Visuals have been revealed for the 22nd edition of the annual Serpentine Pavilion, a refined, circular timber structure designed by Paris-based architect Lina Ghotmeh.
Serpentine Pavilion 2023 designed by Lina Ghotmeh — Architecture, design render exterior view, photo © Lina Ghotmeh — Architecture, courtesy: Serpentine
The title of the pavilion, À table, comes from the French call to sit down together at a table, and alludes to a sense of unity with the form of the structure, perimeter table and seating formation inviting human interaction.
“À table is an invitation to dwell together, in the same space and around the same table,” said Lina Ghotmeh. “In today’s changing times, this Pavilion offers a celebratory space. It is endowed with a table, around which we will sit together in a modest, low structure and in an atmosphere reminiscent of Toguna huts of the Dogon people in Mali, West Africa, designed to bring all members of a community together in discussion. Here we can eat, work, play, meet, talk, rethink, and decide.
Built with bio-sourced and low-carbon materials, the structure appears like a skeleton. Sustainably sourced timber ribs are arranged to support a suspended pleated roof. Echoing the structures of tree leaves, the Pavilion embraces the nature of the park in which it emerges. Reminding us of the many lives blossoming beneath our feet, the concave lines of its perimeter are drawn from the forms in the stems and canopies of adjacent trees.”
Serpentine Pavilion 2023 designed by Lina Ghotmeh — Architecture, design render interior view, photo © Lina Ghotmeh — Architecture, courtesy: Serpentine
This year’s Pavilion selection was made by Serpentine Artistic Director Hans Ulrich Obrist, CEO Bettina Korek, Director of Construction and Special Projects Julie Burnell, Director of Curatorial Affairs and Public Practice Yesomi Umolu, and Curator at Large Natalia Grabowska, together with advisors Sir David Adjaye OM OBE and David Glover.
“We are thrilled to present Lina Ghotmeh’s first structure in the UK here at Serpentine next summer,” commented Bettina Korek and Hans Ulrich Obrist. “Placing nature, the organic and sustainability at its core, Ghotmeh’s Pavilion will be designed to minimise its carbon footprint and environmental impact, in line with Serpentine’s sustainability policy. The predominantly timber structure will be lightweight and fully demountable, with a focus on sustainably sourced materials and the reusability of the structure after its time installed at Serpentine.”
Throughout the Summer, the Serpentine Pavilion 2023 will host Park Nights, an interdisciplinary programme of music, poetry, spoken word, and dance.
