Cotter & Naessens Architects have been selected to represent Ireland at the 19th International Architecture Exhibition - La Biennale di Venezia in 2025. Their project, Assembly, will explore architecture's role in shaping spaces for gathering, discussion, and democratic exchange. The selection was made through an open call by Culture Ireland, in partnership with the Arts Council, and was announced in April by Minister for Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport, and Media, Catherine Martin T.D.
At the core of Assembly is an investigation into how architectural space can facilitate collective participation. Drawing inspiration from Ireland's first Citizens' Assembly, an innovative form of participatory democracy established in 2016 to bring ordinary citizens closer to governance, Cotter & Naessens envision an environment where architecture acts as both a stage and a structure for discourse. In contrast to the fast-paced, algorithmically mediated flow of information that defines much of contemporary life, the Citizens' Assembly model emphasizes slower, more deliberate processes of reflection and consensus-building. Building on this framework, Assembly challenges traditional spatial hierarchies, proposing a prototype for gathering that prioritizes inclusivity, fluidity, and interaction.
Framing how architecture can learn from this political experiment, the pavilion presents a speculative prototype for a structure designed to facilitate non-hierarchical communication between strangers. Its concept and form draw on spatial typologies of political and social assembly from Ireland and beyond, including choir stalls, parliaments, and cattle marts. Circular, modular, and small in scale, the design has the potential to transform a range of publicly accessible spaces, from schools to shopping malls, into sites of civic participation.
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The pavilion reflects on assembly as both a product and a process of making. Harnessing age-old, renewable materials, traditional skills, and collaborative knowledge, the structure has been hand-crafted from Irish beech trees and will feature a handwoven carpet by Ceadogán Rugmakers to welcome visitors into its interior. A chorus of integrated soundboxes will each deliver a fragment of a spatialized, polyphonic composition inspired by the Venetian tradition of cori spezzati. The audio work, created by Michelle Delea and David Stalling, combines music, poetry, interviews with the Citizens' Assembly's designers and participants, and recordings that document the structure's fabrication.
Beyond the exhibition, Assembly will serve as a platform for a broader program of activations, discussions, and performances. The curators propose a dynamic, evolving space where guests, local and international participants, and the public can engage in ongoing conversations. This program will extend the themes of the installation, addressing issues of civic space, community engagement, and the role of architecture in shaping democratic environments. Ultimately, Assembly aims to contribute a thoughtful and ambitious project to the Venice Architecture Biennale, positioning Irish architecture within a global discourse on space, democracy, and participation.
In other similar news, Denmark's contribution to La Biennale di Venezia will be Build of Site, an exhibition curated by architect Søren Pihlmann, focusing on sustainable architecture through reuse and resourcefulness. Additionally, Austria's pavilion at the Venice Architecture Biennale 2025 will host Agency for Better Living, an interactive exhibition by Lorenzo Romito, Sabine Pollak, and Michael Obrist, exploring the political and social dimensions of housing as a fundamental right. Meanwhile, the Swiss Pavilion will host The Final Form is Determined by the Architect on Site, an exhibition curated by an all-female team reflecting on Swiss architectural history and alternative narratives.
We invite you to check out ArchDaily's comprehensive coverage of the 2025 Venice Biennale.
Editor's note: This article was originally published on February 05, 2025, and updated on April 11, 2025, to present up-to-date information about the exhibition design and its contributors.
