A 3D digital archive has been created to provide an in-depth look at the process behind the construction of the Korean Pavilion at the Venice Biennale (hereinafter “the Korean Pavilion”), located in the Giardini della Biennale in Venice, Italy, as well as the architectural considerations embedded in its design.
 
The Arts Council Korea (ARKO) will present 《One Table: 7. PAPER TO SPACE, Korean Pavilion》, a special archival display featuring materials from the ARKO Arts Archives, at the reading room of its Seocho headquarters through November 30.
 
The Korean Pavilion was designed through a collaboration between Korean architect Seok Chul Kim and Italian architect Franco Mancuso. Its distinctive appearance, shaped by the constraints of its sloping site and strict regulations imposed by local authorities, has long sparked the curiosity of visitors.
 
This display takes an in-depth look at the circumstances surrounding the pavilion’s initial construction, the evolution of its design, and the architectural considerations behind it, tracing the numerous negotiations and efforts that went into bringing the Korean Pavilion into existence.

The ARKO Arts Archives has organized the “Korean Pavilion at the Venice Biennale Collection” in its holdings, including approximately 4,000 primary source materials donated by Franco Mancuso in 2023, such as documents, sketches, and hand-drawn architectural plans.
 
Following archival processing, description, and oral-history research conducted in 2024, these materials were systematically organized and cross-referenced with administrative documents, enabling a detailed reconstruction of the process through which the two architects navigated the complex requirements for building approval.
 
The centerpiece of this project, the 3D modeling web archive Tracing the Korean Pavilion in Venice, Revealed through the Archives, reconstructs in three-dimensional virtual space the eight stages of design development that had previously existed primarily in the form of faxes and paper drawings.
 
The digital archive is also available on the ARKO Arts Archives’ DA-Arts (Digital Archive of Korean Arts) website, allowing visitors and researchers to explore the Korean Pavilion’s design process online, with detailed explanations, anytime and from anywhere.

In addition, 《One Table: 7. PAPER TO SPACE, Korean Pavilion》 will feature oral-history videos capturing the circumstances surrounding the Korean Pavilion before and after its opening, as well as the voices of local operators involved in its management. An interactive environment will also allow visitors to manipulate the 3D content themselves and browse the collection of architectural drawings.
 
With the cooperation of the Archivio Storico della Biennale di Venezia (ASAC), the display will also present architectural drawings from 1988 and related correspondence discovered in the course of tracing the history of the Korean Pavilion’s early construction.
 
As part of the program, a conversation titled “Between Records and Models: A Discussion on the Making of ‘Tracing the Korean Pavilion in Venice’” will be held at 4 p.m. on Monday, August 24, in the first-floor lounge of the Artist House.
 
The research team—Jeon Jinyoung, Lee Jongwoo, Kim Eunhee, and Choi Jihee—will discuss the process of interpreting fragmented archival records as a three-dimensional space and the archival significance of the project.

References

• 한국문화예술위원회 보도자료 (Arts Council Korea Press Release)