Titled "In Our Home", the Albanian pavilion at the 17th International Architecture Exhibition - La Biennale di Venezia, exhibits the impact knowing one's neighbor has on the built environment. Curated by a team of four architects: Fiona Mali, Irola Andoni, Malvina Ferra, and Rudina Brecani, the pavilion will be on display at Arsenale's Outdoor Arena no.2 from May 22nd until November 21st, 2021.
To answer the question of "How Will We Live Together", the Albanian pavilion highlights the bond between neighbors and how living next to each other defines the structural identity of the built environment. As population densities increase drastically every year, the bond between neighbors depends on verbal and spatial communication, shaping the meaning of "home".
Our current global state of mind has clearly shifted towards an isolated mode of living, spreading the pandemic of loneliness. We have become extremely selective in regard to the relationships we want to create in out immediate built surrounding. In Albania, this transformation happened in a single generation. Many young Albanians in their twenties have parents who lived in unimaginable times of isolation and economic hardship. -- Albanian Pavilion Curators
Regardless of the current social and economical situation that Albania was going through, citizens relied on each other and accepted each other, unlike today's communities that are immersed in globalization and individualism. The comparison between generations and the change in how neighbors communicate and bond with each other is explored in the pavilion.
The Albanian pavilion looks at the past to address the future, exploring the change in urban layouts and the role architecture plays in fostering neighborliness beyond the apartment walls. The guest room takes the spotlight in the pavilion, a space now lost in modern residential apartments.
It is an invitation to cross these barriers and discover the gift, a connection that fulfills our need to belong and makes a place out of our address, transforming our building, our neighborhood and even our city into something much more meaningful. -- Albanian Pavilion Curators
Upon entering the exhibition space, visitors will recognize a familiar home setting but with hints of typical late 20th century Albanian apartments. The interiors of the apartments are displayed on the outside of the pavilion, with flattened abstract furniture pieces. The visitors, which play the role of "neighbors" in the pavilion, cross the walls to reach the core of the experience - the guest room, symbolizing what relationships between neighbors should feel like.
In Our Home
- Commissioner: Elva Margariti, Minister of Culture of the Republic of Albania
- Curators/Exhibitors: Fiona Mali, Irola Andoni, Malvina Ferra, Rudina Brecani
- Supported by: Municipality of Tirana and the Mayor of Tirana, Mr. Erion Veliaj
- In Collaboration with: National Film Archive of Albania, National Center of Cinematography, Audio-Visual Authors Protection Forum
