20 May – 26 November 2023, _docks_cantieri cucchini

A Fragile Correspondence

Representatives of Architecture Fringe, ism magazine and slash other stand in a high ceilinged, light filled room

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Team image by Matthew Arthur Williams. The creative team – from left to right: Amy McEwan, Aoife Nolan, Carl Jonsson, Neil McGuire, Mia Pinder-Hussein, Kristina Enberg, Alissar Riachi, Alyesha Choudhury and Andy Summers. Representing each collective is: Neil McGuire and Andy Summers for the Architecture Fringe, Kristina Enberg, Amy McEwan, Aoife Nolan, Alissar Riachi for ism magazine, and Alyesha Choudhury, Carl C.Z. Jonsson and Mia Pinder-Hussein for /other (pronounced: slash other).

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The Architecture Fringe is a self-initiated non-profit volunteer-run organisation which explores architecture and its impact within our collective public life. Their primary objective is to expand and open up architectural culture by creating new work and commissioning new voices.

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ism architecture magazine is an independent publication based in Glasgow with a desire for bold and critical reflection on the built environment. Its ethos revolves around using the written word to create a platform of accessible writing for voices of diverse backgrounds.

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/other is a collective of POC (people of colour) creatives that centres the marginalised individual within architectural discourse. Their exhibition and curatorial work is grounded in methods of collaboration and critical questioning, aiming to present a contemporary culture of diverse expression.

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The creative team together with project participants and collaborators at the opening of A Fragile Correspondence - from left to right: Andy Summers (Architecture Fringe), Carl C.Z. Jonsson (/other), Aaron McCarthy, Ann Louise Kieran, Dele Adeyemo, Mia Pinder-Hussein (/other), Alyesha Choudhury (/other), Neil McGuire (Architecture Fringe), (above) Alissar Riachi (ism magazine), Frank McElhinney, Kristina Enberg (ism magazine), (below) Amy McEwan (ism magazine), Aoife Nolan (ism magazine) and Hamshya Rajkumar. Please note that project participants Dr. Amanda Thomson, Raghnaid Sandilands, Dr. Mairi McFadyen and Donna Heddle are not in this photo. Photo by Daniele Sambo

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Project participants Hamshya Rajkumar, Frank McElhinney, Dr. Amanda Thomson, Aaron McCarthy, and Dele Adeyemo speak at a panel discussion at A Fragile Correspondence in Venice. Photo by Daniele Sambo

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Members of the / other team in the Reading Room - photo by Daniele Sambo

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Visitors explore the Ravenscraig section of the exhibition. Photo by Daniele Sambo

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Loch Ness section work on display - photo by Daniele Sambo

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Work by Aaron McCarthy in the Orkney part of the exhibition - photo by Daniele Sambo

A Fragile Correspondence

The Scotland + Venice partnership has commissioned a creative team consisting of the Architecture Fringe, -ism and /other to develop new work. Their project, A Fragile Correspondence, is one of the collateral events for the 18th International Architecture Exhibition – La Biennale di Venezia.

Our existence relies on a close relationship with the landscapes that sustain us. Our understanding of the natural world around us is fragile. How can a closer relationship between land and language help architecture be more attuned to the environment in which it operates?

Our landscapes are constantly transmitting information if we choose to see and listen. By re-establishing our dialogue with the land, how can we value exchange over-extraction and equality over dominance? How can we create a more reciprocal connection with the land?

Highlighting cultures and languages that have a close affinity with the landscapes of Scotland, A Fragile Correspondence explores alternative perspectives and new approaches to the challenges of the worldwide climate emergency.

From the forests around Loch Ness, the seashore of the Orkney archipelago and the industrialised remnants of the Ravenscraig steelworks, the project takes us on a journey through three Scottish landscapes; the Highlands, Islands and Lowlands.

Writers, artists and architects, in correspondence with these landscapes, are exploring issues distinctly rooted in place, but with global relevance to the cultural, ecological and climatic issues that we face.

Language is powerful, and shapes how we understand the world around us. Through these creative explorations, and by proposing a new lexicon of terms and definitions, can we begin to imagine alternative ways of doing things? Can we see the potential in futures that sensitively work in correspondence with the land rather than simply upon it?

Exhibition Dates

May 20 2023 to November 26 2023

Opening Times

Tuesday - Sunday
10:00 – 18:00

Location

_docks_cantieri cucchini
S. Pietro di Castello, 40, 30122

Venice Biennale exhibition opens at V&A Dundee

A dramatic image of the coastline of Orkney

Image: A Fragile Correspondence – Orkney. Photo credit Simon Forsythe, Lateral North. Scotland’s exhibition from the 18th Venice Architecture Biennale, A Fragile Correspondence, opens at V&A Dundee on Friday 22 November for its first UK showcase. Read more

A Fragile Correspondence to return to Scotland after successful run at La Biennale di Venezia

Photograph of the exhibition with a blurry person walking through the space

A Fragile Correspondence – Work on display in Loch Ness section – photo by Daniele Sambo

A Fragile Correspondence will return to Scotland in November 2024 where it will be showcased at V&A Dundee after its May to November run this year in Venice. Commissioned by the Scotland + Venice partnership and curated by a creative team consisting of the Architecture Fringe, -ism magazine, and /other, A Fragile Correspondence has run from 20 May to 26 November 2023 at _docks_cantieri cucchini, as part of the 18th International Architecture Exhibition of La Biennale di Venezia. Read more

Atlantic Assemblages

A photograph of some birch trees in ceramic pots, which are all displayed in front of a turquois blue wall.

Birch trees of Ravenscraig – work on display in the Ravenscraig section of A Fragile Correspondence. Photo by Daniele Sambo.

After an Open Call asking artists and writers for a creative promotional response to the themes of A Fragile Correspondence, Harvey Dimond was commissioned to write the below creative response. This three-part text considers how colonialism has shaped the natural ecologies of Scotland, South Africa and Barbados, and considers their historic and contemporary resonances from a diasporic perspective. Read more

Abundant Nectar

A close-up photograph of artwork in the exhibition that is made out of golden yellow material and thread.

A close-up of the work by Raghnaid Sandilands in the Loch Ness section of A Fragile Correspondence. Photo by Alyesha Choudhury.

After an Open Call asking artists and writers for a creative promotional response to the themes of A Fragile Correspondence, Harper Walton was commissioned to write the below poem, which explores the geographically distinct areas of Highland, Island and Lowland as queer spaces through a transgender and non-binary lens. Read more

Found in Translation: Architecture, Land, Landscape, Language

A group of people sit and listen to a woman reading from a sheet of paper.

Photo credit: Robb Mcrae.

The Scotland + Venice | Found in Translation: Architecture, Land, Landscape, Language event on 14 October brought together presentations from the Austrian Pavilion, Orizzontale (from Rome, exhibiting within the Arsenale), Dualchas, A Fragile Correspondence, the Lithuanian Pavilion and Scottish author Cal Flyn. Read more

Island Time

A photograph of the work in display in the Orkney section of A Fragile Correspondence.

A Fragile Correspondence, work on display in the Orkney Section. Photo: Daniele Sambo

The frequency of an island sounds different from that of the mainland; and in conversation with the rhythms of the sky and sea, Orcadians live in conjunction with the water that they are surrounded by and in response to its temperament - floods, rain, and storms. Read more

Erasure of contemporary landscapes

A close up photo of a white architectural model of what Ravenscraig could look like in the future, featuring model trees and people.

Model (detail) of a potential future for Ravenscraig site. Photo by Daniele Sambo.

In response to A Fragile Correspondence, journalist Diyora Shadijanova visits the site of Ravenscraig and considers its past, present and potential future. Wikipedia describes Ravenscraig as a "village" and a "new town", but when I travel there one sunny afternoon, it's all roads and roundabouts breaking vast areas of greenery fenced off for future construction. Read more

Land ownership, cultural identity, and sustainability

A photograph of a section of an exhibition, featuring boards of text and images and a screen showing videos of the Loch Ness landscape.

A Fragile Correspondence, display in Loch Ness section. Photo: Daniele Sambo

In response to A Fragile Correspondence, Eilidh Akilade explores land ownership - imagined, formal, and otherwise. Centring around the Isle of Lewis, the piece looks to the island’s history, familial encounters with the natural landscape, and the Gaelic language. Read more

PDP Reflections: Maxwell Wilson

Maxwell Wilson formed part of the Professional Development Programme, during the summer. From Lhanbryde, Moray, he was a Stage 6 student at the Scott Sutherland School of Architecture in Aberdeen, graduating in July. Read more

Biennale Follows New Path

A Fragile Correspondence – Work on display in Loch Ness section – photo by Daniele Sambo

LET’S START with a word: opportunity. Scotland’s chance to participate in the Venice Architecture Biennale, the biggest and most prestigious festival of architecture in the world. In the canal-side venue used by the Scotland + Venice Partnership since 2019, close to the Biennale’s main spaces, the show is ideally placed to catch visitors from all over the world. Read more

Open Call: Successful Proposals Announced

The Scotland + Venice partnership has announced two selected proposals, responding to the open call for a creative promotional response to A Fragile Correspondence. The open call invited a range of creative responses to the themes of A Fragile Correspondence. Read more

A Fragile Correspondence exhibition opens at 18th International Architecture Exhibition – La Biennale di Venezia

Alyesha Choudhury, member of the curatorial team for Scotland + Venice commission ‘A Fragile Correspondence’, with birch trees from the Ravenscraig section of the exhibition in Venice. The exhibition opens to the public in Venice on Saturday 20 May. Read more

A Fragile Correspondence: New Trailer

How can a closer relationship between land and language help architecture be more attuned to the environment in which it operates? Highlighting cultures and languages that have a close affinity with the landscapes of Scotland, A Fragile Correspondence explores alternative perspectives and new approaches to the challenges of the worldwide climate emergency. Read more

Open Call: A creative promotional response to the themes of A Fragile Correspondence

We are looking to commission a writer or creative of any medium to create a promotional response to the themes of A Fragile Correspondence, a collateral event for the 18th International Architecture Exhibition – La Biennale di Venezia created by the Architecture Fringe, ism magazine and /other, and commissioned by the Scotland + Venice partnership. Read more

A creative team consisting of the Architecture Fringe, ism and /other has been invited to prepare a project for the International Architecture Exhibition – La Biennale di Venezia in 2023

Commissioned by the Scotland + Venice Partnership The  Scotland + Venice partnership is delighted to announce it has commissioned a creative team consisting of the Architecture Fringe, ism and /other to develop new work. Read more

20 May – 26 November 2023, _docks_cantieri cucchini

A Fragile Correspondence