One of the most prestigious institutions of contemporary art, London’s Serpentine Galleries are known as much for their exhibitions as for their avant-garde spirit. Maker of exhibitions and setter of trends, the ultra-exclusive London museum also unites the worlds of architecture and art through its famous Serpentine Pavilions.
In the middle of Hyde Park, the Serpentine Galleries are two exhibition spaces dedicated to contemporary art, located on either side of Serpentine Lake, in London’s Kensington Gardens. Founded in 1970, the Serpentine Gallery began life in a former tea pavilion built in 1934. Championing new ideas, the London institution presents pioneering exhibitions from emerging talents to the most globally renowned artists of our time such as Andy Warhol, Jean-Michel Basquiat, Anish Kapoor, Gerhard Richter and Richard Prince, making it a key centre on the international art scene.
In 2013, the Serpentine Gallery added a second site: the Serpentine Sackler Gallery. Located five minutes’ walk from its big sister, in an ammunition warehouse dating back to the 19th century, this new space spans 900 square metres and boasts a futuristic extension designed by architect Zaha Hadid. The two galleries are pure showcases of contemporary art, hosting world-renowned exhibitions and attracting more than a million visitors every year. Its success can be largely attributed to an innovative program, free exhibitions and a certain degree of “clout”, injected by its artistic director Hans Ulrich Obrist, one of today’s great shamans of art.
Architecture as a work of art
Since the year 2000, the museum has been championing an architectural program that cannot be found anywhere else in the world: the Serpentine Gallery pavilions. The concept is to invite a renowned architect who has never built in the United Kingdom before to design a temporary summer pavilion to host the gallery’s cultural and educational events. The only constraint is that it must be completed within six months. The annual exercise in style has witnessed contributions from great architects such as Oscar Niemeyer, Frank Gehry and Jean Nouvel and the Serpentine Pavilion has now become a hugely important site for architectural experimentation. Let’s take a look back at four of these structural follies.
SANAA (2009), “like smoke”
In 2009, Japanese architects Kazuyo Sejima and Ryue Nishizawa of SANAA created a kind of ethereal cloud from a metal structure that reflected the surrounding environment. The duo described their pavilion as “floating aluminium, drifting freely between the trees like smoke.” The canopy ripples through the site in a mirror effect, changing according to the weather, reflecting the greenery and the sky – Architectural poetry in aluminium and stainless steel.
Olafur Eliasson (2007), a spiral with a view
In 2007 Danish-Icelandic artist Olafur Eliasson and Norwegian architect Kjetil Thorsen, designed a playful, conical structure resembling a giant spinning top. Visitors could climb a spiralling ramp leading up over two storeys to enjoy spectacular views of Hyde Park from the top. Contrasting materials of dark solid wood apparently supported by white twists that looked like blinds created a stunning louvred effect, reinforced by the play of coloured lights.
Frida Escobedo (2018), Mexican-inspired
At 39 years old, it was Mexican Frida Escobedo who designed the 2018 pavilion. Inspired by the traditional architecture of her country, its structure took the form of a courtyard surrounded by an openwork enclosure, reminiscent of a Mexican “celosia” – a type of latticework screen – composed of dark cement tiles that diffused the view out into the park. A triangular pool in the pavilion floor flowed out into the courtyard, echoing the curve of the roof clad with reflective panels. This feature drew attention to the sun as it moved across the sky, making light and shade materials in their own right.
Junya Ishigami (2019), levitating rocks
With a lightness of touch so characteristic of his style, in 2019 Japanese architect Junya Ishigami unveiled his sculptural structure: a vast, 61-tonne slate roof that appeared to emerge from the ground as if resting on a forest of diaphanous posts. Like a wave rising out of the earth, the cluster of rocks appeared to levitate like a billowing piece of fabric. The pavilion articulated a philosophy dear to the architect – “freeing architecture”– in which he seeks harmony between man-made structures and those that already exist in nature.
The goal of bringing contemporary architecture closer to a wider audience has been achieved. The Serpentine Gallery pavilions welcome up to 250,000 visitors each year and are listed in the top five of the most visited architecture and design exhibitions in the world. Creation of the next ephemeral pavilion has been entrusted to American artist Theaster Gates, renowned for his urban interventions and social engagement projects. Coming June 2022
