AUS faculty member Cristiano Luchetti has been selected to curate the Egyptian pavilion at the Venice Biennale di Architettura 2018.

One of the most prestigious architecture exhibitions in the world, the Biennale International Architecture Exhibition 2018 will take place May 26–November 25, 2018 in Venice, Italy. The Biennale provides an opportunity for architects and designers to showcase new projects, arranged in different pavilions. The title of the 16th edition of this event will be titled Freespace, a word which, according to the event’s organizers “describes a generosity of spirit and a sense of humanity at the core of architecture's agenda, focusing on the quality of space itself.”

Luchetti, who is Assistant Professor of Architecture in the College of Architecture, Art and Design at AUS, will be joined on the Egyptian pavillion’s curatorial team by architects Islam Mosleh El Mashtooly and Mouaz Abouzaid, and art director Karim Moussa. During the competition phase the team also included Giuseppe Moscatello who served as art director.

The project proposes the redevelopment and strategies of requalification of spontaneous commercial spaces across the entire country of Egypt. The phenomenon of "free," unstructured, often abusive and illegal trading is predominant in many urban and suburban areas, therefore the re-design of existing urban markets seeks the redefinition of the role of "free space" within the fabric of the city. It is a proposal that aims at the upgrading and "governance" of large urban areas, allowing a “free use” that contributes to a better living in contemporary metropolises.