PREVIEW – ARCHITECTURE BIENNALE 2025
Lab for the city
In many respects, our present is a stress test in which it is important to keep a cool mind. As climate change progresses, this is becoming an increasing challenge for both humans and nature. Thanks to dense development, numerous sealed surfaces and a lack of greenery, the heat builds up in cities during the summer months. In order to safeguard social life in the city and its productivity in the future, climate-friendly architecture and landscape architecture are required. The curators of the German pavilion at this year's Biennale Architettura 2025 are dedicating the show ‘Stress Test’ to this urgency: Prof. Elisabeth Endres (TU Braunschweig), Prof. Dr Daniele Santucci (Climateflux and RWTH Aachen), Nicola Borgmann (Architekturgalerie München) and Prof. Gabriele G. Kiefer (TU Braunschweig) have divided the show into two thematic areas: ‘Stress’ and ‘Destress’. The contrast between extreme urban heat and the benefits of a balanced climate can thus be experienced in a particularly impressive way. The exhibits include, for example, the installation ‘Swarm’ by artist Christoph Brech, for which he explored the complex interplay of atmospheric phenomena. The exhibition aims to create an understanding among visitors that the disciplines of architecture, landscape architecture and urban planning should not be thought of as purely functional or creative, but as parts of a holistic system. In the course of this, the importance of digital images of urban regions and a precise recording of temperature development for sustainable urban planning is also emphasised.
The 19th International Architecture Exhibition in Venice is entitled ‘Intelligens. Natural. Artificial. Collective’ and is curated by the Italian architect and urban planner Carlo Ratti. ‘Architecture has always been a response to a hostile climate. From the earliest ‘primitive hut’, human design has been guided by the need for shelter and survival, fuelled by optimism: our creations have always sought to bridge the gap between a harsh environment and the safe, liveable spaces we need,’ he says. He adds: ‘For decades, architecture's approach to the climate crisis has focussed on climate protection, i.e. reducing our impact on the climate. But this approach is no longer enough. It's time for architecture to turn its attention to adaptation: We need to rethink how we plan for a changed world. Adaptation requires a fundamental shift in our practice. This year's exhibition ‘Intelligens. Natural. Artificial. Collective.' invites different types of intelligence to collaborate and rethink the built environment. Even the Latin title Intelligens contains the word gens (‘people’) and invites us to experiment beyond today's limited focus on AI and digital technologies. Architecture must become as flexible and dynamic as the world we are designing for today.’
The show is intended to serve as a dynamic laboratory that enables disciplines to work together to make cities more resilient, healthier and more liveable. Is it really necessary to revisit climate change and the associated warming of our living environments? Obviously, because we are failing to prioritise what is urgently needed in our actions. The team led by Elisabeth Endres and Daniele Santucci will bring the topic to life in an exciting way and at the same time offer solutions to fulfil Carlo Ratti's motto of the 19th Biennale Architettura 2025 ‘Intelligens. Natural. Artificial. Collective‘,’ says Peter Cachola Schmal, Director of the Deutsches Architekturmuseum Frankfurt and Chairman of the Commission that selects the curators for the German Pavilion at the 19th Architecture Biennale.
La Biennale di Venezia
19th Architecture Biennale
Giardini / Arsenale
German Pavilion: ‘STRESSTEST’
10 May to 23 November 2025
