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International references such as Christian Kerez, Carme Pinós and Óscar Tusquets will star in the third edition of Mugak/

  • These speakers will be joined by other figures such as the Londoners 6a Architects, Barozzi Veiga or Patxi Mangado in the program of the Basque Country International Architecture Biennial
  • Mugak/ will be held in San Sebastian, Bilbao and Vitoria throughout the month of November

The Basque Country International Architecture Biennial Mugak/ will once again attract in its third edition some of the most recognized -nationally and internationally- names in the sector. Under the 'Heritage and Modernity' headline, the architectural event will be held during the month of November of this 2021. During that month, architects of international relevance will be part of Mugak/ through conferences open to all citizens.

Among the speakers are names such as the Swiss Christian Kerez. The works of the Swiss architect stand out for the mastery in the creation of structures that configure surprising spaces to invite people to interact. His interest in structures come from his career as a photographer documenting industrial constructions, a heritage that has greatly influenced his work. Graduated from the Federal  Institute of Technology of Zurich in 1988, he has been a professor at that institution since 2001 and author of numerous works of international prestige. Among the most recognized are the Oberrealta Chapel, the Leutschenbach School in Zurich, an apartment building on Forsterstrasse (Zurich), a large-scale social housing development project in Brazil, and the project for the Museum of Modern Art in Warsaw. He has also participated in several exhibitions; among them an intervention in the Swiss Pavilion at the Venice Biennale in 2016.

The protagonist of the central exhibition of this edition of Mugak/, Carme Pinós, will also be in the Basque Country and will be the star of the opening of the biennial. She will be followed by a whole cast of top-level speakers. The Catalan architect is one of the benchmarks of architecture in Spain, as well as one of the few women who lead an internationally recognized studio. Her work is extensive and radically contemporary, with the ability at the same time to intertwine naturally with his surroundings. She has built constructions ranging from her native Barcelona (the Massana School of Art, the façade of the Boqueria Market, etc.) to the international arena (with representative buildings such as the Cube I and II towers in Mexico). Her works are already part of exhibitions and museum collections such as the Centre Pompidou in Paris and the MOMA from New York.

Tusquets, Veiga, Mangado... 

Óscar Tusquets will be present at this new edition of Mugak/. This Catalan expert is renowned for his role as a thinker and agitator of architecture. In his long career he has been awarded the National Design Award, the Gold Medal for Merit in the Fine Arts, the Palme de Chevalier de l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres or the Creu de Sant Jordi. Author among other works of the expansion and remodeling of the Palace of Catalan Music in Barcelona (which was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO), Tusquets stirs up the architectural debate with provocative texts such as 'Requiem por una escalera', a plea in favor of the architectural elements that the regulations proscribe.

Alberto Veiga, from the Barozzi Veiga tandem, will also arrive from Barcelona to the Basque Country. The studio formed in 2004 accumulates numerous constructions around the world, the headquarters of the Ribera del Duero wines (Burgos), the Infanta Elena auditorium in Águilas (Murcia), the Cantonal Museum of Fine Arts in Lausanne (Switzerland), the Tanzhaus in Zurich (Switzerland) or the Szczecin Philharmonic (Poland), which earned them the prestigious Mies van der Rohe prize in 2015,  among them.

Another outstanding speaker of Mugak / will be the Navarrese Patxi Mangado, who stands out for his ability to generate an architectural conversation between the historical environments in which he works and the contemporary solutions he proposes in them. The Museum of Fine Arts of Asturias, the Municipal Auditorium of Teulada, the Archaeological Museum of Vitoria-Gasteiz, the Municipal Center of Exhibitions and Congresses of Ávila or the Spanish Pavilion at the Zaragoza Expo of 2008 are some of his works.

The conferences of the Biennial, as well as the rest of the activities -exhibitions, workshops, visits, etc.- will be open to all audiences and will be free of charge.

Conversations about the past, present and future of cities

The programme will be completed by professionals such as the Londoners 6a Architects or the VAUMM studio from San Sebastian. The format chosen for their participation will be the fluid dialogues, where the protagonists will sit in front of the audience with a companion with whom they will talk. Among the interlocutors will be the architect and professor of universities such as the ETH of Zurich or the University of Southern California María Esnaola.

In addition, congresses and seminars that will be held within the framework of Mugak / will have the participation of, among others, GRX arquitectos, Bosch Capdeferro or the Husos Platform, as well as Luis Rojo, architect who collaborated with Rafael Moneo in the construction of the Kursaal in San Sebastian. He will show the details of the Project to the proffessionals who will attend the Europan international congress.



The Programme is being prepared