'Made in Athens' - Greek Pavilion, Venice Biennale

The Greek participation for the 13th International Architecture Exhibition of la Biennale di Venezia focused on the particular dynamic of Athens during a period of economic meltdown.

Contemporary Athens is a city of strong contradictions: It is a city whose particular identity was shaped during post-World-War-II reconstruction. A city which has at its disposal an exceptionally talented calbre of young architects, international in orientation, well educated and with a wealth of professional experience. It is, however, the city that was most stricken by the current economic crisis. Currently the Athenian urban space is decomposing and there are increasingly frequent and greater disruptions of the social web. The younger generation of architects benefited from the positive aspects of globalisation and today have come face-to-face with the harsh aspect of the global financial crisis, a plummeting standard of living and the need to redefine the priorities of architectural design.

These contradictions are shaping a particular dynamic in the city. Conditions are being created in Athens to expand the links between architecture and the city, both during the economic downturn, but also after it has passed; furthermore conditions are being created to bring to the forefront new ways of viewing the role of architecture, removed from the standards of well-being of the previous decade.

The Greek participation sought to present this idiosyncratic Athenian urbanism.

http://www.archdaily.com/269673/venice-biennale-2012-made-in-athens-greece