Next. La Biennale di Venezia. 8ª International Architecture Exhibition

Two volumes form the catalogue, one concerning the International exhibition and the other concerning the national pavilions.

From September 8 to November 3 the Biennale will host NEXT, an exploration of the imminent future of architecture. Next offers a unique opportunity to find in one place a range of the most significant new work that will be realised over the years to come. This Biennale will concentrate on the physical, the material and the tactile. Architects have been invited to submit large scale models, and where appropriate full size material prototypes Toyo Ito's work with aluminium and with glass reinforced cement for example will be represented not only by drawings, but by actual materials. Rather than inviting architects to make their own installations, the Biennale has commissioned John Pawson to design the architecture of the exhibition as a whole. In this way the Biennale hopes to achieve a greater sense of coherence for the exhibition.

The Next catalogue brings together 160 projects staged in the magnificent buildings of the Arsenale, grouped in ten sections, each dealing with a particular theme: housing, museums, towers, work, communication, performance, shopping, education, church and state and masterplans. Architects represented her range from emerging voices, to the well established, in each case, the choice has been based on the relevance of the project. The pavilions catalogue is about the national pavilions, which form the second of the two main sites on which the Biennale operates. Next here is interpreted by national commissioners in their own way. The Next Italy section will look at major new projects of all types planned for Italy, designed by architects from both Italy and elsewhere. These will include Odile Decq, Bolles and Wilson, Grafton Architects, Enric Miralles and Benedetta Tagliabue.