Venice Biennale Redefines Architecture to Combat Climate Change

The 2025 Venice Architecture Biennale brings architecture into focus, highlighting its intersection with climate change. The event calls for a rethink of conventional building practices.

Curator Carlo Ratti presents an exhibition titled “Intelligens. Natural. Artificial. Collective.” This show embraces sustainable, adaptive, and ecologically conscious methods.

The Biennale questions architecture’s role in environmental degradation. It offers insights into designing for resilience in a rapidly warming world.

With more than 300 multidisciplinary submissions, the event explores how the built environment can harmonize with natural systems. The goal is to help mitigate climate impacts.

A Bold Push Against Modernism

Modern architectural practices often rely on environmentally harmful materials like steel and concrete. These materials are under scrutiny at the 2025 Venice Biennale.

This exhibition rejects outdated approaches. It promotes climate-adaptive building strategies.

Materials such as trees, stones, fungi, and biodegradable substances are highlighted. The Biennale advocates for using resources that are both sustainable and natural.

Curated Vision: “Intelligens. Natural. Artificial. Collective”

Carlo Ratti’s curatorial approach uses an open call format. This draws perspectives from architects, scientists, craftspeople, and environmentalists.

The exhibition builds a narrative showing how architecture can adapt alongside Earth’s natural systems. The title reflects a balance of intelligence across natural processes, artificial innovation, and human collaboration.

Material Innovation Takes Center Stage

The Biennale demonstrates how alternative materials can change construction while reducing environmental impacts. Exhibits introduce ideas such as using whole trees instead of milled wooden beams.

This method enhances both strength and eco-efficiency. Other installations feature biodegradable substances and creative ways to repurpose materials.

Showcasing Sustainability in Action

A key feature of this year’s exhibition is the direct application of climate-adaptive construction concepts:

• British Pavilion: “Geology of Britannic Repair” features a façade made from clay and agricultural waste briquettes. This shows how local resources can redefine building materials.
• Danish Pavilion: Highlights the potential of crumbling concrete repurposed into new flooring, reducing demolition waste.
• Belgian Pavilion: Explores the use of living trees as substitutes for mechanical air conditioning, merging biology with design.

Adapting Existing Structures for Climate Resilience

Urban heat islands make global warming worse, so the Biennale emphasizes retrofitting existing buildings. Projects show solutions like adding awnings, porches, and plants to cool urban spaces naturally.

These strategies focus on upgrading current buildings. This shift aims to combat climate challenges without relying only on new construction.

Interdisciplinary Approaches in Focus

The Biennale stands out for its multi-disciplinary outlook. Participants blend technology, Indigenous knowledge, craftsmanship, and ecological expertise.

This approach encourages collaboration across sectors. It makes the exhibits more innovative and relevant to global issues.

A Question of Responsibility

The 2025 Venice Architecture Biennale invites a rethink of architecture’s role in climate change. By learning from natural systems and Indigenous practices, architects and engineers are encouraged to innovate responsibly.

The exhibition highlights the profession’s potential to shape a more sustainable future. It calls for accountability and new ideas to move beyond environmentally harmful practices.

Final Thoughts: A Vision for Tomorrow

The 2025 Venice Architecture Biennale is more than an exhibition. It’s a call to action for architects, engineers, and builders to align design with the planet’s ecological limits.

The Biennale explores alternatives like tree-based beams, living facades, and material repurposing. It offers insights into how architecture can address the climate crisis.

The future of building lies in connecting people and ecosystems through intelligent design.

 
Here is the source article for this story: A rebuke to Modernism: the Venice Architecture Biennale imagines new ways of building to cope with climate change