Crossroads,
Building
the Resilient City

Call for Proposals for Seoul Biennale of
Architectureand Urbanism 2021 2021.09.16 - 10.31

THE SEOUL BIENNALE OF ARCHITECTURE AND URBANISM HOLDS A UNIQUE PLACE IN THE
INTERNATIONAL EVENTS SCENE. IT IS COMMITTED TO THE THEME OF URBAN PLANNING,
CONSIDERING THE CITY OF TOMORROW AS A COLLECTIVE INVENTION. THIS IS WHY IT SEEMED
RIGHT TO ME TODAY TO PLACE ITS THIRD EDITION UNDER THE THEME OF RESILIENCE.

- Dominique Perrault, General Director of the Seoul Biennale of Architecture and Urbanism 2021

Crossroads

On February 13th, 2020 the official launch of the third Seoul Biennale of Architecture and Urbanism (SBAU 2021) took place with the signature of an agreement between Mr. Park Won-soon, Mayor of Seoul, and French architect Dominique Perrault, chosen as the General Director of this major event, scheduled to be held from September to November 2021.

The Seoul Biennale of Architecture and Urbanism was established in 2017 as an event that focuses on cities and gathers their representatives to discuss the challenges linked to the urban condition and share their potential solutions. With 10 million inhabitants, Seoul is one of the most representative examples of contemporary metropolises and, as such, a particularly relevant context to frame this Biennale. Following the first two editions entitled “Imminent Commons” (2017) and “Collective City” (2019), the third edition entitled “CROSSROADS Building the Resilient City ” will explore the evolution of the world’s cities and metropolises.

More than a hundred cities will be invited to participate. “CROSSROADS Building the Resilient City ” will build on the accomplishments of the SBAU’s previous editions, notably by featuring recurrent cities as well as new ones, thus increasing the number of guest cities to a hundred, from 85 in 2019 and 50 in 2017. Through a series of exhibitions and events, the SBAU 2021 will open up opportunities for exploring the city of the future.

CROSSROADS Building the Resilient city

Entitled “CROSSROADS Building the Resilient City” the SBAU 2021 will attempt to respond to the complexity of the relationships that shape our cities nowadays and to the pivotal moment that humanity is facing by drafting, thanks to its contributions a manifesto in favor of a more sustainable city.

“CROSSROADS Building the Resilient City” illustrates its purpose to become a place of convergence. The SBAU 2021 intends to gather different forms of intelligence to reflect on the city of the future as a more sustainable, resilient and comfortable place for its inhabitants. The wind rose has been chosen as the symbol for the event because it appropriately reflects the intention to understand the present moment and to anticipate future developments.

“CROSSROADS Building the Resilient City” will feature works focusing on cities, to examine, research and exhibit how they can be serve as positive assets toward a sustainable planet. More than a hundred cities will be invited to participate.

FIVE CROSSROADS FIGURES

  • Crossroad 1 (C1) on urbanism :

    ABOVE / BELOW

    Will foster methods of urban planning that increase the thickness of the superficial layers of the city. By exploring the potential interconnections between the city’s surface and underground, it will seek to increase its density while limiting urban sprawl.

  • Crossroad 2 (C2) on architecture :

    HERITAGE / MODERN

    Will discuss our relationship to the temporality of the built environment in the quest for sustainable development. It will question the notions of unlimited construction or destruction and will explore the possibility of optimizing what already exists.

  • Crossroad 3 (C3) on design :

    CRAFT / DIGITAL

    Will consider the potential of the city as an instrument of remote production, accessible from anywhere by everyone, in contrast to traditional spaces and production methods.

  • Crossroad 4 (C4) on landscape :

    NATURAL / ARTIFICIAL

    Will examine how nature is at the core of the act of building and will highlight practices that give increasing prominence to building in harmony with nature.

  • Crossroad 5 (C5) on the city :

    SAFE / RISK

    Will question the ability of architecture and urbanism to adapt, transform and deal with the unexpected risks of the contemporary world.

Images: ©DPA/Adagp