Baltic Pavilion at Venice Biennale Occupies a Sports Arena

The Baltic Pavilion at the 2016 Venice Architecture Biennale is housed in the Palasport Giobatta Gianquinto, a concrete sports arena built 40 years ago on the site of the Arsenale's furnaces. The exhibition, titled 'Report from the Front,' addresses urban and infrastructural transformations in Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania, including new roads, railways, border issues, energy resources, and the European Union. The pavilion extends across the basketball court and stands, while local youth continue sports activities in adjacent gyms. The venue, rarely open during Biennales, offers a unique setting for architectural discourse.