“Same as it Ever Was” – Croatian performance at this year’s Venice Biennale

he Croatian Pavilion is an ode to the coexistence of wild and domestic, natural and artificial, living and inanimate environments. This project examines the relationship between what comes from nature and what culture produces, and how these boundaries are blurring. The starting point of the project is the marshland of Lonjsko polje as an example of a system of sensitive balance that undergoes radical changes throughout the year and to which human communities living in harmony with nature have adapted. The Croatian pavilion was created as a spatial installation that is part of the bestiary of viewpoints in the marshy area of Lonjsko polje.

A significant part of Croatia’s performance at the Venice Biennale this year is the accompanying discursive program of workshops, research, exhibitions, discussions, and written texts that took place in various locations and educational institutions during the Biennale (Venice, Milan, Ljubljana, Motovun, Lonjsko Polje, Split), as a continuous, real-time laboratory focused on exploring the future of architectural practice and education. An overview of all activities and the resulting content will be presented in a book, which will remain a trace of this project in the future.

An overview of all activities of the Croatian pavilion can be found at the link: https://www.sameasiteverwas.hr/#home

The scientist of our institute Dr. Mladen Šolić took part in the workshop Homo Aquaticus – INTERACTIONS 2023 in Split with the lecture “Human-Nature Relationship” and the exhibition “Homo Aquaticus: HABITAT ST21” (Art Gallery – Split) held as part of this workshop.

The text by Mladen Šolić entitled “A Living Planet – Pale Blue Dot”, in which he deals with the relationship between man and nature, is included in the book mentioned and can be found at the link.