Karin Sander and Philip Ursprung represent Switzerland at the 18th International Architecture Exhibition—La Biennale di Venezia, with their project titled Neighbours.

Two national pavilions and a wall that connects as well as separates, are the focus of Karin Sander's and Philip Ursprung's project Neighbours for the 18th International Architecture Exhibition - La Biennale di Venezia. By turning the architecture itself into the exhibit, the artist and the architecture historian introduce the audience to new perspectives on the territorial relations within the Giardini of La Biennale.

Following an open call, the Swiss Arts Council Pro Helvetia chose to entrust the exhibition of the Swiss Pavilion for the Biennale Architettura 2023 to the artist Karin Sander and the architecture historian Philip Ursprung, both professors at ETH Zurich. Their project Neigbours highlights both the spatial and structural proximity of the Swiss Pavilion to its Venezuelan neighbor and the professional bond of the two architects: the Swiss Bruno Giacometti (1907 - 2012) and the Italian Carlo Scarpa (1906 - 1978).

Project Team

Karin Sander is an artist and professor of Art and Architecture, and Philip Ursprung is professor of the History of Art and Architecture, both at ETH Zurich.

For their project Neighbours , Karin Sander and Philip Ursprung are supported by managing curator Sassa Trülzsch, project leader Tobias Becker and researcher Berit Seidel.

Find out more about the project in the press release.

Public Dialogues of the Swiss Pavilion

Karin Sander and Philip Ursprung host a series of public dialogues with various experts,
ranging from architecture, to photography and plant ecology. The program of speakers has been curated to draw you in. But the people you will meet on your left and your right, and those you encounter on your way, have not been pre-planned. Everything that they bring to the table is a surprise. You, too, are welcome to speak. The talks will be held in English.

The events are generously supported by the Department of Architecture, ETH Zurich.

Event Location: 
Palazzo Trevisan degli Ulivi
Campo S. Agnese, Dorsoduro 810, Venice
Vaporetto Stop: Zattere or Accademia
Entrance: free

Saturday, 25 November | 19:00
Light & Shadow: Architecture and photography
What is the future of architecture photography? Which architecture is “photogenic”? How has the role of architecture photography changed between the 1950s and today? A conversation between a photography historian and four outstanding photographers of architecture.

Hélène Binet, Photographer, London 
Stefano Graziani, Photographer, Trieste 
Guido Guidi, Photographer, Cesena 
Susanne Hefti, Photographer, Zurich
Michel Otayek, Postdoctoral Researcher, Lateinamerika-Institut, FU Berlin

Sunday, 26 November | 10:00
What trees know
What is the future of the Giardini? Which are new techniques in replacing dead trees? What can we learn from the past, notably from Henri Pittier, the Swiss-Venezuelan pioneer of biodiversity studies? A roundtable with leading experts on plant ecology.

Alana Chin, Postdoctoral Fellow in Plant Ecology, ETH Zurich
Janneke Hille Ris Lambers, Professor of Plant Ecology, ETH Zurich
Giai Petit, Associate Professor of Forest Ecology, Università degli Studi di Padova
Fred Stauffer, Head Keeper, Conservatoire et Jardin Botaniques, Geneva

Giardini Days: Play for Two Pavilions

Authors: Adam Jasper, Elisa Silva and Philip Ursprung

With Pablo Aguilar as “Pavilion of Venezuela”, Philip Ursprung as “Pavilion of Switzerland” and Clara Richard as “Narrator.”

Director: Stephan Müller
Coordination: Berit Seidel
Recording and Production: Vivian Wang in May 2023

The podcast “Giardini Days: Play for Two Pavilions” was written by Adam Jasper, Elisa Silva and Philip Ursprung for the exhibition “Neighbours” by Karin Sander and Philip Ursprung at the Swiss Pavilion of the 18th International Architecture Exhibition – La Biennale di Venezia.

The entire play is published in the book “Neighbours: A Manifesto, A Play for Two Pavilions and Ten Conversations”, edited by Karin Sander and Philip Ursprung, Park Books, Zurich, 2023.

The podcast can be listened to on this link.