ludlow, UK)
Peter Salter; Fenella Collingridge

60. Sauerbruch Hutton (Berlin, Germany)
Matthias Sauerbruch; Louisa Hutton; Juan Lucas Young

61. Skälsö Arkitekter (Visby and Stockholm, Sweden)
Joel Phersson; Erik Gardell; Lisa Ekström; Mats Håkansson; Axel Wolgers

62. Souto Moura - Arquitectos, S.A. (Porto, Portugal)
Eduardo Souto de Moura

63. Studio Anna Heringer (Laufen, Germany)
Anna Heringer

64. Studio Gang (Chicago, New York and Los Angeles, USA)
Jeanne Gang

65. Studio Odile DECQ (Paris, France)
Odile Decq

66. Talli Architecture and Design (Helsinki, Finland)
Pia Ilonen; Minna Lukander; Martti Lukander

67. Tezuka Architects (Tokyo, Japan)
Takaharu Tezuka; Yui Tezuka

68. Toyo Ito & Associates, Architects (Tokyo, Japan)
Toyo Ito

69. Vector Architects (Beijing, China)
Gong Dong

70. VTN Architects (Hochiminh City, Vietnam)
Vo Trong Nghia

71. Weiss/Manfredi (New York, USA)
Marion Weiss; Micheal Manfredi

Participants for "Close Encounter" Special section:

1. A2 Architects (Dublin, Ireland)
Peter Carroll
Museo-Fundación Oteiza / Francisco Javier Sáenz de Oiza (Alzuza, Spain)

2. BOYD CODY Architects (Dublin, Ireland)
Dermot Boyd, Peter Cody
E-1027 / Eileen Gray (Roquebrune), and Tempe a païa / Eileen Gray (Castellar, Alpes Maritimes, France)

3. Noreile Breen (Dublin, Ireland)
Noreile Breen
Casa Luis Barragán / Luis Barragán (Ciudad de México, Mexico)

4. Bucholz McEvoy Architects (Dublin, Ireland)
Merritt Bucholz, Karen McEvoy
Delaware Park / Frederick Law Olmstead (Buffalo, USA)

5. Carr Cotter & Naessens Architects (Cork, Ireland)
Louise Cotter, David Naessens
Salle Cortot / Auguste Perret (Paris, France)

6. Clancy Moore Architects (Dublin, Ireland)
Andrew Clancy, Colm Moore
Hornbækhus / Kay Otto Fisker (Københavns, Denmark)

7. DePaor (Wicklow, Ireland)
Tom de Paor
Chiesa di San Giovanni Battista “dell’Autostrada” / Giovanni Michelucci (Campi Bisenzio, Firenze, Italy)

8. Donaghy + Dimond Architects (Dublin, Ireland)
Marcus Donaghy, Will Dimond
Anhembi Tennis Club / João Batista Vilanova Artigas (São Paulo, Brazil)

9. Kevin Donovan (Dublin, Ireland) Ryan W. Kennihan Architects (Dublin, Ireland)
Kevin Donovan, Ryan W. Kennihan
Maison du Peuple / Jean Prouvé, Eugène Beaudouin, Marcel Lods, Vladimir Bodiansky (Clichy, France)

10. GKMP Architects (Dublin, Ireland)
Grace Keeley, Michael Pike
Edificio de viviendas / José Antonio Coderch de Sentmenat (Girasol, Madrid, Spain)

11. Hassett Ducatez Architects (Dublin, Ireland)
Grainne Hassett
Edificio per abitazioni in via Quadronno 24 / Angelo Mangiarotti, Bruno Morassutti (Milano, Italy)

12. Heneghan Peng Architects (Dublin, Ireland)
Róisín Heneghan, Shih-Fu Peng
Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library, Yale University / Gordon Bunshaft of Skidmore, Owings and Merrill (SOM) (New Haven, USA)

13. Mary Laheen Architects (Dublin, Ireland), Aoibheann Ní Mhearáin (Dublin, Ireland)
Mary Laheen, Aoibheann Ní Mhearáin
Centre Jeanne Hachette / Jean Rénaudie (Ivry sur Seine, Paris, France)

14. Steve Larkin Architects (Dublin, Ireland)
Steve Larkin
Otaniemi Chapel / Heikki and Kaija Siren (Espoo, Finland)

15. Dominic Stevens, JFOC Architects (Dublin, Ireland)
Dominic Stevens
Maravillas Gymnasium / Alejandro de la Sota (Madrid, Spain)

16. TAKA Architects (Dublin, Ireland)
Alice Casey, Cian Deegan
Centro Comunal y Recreativo Nueva Santa Fe / Rogelio Salmona (Bogotá, Colombia)

Participants for "The Practice of Teaching" Special section:

1. Aires Mateus (Lisbon, Portugal)
Francisco Aires Mateus, Manuel Aires Mateus

2. architetto Riccardo Blumer (Casciago - Varese, Italy)
Riccardo Blumer

3. Atelier Cube (Lausanne, Switzerland)
Marc Collomb

4. Bearth & Deplazes Architekten (Chur and Zürich, Switzerland)
Valentin Bearth, Andrea Deplazes, Daniel Ladner

5. Kéré Architecture (Berlin, Germany)
Francis Diébédo Kéré

6. Mario Botta Architetti (Mendrisio, Switzerland)
Mario Botta

7. Michele Arnaboldi Architetti (Locarno, Switzerland)
Michele Arnaboldi

8. Miller & Maranta (Basel, Switzerland)
Quintus Miller, Paola Maranta, Jean-Luc von Aarburg

9. OBRAS Architectes (Paris, France)
Frédéric Bonnet

10. PROAP / GLOBAL (Lisbon, Portugal)
João Gomes da Silva, João Nunes

11. Sergison Bates architects (London, UK; Zürich, Switzerland)
Jonathan Sergison

12. Valerio Olgiati (Flims, Switzerland)

13. walter angonese, architekt/architetto (Caldaro - Bolzano, Italy)
Walter Angonese

Top image: Yvonne Farrell and Shelley McNamara, image © Andrea Avezzu, courtesy of La Biennale di Venezia

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