The Santa Cruz International Biennial of Architecture (BASC) is adapting and transforming. As a result, it will become the first virtual architecture biennial in the Americas, taking place from July 20 to 27 alongside the International Construction, Architecture, and Design Fair (FICAD).
The global challenges brought on by the coronavirus pandemic have forced organizations to rethink operations on multiple levels. The academic event organized by the College of Architects of Santa Cruz, originally scheduled for late March, was no exception.
Following the photography exhibition “Return to Origins”—which opened on March 3 in the outdoor plaza of the Manzana Uno Art Space—and the submission of around one hundred projects across five categories for the Grand Biennial 2020 competition, the event's programming is resuming. This time, it will take place on a digital platform featuring virtual tours of the Biennial Pavilion and keynote lectures by international experts.
For this seventh edition, the organizers have proposed a reflection on the “Return to Origins.” The goal is to spark debate on the importance of introspectively examining the essence of space and cities within a global context while remaining connected to local knowledge.
“This new global situation forces us to accelerate that… to see that beyond a health crisis there is a need to understand ourselves as a society from the particular within a globalized context,” emphasizes Ernesto Urzagasti, director of the BASC.
By taking on this challenge, the Biennial reconfigures itself as a virtual event while maintaining its core objectives: creating opportunities to analyze and discuss architecture and the human habitat in Bolivia and Latin America.
* News via press release
This article was written by ArchDaily Team. The translation is powered by AI.
