We’re looking to appoint a collaborative architectural practitioner team to develop and deliver an exhibition in the British Pavilion in Venice in 2025.
The British Council Commission at the Venice Architecture Biennale aims to create debate that both challenges and influences the future of British and global architecture.
What we’re looking for
The 2025 British Pavilion exhibition will be a high-profile installation as part of British Council's focus year of collaboration between the UK and Kenya that will foster, celebrate and showcase the connections between the two countries.
The lead applicant must be UK-based, and the project team should include at least one collaborator that is Kenyan, Kenya-based or British-Kenyan.
The practitioner team must be experienced in exhibition development and delivery and may consist of architects, exhibition designers, curators, educators, researchers or practitioners with another design or built-environment background.
We particularly welcome proposals from practitioner teams where the UK partner is based outside of Greater London in England, or is based in Wales, Scotland or Northern Ireland.
The successful proposal will put forward a compelling narrative, present a clear exhibition design concept that can be delivered within the agreed budget and have the flexibility to be experienced both physically and digitally by a global and diverse audience.
How to apply
Please complete your application online on our Open Call for Exhibition Proposals page. The form will ask you for your details, details of your team members, your exhibition theme and proposed exhibition design, an indicative budget and samples of past work.
All the templates, forms and appendices needed for the application, including the Open Call document, are available to view and download here.
Submissions must be received by Friday 5 January 2024, 23.59 (GMT).
Please note that if you downloaded application documents before 7 November, an updated Open Call document is now available at the link above. Please refer to the updated version before applying.
Should you have any clarification questions about the open call process, please read our Clarification Questions document. We requested that all enquiries were made by 24 November 2023 and responses have been now been added to that document – made available on Friday 1 December – to assist with your submissions. If you have any further questions, please contact us at british.pavilion@britishcouncil.org.
Courageous and innovative proposals
‘The British Pavilion at the 19th International Architecture Exhibition at the 2025 Venice Biennale presents a remarkable opportunity to demonstrate the UK’s strength in cross-cultural collaboration, architecture and architectural thinking. Ultimately, we’re looking for courageous and innovative proposals that prompt and inspire new perspectives in contemporary architecture and the role of the built environment in addressing global challenges.’
Sevra Davis – Director, Architecture, Design and Fashion, British Council
About the British Pavilion Selection Committee
The advisory panel of leading architecture professionals changes for every edition of the Architecture Biennale. The panel selecting for 2025 consists of:
Sevra Davis (Chair), Commissioner of the British Pavilion; Director of Architecture Design and Fashion at the British Council
Grace Choi, Director, Grace Choi Architecture
Tom Dyckhoff, Architecture critic, historian, broadcaster and judge on Channel 4’s ‘Handmade: Britain's Best Woodworker’
Professor Aseem Inam, Professor and Chair in Urban Design, Welsh School of Architecture, Cardiff University
Joy Mboya, Cultural Activist and Founding Executive Director of the GoDown Arts Centre, Nairobi, Kenya
Professor Washington Ochieng, Professor at Imperial College and Trustee of the Science Museum
Muyiwa Oki, President of the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA)
Dr Huda Tayob, Lecturer in Architectural Studies at Manchester School of Architecture
Tamsie Thomson, CEO, The Royal Incorporation of Architects in Scotland (RIAS)
Thank you for reading and we look forward to receving your proposals.