Unfolding Pavilion Curated Archives / Casa alle Zattere

By the term "curated archives"¹ we mean collections of constantly updated digital images, sharing one or more common themes, which are hosted on social networks such as Tumblr, Facebook or Instagram and which are mostly curated pro bono by self-proclaimed editors. The content of these visual atlases may be original or pre-existing, scanned or redistributed from other blogs, old or new, left as is or processed, commented on or not... We are dealing with drawings, collages, photos, GIFs or short videos that, once compiled, become interconnected fragments of their editors' imaginations, taking the form of reference lists published according to meticulously defined protocols. "Archive of Affinities", "SOCKS" or "OfHouses" are just three examples of this new phenomenon that is redefining the way images shape architectural thinking.

Once the theme of the project was defined, the problem of finding a venue - a primarily economic one - immediately became acute, as we had to identify an alternative way to organize a temporary exhibition, much less expensive than renting a gallery. This is why we turned to Airbnb, in search of domestic spaces that could be temporarily converted into exhibition spaces, with Hans Ulrich Obrist's 1991 Kitchen Show project in mind.

After more research, I discovered that a cheap and free apartment is available right in the famous Casa alle Zattere: a 1950s bourgeois apartment building on the Giudecca Canal, designed by Milanese architect Ignazio Gardella, whose unique facade was conceived as an atlas of architectural elements belonging to the urban landscape of Venice, reinterpreted and reassembled so as to engage in a contemporary dialog with its historical surroundings. Widely debated in the years following its construction, the Casa alle Zattere is well known to Italian architects, although few may have had the chance to visit its interior. Making this building available to the public for the first time in 60 years, and integrating it into the exhibition as a centerpiece, immediately became the central concerns of our project.

1 The term 'curated archives' first appeared in the discussions between Paula V. Álvarez and Davide T. Ferrando in the Editor Talks project.

With the term "curated archives"¹ we indicate constantly updated collections of digital images sharing one or more themes in common, which are usually based on social platforms such as Tumblr, Facebook or Instagram, and mostly curated pro bono by individuals or small groups of self-proclaimed editors. The contents published in these visual atlases can indifferently be original or preexisting, recent or old, left as found or manipulated, scanned from print or reblogged, commented on or not. They can be drawings, collages, photographs, animated gifs or short videos which, once gathered, become the interrelated fragments of their editors' imaginary, taking the form of lists of references published according to meticulously defined protocols. "Archive of Affinities", "Socks" or "OfHouses" are just three examples of this new phenomenon, which is redefining the way in which images shape architectural thinking.

Once the theme of the project was defined, the issue of the location - which was first of all an economic issue - became immediately evident, as we had to find an alternative and less expensive way to host a pop-up exhibition than to rent a gallery. It is for this reason that we turned to AirBnb in search of domestic spaces that could be temporarily converted into exhibition venues, having of course in mind Hans Ulrich Obrist's 1991 "Kitchen Show".

After some research, we found out that a cheap flat was available nothing less than in the Casa alle Zattere: a bourgeois 1950s apartment building on the Giudecca Canal designed by the Milanese architect Ignazio Gardella, whose unique facade was conceived as an atlas of architectural elements belonging to the urban landscape of Venice, reinterpreted and reassembled so to establish a contemporary dialog with its historical surroundings. Widely debated in the years following its construction, the Casa alle Zattere is well known among Italian architects, although few (if any) have ever had the chance to visit it from the inside. To open it up to the public for the first time in the past 60 years, and to make it a fundamental part of the exhibition, immediately became the core of our project.