Hashim Sarkis unveils Biennale Architettura 2021 theme 'How will we live together?'

Hashim Sarkis, the Lebanese-American architect and director of the 2021 Venice Architecture Biennale, presented the exhibition's theme at a press conference, arguing that architects, not politicians or economists, hold the key to solving global crises like inequality, climate change, and pandemics. The Biennale, postponed from May 2020 due to COVID-19, poses the question 'How will we live together?' and proposes a 'spatial contract' to replace the outdated social contract. Sarkis emphasized the need to dismantle 20th-century hierarchies and create shared spaces, with a focus on bridges as unifying structures. The exhibition features 112 participants from 46 countries, including many from Africa and Latin America. A special Golden Lion was awarded posthumously to Lina Bo Bardi. Sarkis called for a new generation of architects to act as synthesizers of diverse expertise, urging them to build alternative ways of living together.