15 Jun 2018 to 7 Oct 2018 – London
Architect Frida Escobedo, celebrated for dynamic projects that reactivate urban space, was commissioned to design the Serpentine Pavilion 2018.
Harnessing a subtle interplay of light, water and geometry, her atmospheric courtyard-based design drew on both the domestic architecture of Mexico and British materials and history, specifically the Prime Meridian line at London’s Royal Observatory in Greenwich.
Escobedo’s Pavilion took the form of an enclosed courtyard, comprised of two rectangular volumes positioned at an angle. While the outer walls were aligned with the Serpentine Gallery’s eastern façade, the axis of the internal courtyard aligned directly to the north. Internal courtyards are a common feature of Mexican domestic architecture, while the Pavilion’s pivoted axis referred to the Prime Meridian, which was established in 1851 at Greenwich and became the global standard marker of time and geographical distance.
Serpentine Gallery, Hyde Park
Mexican architect Frida Escobedo’s pavilion for the Serpentine Gallery, in London. Photograph:© AXT Magazine (Architetturaxtutti)
Photograph:© AXT Magazine (Architetturaxtutti)
Photograph:© AXT Magazine (Architetturaxtutti)
Photograph:© AXT Magazine (Architetturaxtutti)
Photograph:© AXT Magazine (Architetturaxtutti)
