Kéré Architecture at the 5th Seoul Biennale of Architecture and Urbanism 2025
For the 5th Seoul Biennale, Kéré Architecture presents two installations in the thematic exhibition Walls of Public Life, curated by General Director Thomas Heatherwick. Both explore how urban surfaces and façades can connect more deeply with the people who inhabit the city.
Beyond the Pines is a wall, canopy, and seating structure made from locally sourced Korean pine. It invites visitors to touch, sit, and engage with the material. The installation highlights pine’s cultural and historical significance while creating a space that fosters sensory connection and shared memory.
Handspeak brings the painted wall traditions of Tiébélé, Burkina Faso, to Seoul. Burkinabe craftswomen Bapossan Alempoua and Asseta Idogo performed the painting on site, in collaboration with Korean clay builders Into Earth. Each motif reflects textiles, music, kinship, and ancestral symbolism.
Together, these installations showcase Kéré Architecture’s approach to people-centered design: using local materials, cultural traditions, and interactive architecture to create spaces that invite connection, dialogue, and collective memory.
For the 5th Seoul Biennale, Kéré Architecture presents two installations in the thematic exhibition Walls of Public Life, curated by General Director Thomas Heatherwick. Both explore how urban surfaces and façades can connect more deeply with the people who inhabit the city.
Beyond the Pines is a wall, canopy, and seating structure made from locally sourced Korean pine. It invites visitors to touch, sit, and engage with the material. The installation highlights pine’s cultural and historical significance while creating a space that fosters sensory connection and shared memory.
Handspeak brings the painted wall traditions of Tiébélé, Burkina Faso, to Seoul. Burkinabe craftswomen Bapossan Alempoua and Asseta Idogo performed the painting on site, in collaboration with Korean clay builders Into Earth. Each motif reflects textiles, music, kinship, and ancestral symbolism.
Together, these installations showcase Kéré Architecture’s approach to people-centered design: using local materials, cultural traditions, and interactive architecture to create spaces that invite connection, dialogue, and collective memory.
