"The most radical approach is taken by the German Pavilion team 2038. They completely cleared the German Pavilion, painted the walls white and reopened the skylights. This is roughly the same as it was in 1938, when architect Ernst Haiger monumentalized the building – which originally dates back to 1912 and was built as the Bavarian Pavilion – in the style of NS representative classicist architecture. While generations of curators have worked on this history with (structural) interventions, the building is not an issue this time. Nothing is on display, except for large QR codes that lead to the story of 2038. There's no reason to go to Venice, because it works just as well on smartphones, laptops or computers.
The idea to focus purely on the content in form of a cinematic presentation was at the very beginning of the process. At first, they considere large–scale projections in the darkened pavilion, but the pandemic led to a different concept that is in that sense inclusive as many people could not or did not want to travel to Venice. Because of the pandamic, but also due to ecologic or economic reasons. As digital visitors they are not disadvantaged compared to those on site. The German pavilion provokes and polarizes in its purist consistency, which, taken to its logical conclusion, made the spectacle of the Biennale obsolete." (Ausstellen, aber wie? von Hubertus Adam in Archithese, 24.05.2021)
Approaching the German Pavilion © Federico Torra
Jeanne Tremsal welcomes you in 2038 © Federico Torra
Clemens Schick welcomes you in 2038 © Federico Torra
Scan the QR Code and enter the Cloud Pavilion © Federico Torra
Watch Interrail … © Federico Torra
… enter the pavilion and move around … © Federico Torra
… and see the History Channels. © Federico Torra
© Federico Torra