The editions of Biennale Architettura are crucial to architectural discourse, acting as platforms for debate, critique, and global exposure. Yet the ways in which ideas evolve within their complex ecologies are often overlooked and excluded from dominant narratives. This paradox highlights the challenge of understanding Biennales from a twofold perspective: as both cultural phenomena and complex systems. The installation Constructing la Biennale addresses this challenge by revealing the “behind the scenes” of the event.
Positioned in front of the Central Pavilion, currently under renovation, a layered faux-façade offers a critical interpretation of the historical evolution of la Biennale Architettura and the intricate curatorship of the 2025 edition. This effort brings together architectural design, network science, information design, data visualisation, and the ethnography of architecture —exploring the exhibition as a layered object and unveiling the question: what shapes a Biennale? By digitizing and analyzing data — such as team sizes and thematic focuses — the project visualizes la Biennale Architettura from a historical perspective, spanning 1975 to today.
Participants
DEPARTMENT OF ARCHITECTURE AND DESIGN – DAD, POLITECNICO DI TORINO TURIN, ITALY Michele Bonino, Turin, Italy, 1974. Lives and works in Turin, Italy. Albena Yaneva, Plovdiv, Bulgaria, 1972. Lives and works in Turin, Italy.
BARABASILAB, NORTHEASTERN UNIVERSITY BOSTON, USA Albert-László Barabási, Cirta, Romania, 1967. Lives and works in Boston, USA.
CENTER FOR DESIGN, NORTHEASTERN UNIVERSITY BOSTON, USA Paolo Ciuccarelli, Fermo, Italy, 1971. Lives and works in Boston, USA.
Authorial Collaborators
DAD, Politecnico di Torino: Edoardo Bruno, Valeria Federighi, Camilla Forina, Monica Naso (Architectural Design and Curatorial Coordination); Micol Rispoli (Ethnography of Architecture). BarabasiLab: Csaba Both, Alice Grishchenko, Daria Koshkina (Network Science). Center for Design: Todd Linkner, Matthew Blanco (Information Design and Data Visualization). University of Manchester: Benjamin Blackwell (Ethnography of Architecture)
Technical Collaborators
SABO Studio; Riccardo Covino and Pietro Merlo, Multimedia Lab, DAD, Politecnico di Torino (Filming and Editing)
Team
DAD, Politecnico di Torino: Alp Arda with Noha Lentz, Zhenyi Chai (Architectural Design and Curatorial Coordination). BarabasiLab: Ábel Elekes, Rodrigo Dorantes Gilardi, Yixuan Liu, Marco Buongiorno Nardelli (Network Science). Center for Design: Lindsey Henriques (Information Design and Data Visualization). Geomatics for Cultural Heritage Lab, DAD PoliTo
Supporters
Fondazione Compagnia di San Paolo; Politecnico di Torino; Camera di Commercio Torino; Northeastern University; SECAP S.p.A.; REPLY S.p.A.; Central European University - Department of Network and Data Science
