The Venice Biennale in Architecture
International exhibitions of architecture have been presented by the Venice Biennale only sporadically in 1991, 1996 and 2000. From 2002 onwards, the Venice Biennale in Architecture was established and in 2004, the Canada Council for the Arts created a framework for the selection and support of the Canadian representation, in partnership with the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade (now Foreign Affairs Canada).
In 1991, Canada was represented by a display of documents celebrating the newly built Canadian Centre for Architecture, designed by Canadian architect Peter Rose in consultation with Phyllis Lambert. The Centre for Architecture acted as producer and curator of this representation of its own building.
In 1996, the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade in consultation with the Canada Council for the Arts again offered the role of preparing the Canadian representation to the Canadian Centre for Architecture with Phyllis Lambert as Canadian Commissioner. Ms Lambert appointed a Biennale Committee composed of representatives of the Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture and the Royal Architectural Institute of Canada. This committee chose to represent Canada with two exhibitions: a display of the work of Vancouver architects John and Patricia Patkau, and a display of the results of a competition for students from the Canadian schools of architecture.
The 2000 exposition of architecture in Venice marked its transformation to a true Biennale. The Canada Council had just renewed its mission to promote Canadian artistic achievements on the international stage, and dedicated a budget for this purpose. For this reason, the Visual Arts Section involved itself much more closely with all aspects of the plan for the official Canadian representation at Venice in 2000, increasing its partnership with the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade in the pursuit of this end. Again, the task of determining the appropriate representation at Venice went to the Canadian Center for Architecture as Canada’s most prestigious institution dedicated to the advancement of architecture. Three-way discussions allowed, for the first time, for the projected budget to be determined at the outset, alongside the Centre’s curatorial decision as to how Canada would be represented (ie, with what body of work). A committee at the Canadian Center for Architecture decided to present the work of Montreal architect Melvin Charney. (See news release)
In 2001, a meeting was held, involving representatives from the Canadian Center for Architecture, the Design Exchange, the University of Toronto School of Architecture, the New York-based, Canadian firm of Asymptote, the Ministry of Exterior Affairs and International Trade (now External Affairs Canada) and the Canada Council for the Arts, to discuss the modalities of the Canadian participation at the Venice Biennale in Architecture. The committee agreed on a structure similar to the one that had just been created to administer the Canadian representation at the Venice Biennale in Visual Arts. The structure would involve a national competition, open not only to museums but to all galleries and artist-run centers. This formula had been used for the first time in the 2001 Visual Arts Biennale, with resounding success: for the first time in the history of the Biennale, Canada won the Golden Lion, with Plug In Institute for Contemporary Arts’ production of an art work by Janet Cardiff. (See news release)
2002. A modest competition was launched; among two submissions, the proposal by InterAccess for ‘NEXT MEMORY CITY, Toronto: Venice’ was retained, with works from Michael Awad, David Rockeby and Eve Egoyan, and a critical text by Rodolphe el-Khoury (see news release). InterAccess had to develop its presentation with a minimal logistical support, the architecture initiative still being in development at the Canada Council.
2004 For the first time in the history of Canada’s participation to the Venice Biennale in architecture, a call for proposals was made to all Canadian institutions with an interest in architecture. Four proposals were received, and evaluated by a jury composed of five practitioners, critics and curators of architecture from Halifax, Montreal, Toronto, Calgary and Vancouver. The Centre international d’art contemporain de Montréal was selected, to present works by Saucier + Perrotte Architectes (see news release). The Centre international d’art contemporain eventually retired from the project, and Saucier + Perrotte Architectes took charge of the production of the event. Their work has been extremely well received, and was even considered by the jury attributing the Biennale’s Golden Lion.
2006. A call for proposals was made in January 2005. SweaterLodge, a project by Pechet and Robb Studio of Vancouver, has been selected through a national juried competition to represent Canada at the 2006 Venice Biennale in Architecture. The exhibition will be co-curated by Chris Macdonald and Greg Bellerby with the support of the School of Architecture, UBC and the Charles H. Scott Gallery, Emily Carr Institute.