La Biennale di Venezia

International Architecture Exhibition – La Biennale di Venezia is one of the most important events in the field of architecture worldwide. Architecture has been part of the Venice Biennale of Arts since 1968, but received its own platform in 1980. In 2023, the Icelandic parliament approved a plan of action on design and architecture for Iceland’s participation in the Venice Biennale and immediately afterwards, preparatory work began. 

The biennale brings together exhibitors working on the architecture and development of man-made environments, including representatives of states, municipalities, architects and designers, experts in construction technology, manufacturers of building materials, investors and developers of buildings to name a few. In 2023, 63 nations participated in the biennial, with more than 285,000 exhibitors from all over the world. 

Lavaforming, curated and created by Arnhildur Pálmadóttir and s.ap architects, is to be featured in Iceland’s national pavilion at the 19th International Architecture Exhibition – La Biennale di Venezia. 

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.

“In our story, placed in 2150, we have harnessed the lava flow, just as we did with geothermal energy 200 years earlier in Iceland,” said Arnhildur Pálmadóttir, curator, architect, founder and creative director of Lavaforming. "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, and 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.”     

Architect Arnhildur Pálmadóttir is the founder and owner of s.ap architects, which specializes in sustainability and circularity in construction, and the curator and creative director of Lavaforming. She is renowned for her entrepreneurial attitude and interdisciplinary interests, which she uses to tackle projects from various perspectives. 

Arnhildur also runs the Icelandic branch of the Danish architecture and innovation company, Lendager. She is nominated for the 2024 Nordic Council's Environmental Award for interdisciplinary collaboration in architecture and her focus on recyclable building materials.

Together with her team at s.ap architects and a group of specialists and collaborators, Arnhildur will bring Lavaforming to Iceland’s pavilion at the 19th International Architecture Exhibition - La Biennale di Venezia, in May 2025. 

In 2024 was the first open call for a proposal for Iceland’s exhibition for the Venice Biennale of Architecture, which will take place from 10th of May - 23rd of November 2025. 

The Ministry of Culture and Business Affairs has entrusted the center of Iceland design and architecture with the project’s execution. Originally, the architecture biennial covered a small part of the historic Arsenale shipyard, but with the growth of the architecture biennial, that part has evolved, expanded and has been part of the exhibition space of the art and architecture biennial ever since, along with the Giardini exhibition area. 

The Icelandic Pavilion is commissioned by Iceland Design and Architecture, which facilitates and promotes design of all kinds as a vital aspect of the future Icelandic society, economy, and culture, with the support of the Ministry of Culture and Business Affairs in Iceland.

The title of the 19th International Architecture Exhibition - La Biennale di Venezia is, “Intelligens. Natural. Artificial. Collective.” It will be held from Saturday, May 10 to Sunday, November 23, 2025, and is curated by the architect and engineer Carlo Ratti.