by Ifeoluwa Adedeji

La Biennale dell'Architettura in Venice, Italy, is a six-month-long notable event featuring transient structures from prominent architecture firms such as Zaha Hadid and Foster + Partners. The 2023 edition is, however, different. 

Themed "The Laboratory of the Future”, Scottish-Ghanaian architect and curator Lesley Lokko expressed her intention for the exhibition to focus on deconstruction and decolonisation with an emphasis on painting a fuller picture of the architecture world. In place of architecture firms, smaller practices and individuals have been given a chance to engage with visitors using their work to widen their perspective on what we call architecture. The 18th edition also features a host of exhibitors of African heritage telling stories through sculptures and photography about ancient sustainable African practices, mythology, gender and geography.

Indeed, there are barely any African pavilion buildings like those of France, Germany and Britain at the Architecture Biennale. Egypt is an exception with a permanent structure located at the Giardini following their participation at the fair since 1938. Their project entitled "NiLab" (Nile as Laboratory) is an immersive experience aimed at triggering discussions about projects that can take place on the Nile.

South Africa’s presentation of "The Structure of a People", curated by Mr. Stephen Steyn, Dr. Emmanuel Nkambule, and Dr. Sechaba Maape, is themed around the architectural representation of existing and speculative social structures. “It engages contemporary conditions such as ecological change and inequality. The inclusion of formerly peripheral value systems relies heavily on the appreciation of pre-colonial values, through the study of Indigenous Knowledge Systems, and their role in the reimagining of our contemporary human settlements, institutions, and communities into the future,” the team says.

Architect Gugulethu Sibonelelo Mthembu also hails from South Africa, and her installation, "Port of Shir — Final Act", is one of the curator’s selected Special Projects. The dramatic visual media presentation sees Mthembu exploring how Africa’s eras of colonisation and some of its current politics still carry manifestations of fear and biases towards the representation of women. She uses spoken word poetry, performance and props to dramatic effect. “Port of Sihr tells the story of Aicha Qandicha, who is a shapeshifting spirit said to possess men with her infidelity or infertility,” Mthembu says. “My work aims to tell a new story for Aicha Qandicha”. 

Ghanaian Serge Attukwei Clottey’s "Afrogallonism" installation employs materials not inherently native to Africa but imported and discarded on the continent. The materials are fixed on the upper support structure of the Gaggiandre in juxtaposition to a heritage cultural site.

With "Blue Hour" architect Folasade Okunribido explores the “goldmine of architectural, environmental, and cultural knowledge in Africa that is not yet commonly known within the profession,” She explains that “Blue Hour, is a collection of drawings, video, audio, and a lighting sequence. The reproduced twilight period is a time of mourning and celebration for Yoruba architecture, which proceeds an offer to dream, devise and construct the future.” Okunribido wants Blue Hour to inspire and illustrate how we can use new materials, forms, and practices informed by culture today to reinvent space without romanticising what came before.

From the Democratic Republic of Congo, Gloria Pavita presented "Na Bulongo" created from mounds of soil displayed on the exhibition floor on which a video is projected. It’s a spacial and experiential exploration of narratives that centre practices of care, repair reclamation, and repatriation through the soil. 

"The Soft Lab and Pennsylvania State University’s School of Architecture collaboration Textural Threshold is a machine learning algorithm that digitally sorts hair typologies,” explains Felecia Davis. “Making this algorithm exhibition is a first step in understanding the use of biodata to determine access or lack of access to spaces and the creation of spaces shaped by machine learning algorithms. As designers, we may not think about these kinds of powerful space-shaping devices that are invisible and are proliferating.”

Kgaugelo Lekalakala’s project “Tales of the Vulnerability of African Black Women in Transit Spaces” has women take on the figure of an artefact – an object in space that enters the surreal landscapes that narrate real everyday issues. The architect-artist says “She (woman) navigates as an artefact from rural to urban spaces that expose cultures and traditions that silence her,” Lekalakala continues. “Artefacts remain as tools for the achievement of human tasks or aesthetics.” The surrealist images reveal lived experiences and vulnerabilities of African women in “transit spaces”.

Many non-African countries also included Africa in their projects. For instance, the Serbian team filmed a short documentary in Nigeria analysing the effects of the 1977 International Trade Fair in Lagos — a product of non-aligned cooperation between Yugoslavia and Nigeria. Poland’s use of AI and statistics to construct a colourful Architectural sculpture that included data from Hong Kong and Malawi proved to be an engaging experience. Brazilian trio Carta Negra produced a film, “Root City” to explore black existence in Brazil. “We want our project to provoke hope, movements, inspiration, refuge, interest and feelings of reparations,” says Raissa Albano, Carolina Piai Vieira and Pedro Alves.

Kuwait, like many African countries, is tackling the residual impact of colonisation. Their theme, "Re-thinking Kuwait", proposes a master plan scheme that features a walkable city and re-introduces aspects of traditional vernacular design. It's about starting over sustainably.

"Contemporary architectural practices are often rooted in capitalist value systems that prioritise profitability and imaginability over intangible and phenomenological forces. In my pursuit of a new model of practice, my intrigue lies in the exploration of space and time in a non-linear, non-binary, and non-chronological manner. The beginnings of this practice have taken shape through kinetic spatial installations, experimental exhibition design, and mapping exercises,” voices Architect Mohammad Kassem.

Adjaye Associates’ timber “Kwaeε” installation (meaning forest in the Twi language) structure is a space for reflection, gathering and events. While Diebedo Francis Kere’s installation explores three aspects of architecture: “What Was, What Is, and What Can Be.”

La Biennale is undeniably an esteemed platform for all the participants involved with projects that met with Lokko’s theme while engaging with Africa. While the exhibition brings together a host of beautiful projects that celebrate multilayered African heritage and highlight common challenges, questions remain., How do we collaboratively build a future where the colonised are not paying for the benefits of the colonisers? How do we move forward with a solution that satisfies the many, not the few? No one event can answer this. However, Lokko’s “The Laboratory of the Future” should kindle discussion that can lead to meaningful solutions.