We wanted to share our Venice Architecture Biennale experiences with you. On May 24th, the Architectural Review Magazine team launched our advocacy monograph “The Absurdity of Beauty – Rebalancing the Modernist narrative” at the Hotel Monaco Grand Canal. The party was a buzzing affair in true Biennale spirit with lots of fellow architects, international media, curators, representatives of cultural organizations and even some Venetians! Too rare to have locals at Biennale events but we were delighted to achieve this and to learn about the stunning reception room’s history from them: Venice’s former casino, recently restored to its former glory, ceiling paintings and all.
As guests sipped on prosecco, spritzers, and Bellinis, Form4’s Founding Design Principal and Chief Artistic Officer, John Marx, gave a speech about how the collaboration with the Architectural Review came about. More on that in our previous blog entry; suffice it to say here that Marx’s thoughts on architects not having to choose between humanity and design resonated in the room. Editorial Director of the Architectural Review, Paul Finch, emphasized the successful creative collaboration with Form4 and how this was essential to craft such a distinct and original publication. A publication that we hope will encourage debate about the legacy of Modernism.
This line of debate is further encouraged at our exhibit “2nd Century Modernism” at Palazzo Mora in Venice. We unveiled our installation there on May 25th as part of a group show – Time, Space, Existence – organized by the Global Arts Affairs Foundation. It was thrilling to see our work displayed in this Venetian setting with ornate timber beamed ceilings and Murano glass chandeliers. As per usual, the Palazzo Mora opening bash was one of the highlights of the Biennale preview days with guests spilling out into the street.
Being involved in the Venice Biennale is an exhilarating experience. Venice speaks to all the senses as both a stage and backdrop to the plethora of engaging events. It is also a great privilege to be showing our work simultaneously in Venice with the world’s leading practitioners including Daniel Libeskind, Odile Decq, Kengo Kuma, and Fumiko Maki at Palazzo Mora. We very much hope you have the opportunity to see our exhibit (closes 25 November 2018) and are pleased that the “The Absurdity of Beauty” is now available on The Architectural Review’s website.
Reflections on Shared Purpose 