The Bahrain Pavilion at Venice Biennale invites multi-disciplinary teams to provide innovative, realistic, and locally-rooted responses to the global challenges of climate change and extreme heat. Over the past decade, record-breaking heatwaves have become a global phenomenon, with the Gulf region experiencing some of the most extreme temperatures. Traditionally, the people of Bahrain migrated seasonally to adapt to the climate: moving to the desert during winter and to coastal or inland water areas during summer. This pattern extended to occupations, with workers relocating to optimize their activities according to the seasons. In the absence of modern cooling technologies, these practices allowed communities to live in more favorable conditions, even sleeping on rooftops to benefit from coastal breezes during the hot months.
The Challenge of Climate Change
Current challenges posed by climate change and global warming necessitate urgent and simultaneous responses at both architectural and urban levels. Beyond a wet-bulb temperature of 35°C, sustaining human life becomes difficult. Between 2000–2004 and 2017–2021, heat-related mortality for people over 65 years increased by approximately 85%. Addressing these challenges requires rethinking construction materials for better insulation and reimagining urban designs to cope with extreme heat.
Invitation for Innovative Solutions
The Bahrain Pavilion at Venice Biennale seeks multi-disciplinary teams to provide innovative, realistic, and locally-rooted responses to these global challenges. The aim is to explore intelligence as the ability to adapt to the environment with limited resources, knowledge, or power. The call invites teams to revisit ancestral models of transiency as methods of adaptation and flexibility in the face of extreme weather conditions.
Application Guidelines for Bahrain Pavilion at Venice Biennale
The call is open internationally and teams must include at least one Bahraini national or resident. Teams can have up to five members from various fields including curators, architects, artists, historians, designers, theorists, scientists, critics, or related disciplines. Team members should have specific roles and tasks within the project. The proposal should be ambitious, feasible, and able to be researched, studied, and implemented within the given timeframe. Applicants must be committed to the project leading up to the opening date. Complete the online application form early to allow sufficient time for shaping the proposal. Designate one main contact person in the application.
Selection Committee
HE Sh. Khalifa bin Ahmed Al Khalifa, President, Bahrain Authority for Culture and Antiquities Noura Al Sayeh, Advisor for Heritage Projects, Bahrain Authority for Culture and Antiquities Camille Zakharia, Photographer – Manama, Bahrain Matilde Cassani, Artist, architect and exhibition designer – Milan, Italy Aziza Chaouni, Architect and professor of architecture – Fes, Morocco
This open call aims to showcase how local ingenuity can address the existential challenges of our time through cooperative and diverse approaches, embodying the theme “One place, one solution.” The Bahrain Pavilion at Venice Biennale provides a platform to highlight innovative responses to global climate challenges with a local focus.
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