Matti Jänkälä - Pavilion of Finland at the Venice Biennale Architettura

Picture: Ugo Carmeni

The Pavilion – Architecture of Stewardship

Exhibition in the Pavilion of Finland at the Venice Biennale Architettura 2025
Organiser: Archinfo
Commissioner: Katarina Siltavuori
Curators: Ella Kaira, Matti Jänkälä
Video artist: Merle Karp
Sound design: Jussi Hertz
Exhibition architecture: Antti Auvinen
Graphic design: Antti Samuli Saarinen
Production team: Ulla Kallakivi, Miina Jutila, Francesco Raccanelli, Anna Rusi
Supporters: Ministry of Education and Culture, Finland, Finnish Cultural Foundation

Architecture is often seen as the creation of the architect alone. However, architecture is a collaborative endeavour, drawing on diverse labour – from design contributions by architects and engineers to the efforts of construction workers, maintenance staff, cleaners, and restoration architects, all of whom play vital roles in the creation and upkeep of the built environment.

The exhibition traces the story of the Pavilion of Finland, designed by architect Alvar Aalto and his office, from its construction in 1956, through three major restorations and decades of continuous maintenance, to today. It delves into the labour required to ensure the longevity of architecture and positions the people involved in this work as co-creators alongside the original architect.

Through immersive multi-channel video projections and sound art, the exhibition brings to life the memories embedded within the pavilion’s walls. Through these stories, the exhibition invites visitors to see the space from new perspectives and uncovers aspects that are typically hidden.

Preserving built heritage depends on stewardship – a shared duty between architects and non-architects, requiring the negotiation of land, resources, and the built environment and considering the needs of humans and non-humans alike. The Pavilion – Architecture of Stewardship aspires to make the invisible visible.