Architecture in Venice

COFA academic Richard Goodwin's work is on display as part of the Venice Architecture Biennale, which opened this week.

Professor Goodwin, who is also an artist, is one of the contributors to the Australian Pavilion, which is hosted by the Australian Institute of Architects. There are 17 Australian teams exhibiting work at the Biennale.

The theme of all the designs selected for the Pavilion is "Designs for Australia's Cities 2050+" .

Professor Goodwin's work, undertaken with Andrew Benjamin and Gerard Reinmuth for the team RAG Urbanism, is called Sydney 2050: Fraying Ground.

The work incorporates so-called "parasite" structures that sit on top of existing buildings in the Sydney CBD of the future.

"The greenest thing we can do is to radically transform existing structures where possible and modify urban planning codes to suit," says Professor Goodwin.

"Architecture should always be in a state of becoming rather than a pedestal object, which architects stuck in early modernism still vaunt. In short, we need to dissolve the notion of architecture as we know it."

Recent COFA graduate Alanna Howe's work is also on display in Venice.

Howe, who graduated from the Bachelor of Design with Honours in February, worked with Alexander Hespe for the company Arup. Their entry is called Ocean City.

The Biennale runs until 21 November.

Media contact: Susi Hamilton, 0422 934 024, 9385 1583