tadao ando commissioned for 10th MPavilion in australia

mpavilion 10 by tadao ando to be revealed in may 2023

The Naomi Milgrom Foundation has commissioned Pritzker Prize-winner Tadao Ando to design the MPavilion 10 in Queen Victoria Gardens, in the heart of Melbourne’s city center. Over the past decade, MPavilion has collaborated with the world’s most significant architectural thinkers to create a space for engagement with urgent urban, civic, and design concerns. Ando is the seventh leading international architect to have his first work in Australia commissioned by MPavilion, the country’s foremost annual architecture commission, and design festival.

‘Each year, MPavilion commissions architects with a unique design language and social purpose, giving them complete freedom to realize their vision. I have long admired how Tadao Ando responds to and incorporates the particularity of a place into his design and his belief that architecture can shape a society,’ shares Milgrom. ‘As the MPavilion prepares for the 10th edition, we look forward to sharing Ando’s work in Australia for the very first time and having his MPavilion become a vital site in the cultural and community life of Melbourne.’

Pritzker Prize-winner Tadao Ando | image © Kinji Kanno, courtesy Tadao Ando Architect & Associates

One of Japan’s leading contemporary architects, Tadao Ando is known for his striking geometric interventions in nature and his precise, assured use of concrete. Among his many notable works are the Church of the Light (1989; Osaka, Japan), Pulitzer Arts Foundation (2001; St. Louis, USA), Chichu Art Museum (2004; Naoshima, Japan), 21_21 Design Sight (2007; Tokyo, Japan), and Bourse de Commerce— Pinault Collection (2020; Paris, France). With this commission, Ando joins a roster of distinguished architects carefully curated by Naomi Milgrom to explore the intersection of design and contemporary culture.

‘The design for the MPavilion began with a desire to find a scene of eternity within the public gardens of the Queen Victoria Gardens in Melbourne,’ comments the architect. ‘Eternal, not in material or structure, but in the memory of a landscape that will continue to live in people’s hearts.’ Details of the upcoming Tadao Ando design for MPavilion 10 will be revealed in May of this year and will open to the public on November 16, 2023.

Church of the Light | image © Tadao Ando, courtesy the architect

an annual initiative serving as a cultural laboratory

MPavilion is an annual initiative of the Naomi Milgrom Foundation, serving as a cultural laboratory where the community can come together to experience, engage, and share. In 2023, the annual five-month festival of free public programs will continue with talks and lectures, music performances, and kid-friendly workshops, among many other design-focused events. The 2023 themes, which will be informed by the concerns of Tadao Ando’s practice, will be announced in the coming months.

The first nine MPavilions have welcomed more than 900,000 visitors and hosted over 3,500 free events since its establishment in 2014. At the end of each MPavilion season, the Naomi Milgrom Foundation gifts the pavilion to the people of Victoria and relocates it to a new, permanent public home in the community. MPavilion 9 by the Bangkok-based architecture and design practice all(zone) is currently open to the public through 6 April 2023.

Church of the Light | image © Mitsuo Matsuoka, courtesy Tadao Ando Architect & Associates

Courtesy Bourse de Commerce – Pinault Collection | © Tadao Ando Architect & Associates, NeM / Niney et Marca Architectes, Agence Pierre-Antoine Gatier | image © Gaël Pollès

Courtesy Bourse de Commerce – Pinault Collection | © Tadao Ando Architect & Associates, NeM / Niney et Marca Architectes, Agence Pierre-Antoine Gatier | image © Patrick Tourneboeuf

Chichu Art Museum, Naoshima | image © Tadao Ando, courtesy the architect

Chichu Art Museum, Naoshima | image © Mitsuo Matsuoka, courtesy Tadao Ando Architect & Associates

21_21 DESIGN SIGHT | image © Mitsuo Matsuoka, courtesy Tadao Ando Architect & Associates

Pulitzer Arts Foundation | image © Mitsuo Matsuoka, courtesy Tadao Ando Architect & Associates

MPavilion 9, designed by all(zone) | image © John Gollings, courtesy MPavilion

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Courtesy Bourse de Commerce – Pinault Collection | © Tadao Ando Architect & Associates. NeM / Niney et Marca Architectes, Agence Pierre-Antoine Gatier | image © Yuji ONO