'emergency exit', the polish pavilion at the 12th international venice biennale
image © maciej landsberg


'emergency exit', this year's polish pavilion at the 12th international architecture biennale
in venice, italy, explores 'urban portable holes': the in-between spaces, places of uncertainty
and doubt, of time-space discontinuity, such as abandoned or unfinished buildings,
rooftops and tunnels. designed by warsaw-based artist agnieszka kurant and architect
aleksandra wasilkowska, the title is an ironic reference to urban safety regulations that aim
to control and eliminate risk and accidents.

constructed out of a composite of metal cages, the overall form draws parallels to
decaying sports monuments, such as the ski jump in mokotów, warsaw. the material itself,
bird cages, which are normally used to contain and prevent flight, becomes a platform
for visitors to jump from into artificially generated clouds. this act symbolizes
the ultimate freedom and escape from urbanism. by engaging and provoking the public
directly, 'emergency exit' becomes a social laboratory with the goal of inspiring and
exciting the collective body.



image © maciej landsberg


by accepting that the city is a complex and unpredictable system composed of both
real and imaginary spaces, it can be understood that invisible and intangible phenomena
such as social actions can change the dynamic of a street, borough, or even the entire city.
while the jobs of architects and planners are to anticipate the needs and transformations
of the city, this is simply not possible with a rigid and deterministic master plan.

the polish pavilion is conceived as a portable to the unknown; a catalyst for different,
contradictory emotions and needs. by becoming a hybrid machine for the transfer
to other realities, people fill in the gaps with their own emotions, ideas and desires.




stairway leading up to the jumping platform
image © maciej landsberg



images © designboom



top of the form
image © maciej landsberg



participants jumping into the artificial cloud
image © maciej landsberg



(left) jumper landing into the cloud
image © maciej landsberg
(right) feet of a jumper
image © grzegorz papierski



video of THE JUMP



name of the pavilion done in neon
image © maciej landsberg

full project credit and acknowledgment

pavilion commissioner: agnieszka morawińska
curator: elias redstone
assistant commissioner: joanna waśko
artist: agnieszka kurant
architect: aleksandra wasilkowska
organiser: zachęta national gallery of art in warsaw
supporter: ministry of culture and national heritage of the republic of poland
special effects: artur etiop bartos ETIOP FX productions
audio-video: eidotech
video documentation: mirek szewczyk with special thanks to EBH polska
installation engineer: monika bordurkiewicz
construction: befstal
cages: net-kar
neons: neoneon
lighting: lumiere essence malgorzata baj