The 2009 Serpentine Gallery Pavilion / SANAA

Jul 2009

Architecture photographer Iwan Baan has been documenting the Serpentine Gallery Pavilion, a series of temporary structures commissioned to renowned architects that sits on the Gallery’s lawn for three months, hosting a series of public talks and events at the park. And now he just shared with us his photo set for this years pavilion, which opens to the public tomorrow July 12th, and will stay open until October 18.

For this year, the pavilion was commissioned to Kazuyo Sejima and Ryue Nishizawa, SANAA.

An undulating aluminum structure sits on top of a delicate column system, providing a series of connected spaces while keeping a continuous view through the park. The aluminum reflects the trees, the ground and the sky, for a dramatic blending effect as you can see of the photos.

You can see Iwan’s photo sets for previous versions of the pavilion: Rem Koolhaas and Cecil Balmond with ARUP (2006), Olafur Eliasson and Kjetil Thorsen (2007) and Frank Ghery (2008).

More pictures after the break.

50 comments »

ale gaddor says:

mmmmmm next!
no comments

# July 11, 2009 at 22:28

Yorik says:

Impressive!
I wonder how that thin sheet stays rigid…

# July 11, 2009 at 23:01

d says:

beautiful,awesome,inspiring in many levels..

# July 11, 2009 at 23:43

Fino says:

I think this is the type of project that must be experienced in person because of it’s personal perceptive qualities. I believe the pictures are only telling a fraction of the whole story.

# July 12, 2009 at 00:20

rek says:

i really like this proyect, a pavilion for real, not a sculpture like we are used to, like Fino said, this is one of the works that must be seen in person, anyway i have no doubt is the best pavilion i´ve seen in a while

# July 12, 2009 at 00:41

Kiko Sanchez says:

I wonder how the reflective material of this roof structure is going to affect the plants in this small park. I have seen cases where highly reflective glass buildings destroy the natural environment that surrounds them.

# July 12, 2009 at 01:06

biboarchitect says:

the worst serpentine gallery ever! its even worse than Gehry’s!

# July 12, 2009 at 01:52

David says:

your problem, cant see the architecture.

# July 12, 2009 at 04:57

hahahahahaha … thanks mR. eXpert..

you serious??

# July 12, 2009 at 05:36

tonio says:

Looks very poetic to me… :-)

… as Gerhy’s pavilion was so heavy… :-(

# July 12, 2009 at 06:36

tikvarski says:

i agree with biboarchitect, however i don’t find gehry’s pavilion bad

# July 12, 2009 at 11:13

theChavacano says:

Gerhy´s pavillion only had one problem it was so Gerhy :)

# July 13, 2009 at 02:54

YOURMom's lover says:

um no

# July 24, 2009 at 17:27

Alex says:

It is a simple…architecture thing.But I can’t see anything important…it is so…empty…a mirror on some metal pillars.That’s it.I do not see what can be so beautiful about it,I’m sorry,it’s just my opinion

# July 12, 2009 at 05:11

William Bell says:

It doesn’t blow my mind off! but it’s not that bad either..

# July 12, 2009 at 06:04

kimbo says:

i wonder how the rain will sound, as it cascades…in my mind eye there s such a graceful, vertical pour from an initial blatt sound…before harvested water trickles to a billabong or two~ awaiting the arrival of fairyfish, swans and moorhens

# July 12, 2009 at 06:29

isn’t it suppose to be a summer pavilion? so i think it has a very low expectation on rain. But, a very nice point though..

# July 13, 2009 at 05:44

tootrue says:

but it’s in london, so..; what summer?

# July 29, 2009 at 09:13

Amandazz says:

god kimbo you’re making me hungry.

# July 12, 2009 at 07:25

….i mean thirsty.

# July 12, 2009 at 07:26

Rich says:

Beautiful, but why those ugly potted plants???

# July 12, 2009 at 07:53

Dove says:

@ Fino.
Agreed. Definately think this is one you have to experience through actually being there, rather than just looking at a few images. I’m going to get down there when I can. I like the work of SANAA though, so I may be biased haha.

# July 12, 2009 at 07:56

olivier says:

I find it really nice. It make me think of the sculpture in Chicago shape like a giant bean (by Anish Kapoor).

Sometime, even the simpliest structure can create the most estonishing spaces. And hopefully this pavillon is one of them. Like Fino say, you probably have to experience it to fully appreciate it.

# July 12, 2009 at 09:21

Lucas Gray says:

This seems like a logical design by SANAA, relating to their other architecture. It is a super simple streamlined design allowing the viewer to focus on what is important – the surrounding landscape. I appreciate the thought about the sound this pavilion would make with falling rain. Architecture that engages more senses than merely sight brings a whole new language to the conversation.

# July 12, 2009 at 09:23

zn says:

It seems to me pretty much a basic solution…

# July 12, 2009 at 09:44

g dehls says:

looks beautiful but it’s hard to imagine that they will scrap it after a few months, what a waste of resources,

# July 12, 2009 at 09:48

jetza says:

beautiful!seems like water…

# July 12, 2009 at 10:02

corto says:

wise architectural detailing, and awesome knowladge of material…

I think the trick is that you can’t get a flat and regular reflection beneath an irregular one-dimensioned surface.

If you have a thin metal reflective metal sheet; the reflections will be wavy. This “pulse” of the surface is making the whole experience something extraordinary.

Watch those thin columns as they get curved through the depths of the reflection… nice…

I really like SANAA…

# July 12, 2009 at 13:54

yoshi says:

oscar did that decades ago….
i love sanaa, but you have always to inovate…
i prefer the others pavillions;;;

# July 12, 2009 at 14:03

De Laugier says:

I think SANAA has made something very fundamental, a simple, deliberate answer to that favorite question of architects: “what is architecture?”
Comparisons with other architects like frank ghery seem pointless and misdirected. This pavilion is part of a long established discourse on architecture that includes buildings like farnsworth and the Parthenon.
I too wish it were not so temporary, but perhaps its fleeting existence is also part of it’s poetry.

Compare the first photo set of this project to iwab baan’s, the difference is astounding. Iwan baan’s photographs always feel more like renderings: they capture the idea behind the building. This is the way architects want to see architecture.

# July 12, 2009 at 14:41

Another Person says:

There is a pretensious french phrase to describe this. Object d’art perhaps.

I wonder if this gardner so much attention sans-sepentine institution? I think not.

Architects ascend the gaunlet of success and recognition. Vindicated they stand tall on upper eschelon.
A vantage point from which to contemplate their navel and toil with fleeting styles and trends.

Meanwhile the serious problems of the world remain unsolved.

# July 12, 2009 at 17:38

we are not policy makers

# July 24, 2009 at 17:29

josep says:

I think is beautiful and brilliant SANAA always managed to deliver without making foolish flashy architecture!

# July 12, 2009 at 18:24

tropicalismo360 says:

I haven’t got back to London yet to see it in person but this seems like a real breath of fresh air compared to the horrendous pavilions of recent years.

# July 12, 2009 at 19:27

-zMx- says:

Nice work SANAA!!!!
Thanks for sharing photos of Serpentine Gallery Pavilion 2009 to Archdaily.com & Ivan Baan.

# July 12, 2009 at 20:15

StructureHub Blog says:

True, rain puddling may be a (minor) issue, but nonetheless, the canopy shimmers and wafts along wonderfully harmless to anything and offensive to no one.

# July 12, 2009 at 21:09

Otis says:

*shrug*

# July 12, 2009 at 23:24

“gives middle finger” at you

# July 24, 2009 at 17:30

KJG says:

Very beautiful! Minimalistic space.
I wonder how they have arranged stability, I don’t see any cross connections…

# July 13, 2009 at 09:46

Ralph Kent says:

I visited it last week. To my mind, its better than the last three Serpentine pavilions. Its quite small and intimate and for once doesn’t scream: “EVERYONE: Look at this – it was designed by me, a famous architect!!!”

In response to the post about the impact on the surrounding vegetation, probably quite limited, given it will be demounted in autumn. And to the person who complained about it being scrapped – that’s not strictly correct. The Serpentine Gallery sells the work at the end to recoup costs, so it will likely end up in the grounds of some stately home or someone gauche like the Cass Sculpture Gallery (where it will slowly degrade out of public view).

# July 16, 2009 at 11:32

thank you!

I missed Mr Ito

# July 25, 2009 at 01:26

dalenehein says:

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# July 26, 2009 at 17:39

R2009S says:

The canopy’s form appeared to me as an over sized droplet that has just splatted on the floor.

# August 1, 2009 at 15:30

Tuf-Pak says:

Boy, we’re really stuck on the formal qualities here on this blog. I would argue that the building has qualities that are really post-image. Qualities on which some of the more recent pavilions weren’t focused.

There’s a nice discussion regarding this pavilion by my friends at Kuu Design on their website.

http://www.kuuworld.com/2009/07/on-sanaas-serpentine-pavilion-and-human-bodies/

# August 3, 2009 at 10:21

Ricardo says:

A lot of people comparing Sanaa’s pavillion with Niemeyer’s Ibirapuera marquise( built in the 40’s). Actually a similar solution for a similar challenge: dwelling from the sun, rain, while integrating with a beautiful surrounding park… The diference here appears to be not only the scale but also the approach to the biefing itself. Ibirapuera marquise is enormous, when compared to Sanna’s pavillion – when you are under it, you feel quite protected, but also separated from the park (it has always intrigued me a lot) – the park looks like far away and, moreover, framed by the concrete structure – the so persued by modern architecture “integration” with nature, kind of say – “ok, nature is beautiful but lets keep it outside”, or “nature is beautiful, lets frame it then..”. and that’s exactly what Sanaa’s pavillion will not do. It is basically the same solution, but the 21st century approach for the “integration with nature” issue is quite different… it will hardly protect those bellow it from the usual bad weather of the londoner summer, and will still play with your senses, by creating reflections, distorted images, etc kind of borrowing the real trees, moan, and even the real visitors to create a new virtual, untangible park experience.
Simplicity, purity, etc has always linked the work of Niemeyer to those of japanese and maybe, scandinavian architects and designers. The great goal of this year’s pavillion is, in my oppinion, to show up such kind of architecture in Europe today, when most of the architects are depply seduced by the personalism, this strange ego trip and the media need of creating star architects, star designers, star musicians, star chefs, star dogs, stars, stars, stars…. when the true architecture is actually more than that, or lets put it better, architecture is less than that.

# October 19, 2009 at 14:05