November 12, 2021
The European Cultural Foundation and Fondazione CRT are pleased to kick off the European Pavilion during a public event hosted by OGR Torino on November 12, 2021.
During 2021, arts and cultural organizations across Europe have joined an exciting new initiative—The European Pavilion. Promoting critical thinking and radical imagination, the initiative aims to fuel bold perspectives on Europe and our common future and to bring Europe closer to its communities and their realities.
The European Pavilion is not a single pavilion, but a collective of many pavilions rooted in local communities, and providing insights into the cultural mosaic that makes up contemporary Europe. Currently, eight European Pavilions are developing new artistic and educational projects that are addressing some of our most pressing challenges: be it the future of food and the issue of waste, the state of democracy, or the necessity to listen to the marginalized and the unheard. They offer perspectives from within and from outside Europe and project a trajectory towards the future.
At the core of The European Pavilion, initiated by the Amsterdam-based European Cultural Foundation, is the conviction that Europe needs a pavilion—a shelter and a home—where it can be re-imagined. Much more than a physical structure, The European Pavilion is a cultural movement that fosters trans-local and trans-national collaborations, and triggers curiosity, interest, and imagination across borders, sectors, and generations.
Participating organizations: ARNA (Sweden), Brunnenpassage (Austria), L’Internationale (a confederation of seven European museums), OGR Torino (Italy), State of Concept (Greece), Studio Rizoma (Italy), and ECF 2020 Culture of Solidarity Fund beneficiaries EUpavilion (Italy/Switzerland) and Studio Wild (The Netherlands).
On November 12, they will come together in Turin to present their plans to a local and international audience.
Throughout autumn 2021, you can also join the European Pavilions in Venice, Palermo, Milan, Ljubljana as well as online at theeuropeanpavilion.eu.
Agenda for autumn 2021
The Forbidden Garden of Europe
Until November 26—Spazio Punch, Venice
For the parallel program of the Dutch pavilion at the 17th Venice Biennial of Architecture, Studio Wild has created a garden of plants that the EU lists as invasive. Using plants as a metaphor, The Forbidden Garden of Europe sheds new light on questions of authenticity, integration and migration. More info here.
Syndicat!
October 20–23—Ecomuseo Urbano Mare Memoria Viva, Palermo
In their pavilion, “Europe After Europe,” Studio Rizoma investigates the meaning of Europe from the outside in. The first programme is a summit entitled, Syndicat!, which invites artists, researchers and citizens to present ideas for concrete transnational alliances that build connections between Europe and North Africa. Full program here.
The European Pavilion: kick-off event
November 12, 10am–12pm CET—OGR Torino, Turin
Contributors to the public program include: iLiana Fokianaki, Kerstin Jakobssen, Lorenzo Marsili, Fariba Molesh, Monica Sassatelli, Mabel Tapia and the EUPavilion collective. The program will be live-streamed on ECF YouTube channel.
The EUPavilion
November 19—MEGA, Milan and online
For their online exhibition, which will open on November 19, EUPavilion invited eight artists and architects to imagine a spatial proposition that breaks away from the national pavilion paradigm, creating the conditions to ask questions about new more representative languages. With Armature Globale, Ballabio/Bava/De Luca, Jasmina Cibic, Diogo Passarinho, Plan Comùn, Something Fantastic, TEN, Evita Vasiljeva. More info here.
A Democracy Pavilion for Europe
December 8–12—Research Center of the Slovenian Academy of Sciences and Arts, Ljubljana
As part of their Democracy Pavilion for Europe, L’Internationale is organizing a four-day conference in Ljubljana with artists, activists, historians, curators and philosophers. They will focus on Slovenia in order to understand wider European trends and exchange different practices and knowledge. More info here.
The European Pavilion is developed in partnership with the Camargo Foundation (France), Kultura Nova Foundation (Croatia) and Fondazione CRT (Italy).