The first edition of Architekturwoche Basel (Basel Architecture Week)
From May 9 to 15, 2022, Basel hosted the first edition of Architekturwoche Basel (Basel Architecture Week). The event, an initiative of the Architektur Dialoge Foundation, will take place every two years; each edition will revolve around different themes investigating how our living spaces change depending on external factors.
Basel is considered the Swiss capital of architecture. In fact, there is no other place in the world that hosts so many contemporary buildings, designed by internationally renowned architects, on such a small city area, with so many historical layers. Within a few kilometers of the historic center are buildings by giants of Swiss architecture such as Christ & Gantenbein, Diener & Diener Architekten, Herzog & de Meuron, Mario Botta, and international architects such as Richard Meier, Frank O. Gehry, Steven Holl.
The first architecture week in Basel and the “Real Spaces”
Titled “Reale Räume” (Real Spaces), the first Basel Architecture Week dealt with three topical themes. The city needs space, the city is landscape, and the city takes on the future are the three themes of the 2022 edition. Building on these themes, a rich program of events including lectures, workshops, guided tours, exhibitions, site-specific installations, films and concerts enlivened the city of Basel for an entire week. In particular, performances by the St. Alban-Teich, Bachgraben, and Riehenteich transformed streets into rivers, fountains into bathing spaces, and sewage pipes into acoustic devices to emphasize relationship between the city and water.
Discover The Contribution of Women in Contemporary Architecture: The Swiss Example
The main attraction of Architekturwoche Basel 2022 was the opening of the first Basel Pavillon in Dreispitz. The pavilion, open from May to October, has been designed by the young architectural duo isla from Mallorca and is made of recycled building components. [Arianna Callocchia]
