Lavaforming Iceland´s Pavilion for the 19th International Architecture Exhibition – La Biennale di Venezia

HA / News

Lavaforming is a proposal on how the brutal force of lava can be turned into a valuable resource, capable of lowering atmospheric emissions through its future use as a sustainable building material. The idea springs from Iceland’s exceptional geological location on a rift between two tectonic plates, which causes frequent seismic activity on the island, including the creation of majestic lava fields. Throughout history, Iceland’s volcanic activity has been perceived as a local disturbance and even as an otherworldly event.

Arnhildur Pálmadóttir, curator, architect, founder and creative director of  Lavaforming

“In our story, placed in 2150, we have harnessed the lava flow, just as we did with geothermal energy 200 years earlier in Iceland. The main goal of Lavaforming is to show that architecture can be the force that rethinks and shapes a new future with sustainability, innovation, and creative thinking. A lava flow can contain enough building material for the foundations of an entire city to rise in a matter of weeks without harmful mining and non-renewable energy generation. Lavaforming is exploring a building material that has never been used before. The theme is both a proposal and a metaphor - architecture is in a paradigm shift, many of our current methods have been deemed obsolete or harmful in the long term. In our current predicament - we need to be bold, think in new ways, look at challenges and find the right resources.” 

The exhibition team of the Venice Biennale comes from s. ap architects, an interdisciplinary research studio focusing on speculative projects of the future, along with interdisciplinary collaborators. The exhibition team consists of Arnhildur Pálmadóttir, Arnar Skarphéðinsson, Björg Skarphéðinsdóttir, Sukanya Mukherjee, Jack Armitage, and Andri Snær Magnason. The graphic design is handled by the design studio Studio Studio, and Markús Þór Andrésson, Head of Exhibitions and Mediation at the Reykjavík Art Museum, serves as the exhibition's consultant. Find more information about the team here.

Interdisciplinary team Lavaforming: Björg Skarphéðinsdóttir, Arnhildur Pálmadóttir, Arnar Skarphéðinsson, Jack Armitage og Andri Snær Magnason

Iceland and Venice Biennale in Architecture

Venice Biennale of Architecture is one of the most significant global events in the field of architecture. Architecture has been part of the Venice Art Biennale since 1968 but gained its own dedicated platform in 1980. In 2024, for the first time, an open call was issued for proposals for Iceland’s exhibition at the Biennale, which will take place from May 10 to November 23, 2025. The Icelandic Ministry of Education and Culture entrusted the Icelandic Design and Architecture Center with the execution of the project. Read more here.

Castello 2125 (Ramo de la Tana), 30122 Venice