Biennale Architettura 2023: upcoming events at the Carnival

Four new live events with screenings, short films and panel discussions will animate the 18^th International Architecture Exhibition, The Laboratory of the Future at the end of August. Organised as part of the Carnival programme, designed by curator Lesley Lokko, the events will be held in Venice on Sunday 27, Tuesday 29, Thursday 31 of August and Monday September 4^th 2023, at the Teatro Piccolo Arsenale.

Sunday, August 27^th from 2:00 pm to 4:00 pm
Teatro Piccolo Arsenale (Campo de la Tana, 2161, Venice)
African Space Magicians

With Aziza Chaouni, Black Females in Architecture, Nzinga Biegueng Mboup, Chérif Tall, Papa Omotayo

The event includes the screening of two short films: the first directed by Black Females in Architecture, the second directed by Nzinga Biegueng Mboup and Chérif Tall, participants in the 'Guests from the Future' section of the 18^th International Architecture Exhibition.

Moderated by Lesley Lokko, a panel discussion will follow on what it means to be an 'African' architect, what are the conditions, creative opportunities and challenges that give the term 'African' a meaning beyond a geographical or racial definition.

Tuesday, August 29^th from 2:00 pm to 4:00 pm
Teatro Piccolo Arsenale (Campo de la Tana, 2161, Venice)
The Future of Research into African Architectural and Urban History

With Murray Fraser, Ikem Stanley Okoye, Ola Uduku, Warebi Gabriel Brisibe, Kuukuwa Manful, Victoria Okoye, Mark Olweny, Huda Tayob, Adefola Toye, Ramota Ruth Obagah-Stephen, Neal Shasore

A round table chaired and moderated by Prof. Ola Uduku, Prof. Ikem Stanley and Prof. Nnamdi Elleh, on the future of African architectural research on the continent and in the diaspora.

What are the most pressing issues in African architectural and urban history that require academic investigation? Who should take responsibility for writing African architectural and urban history and what kind of approach should it take? What contribution could African architectural and urban history make to become a challenge for architectural practice and architectural education in other parts of the world?

Thursday, August 31^st from 2:00 pm to 5:45 pm
Teatro Piccolo Arsenale (Campo de la Tana, 2161, Venice)
Governing, Designing, and Educating Urban Futures

With Mariana Mazzucato, Ricky Burdett, Lesley Lokko

Participating: Claudia López (Mayor of Bogota, Colombia), Ada Colau (former Mayor of Barcelona, Spain), Soledad Núñez (former Minister for Housing and Habitat, Paraguay), Laura Lieto (Deputy Mayor of Naples, Italy), Dan Hill (Director, Melbourne School of Design), Rahul Mehrotra (Professor, Graduate School of Design, Harvard University), Alcinda Honwana (United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs), Richard Sennett (Emeritus Professor of Sociology, LSE)

The symposium will be structured into two sections. The first session will feature a panel on innovation in city governance to discuss the way in which different economic and delivery models can lead to positive change. A second panel with designers, planners and social scientists will explore how enduring spatial and educational frameworks lock cities into regressive environments that fail to promote inclusion and justice.

The event is co-organised with the Council on Urban Initiatives, a research and advocacy platform established in partnership between UN-Habitat, UCL Institute of Innovation and Public Purpose, and LSE Cities in 2021 to promote just, green and healthy cities. It is co-chaired by Ricky Burdett and Mariana Mazzucato, who will moderating the event, alongside Lesley Lokko.

Monday, September 4^th from 2:00 pm to 4:00 pm
Teatro Piccolo Arsenale (Campo de la Tana, 2161, Venice)
Building African Futures

With Julia Gallagher (moderator)
Kuukuwa Manful, Emmanuel Ofori-Sarpong, Olufèmi Hinson Yovo, Fiona Nyadero

Buildings shape politics, articulating power relations in the ways they are designed, constructed and used. Africa's public buildings - parliaments, ministries, presidential palaces, courthouses, public records offices, police stations - reflect the complexity and ambiguity of politics in different States. Researchers and scholars working on this multi-layered research project examine in a panel discussion the interaction of citizens with state buildings, focusing in particular on Côte d'Ivoire, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Ethiopia, Ghana, South Africa and Zimbabwe. A documentary film will be screened during the meeting.

Carnival is the cycle of meetings, lectures, round tables, films and performances designed by curator Lesley Lokko to animate the Biennale Architettura 2023 and explore the themes of The Laboratory of the Future, open until November 26^th .

Carnival is supported by Rolex, Exclusive Partner and Official Timepiece of the Exhibition.