co-evolution - Danish Pavilion at the 10th Biennale in Venice

The Danish national exhibition titled Co-Evolution, Danish/Chinese collaboration on sustainable urban development in China won this year's Golden Lion. This Nordic country, with an area about the same as an average Chinese megacity, is trying to advise Goliath on what the new cities should look like. Henrik Valeur, curator of the Venice pavilion and the main brain behind the UiD office, involved Chinese students from Chongqing University, Tongji University in Shanghai, Tsinghua University in Beijing, Xi’an University of Architecture & Technology, as well as young Danish studios Cebra, Cobe, Effekt, and Transform in the project. This unique joint venture between China and Denmark attempted to demonstrate how architects, along with researchers and designers, face the challenges accompanying the growing Chinese economy. Four Danish architects, representing ‘young promising talents from Denmark,’ worked on designs and sought answers to the question: ‘How can China continue its ambitious plans to improve the living conditions of its population without exhausting most of the resources needed to maintain a better life?’

Reactions from other media:
“The Danish pavilion was my favorite at the Venice Biennale. Its design is spectacular, striking, and entertaining (just the way I like it), and its central theme (China and sustainable development) is certainly very fashionable these days, however, their approach is broad and superficial.”

“The best at the biennale - the Danish exhibition is one of the most successful. It combined both statistical information and specific design proposals that directly reflect the recorded data. It is a joint work of young design firms from Denmark and students from Chinese universities.”

“One of the highlights was the Danish contribution Co-Evolution (also showcased at the Venice Biennale), which transformed a year-long exchange project between young architectural firms in Denmark and four Chinese universities into four projects of metropolises with a sustainable environment: Shanghai, Beijing, Xi’an, and Chongqing.”