Iraq

As Iraq’s first participation in the Biennale Architettura, the Ark Re-Imagined returns to the very beginning of Iraq’s architectural legacy: the vernacular architecture and watercraft of ancient Mesopotamia, exemplifying a seminal ‘alphabet of making’ that set the stage for civilisation to emerge.
The expeditionary pavilion engages dynamically with its setting and our Venetian partners, exploring links between Venice’s wetland environment and that of southern Iraq. We investigate boats, from prehistoric origins to the apex of design as manifest in the Venetian gondola and bucintoro tradition, and the disappearing heritage of the boats of Basra’s canals and surrounding marshes.