Two Minnesota Design Firms Participate in the 2025 Venice Biennale of Architecture
By Chris Hudson | May 15, 2025
A rendering of the U.S. Pavilion porch installation designed by Marlon Blackwell Architects, Stephen Burks Man Made, D.I.R.T. Studio, and Ten x Ten.
SPOTLIGHT
The latest installment of the Venice Biennale of Architecture, a biennial international exhibition of architectural works displayed in 65 permanent national pavilions, opened to the public on May 10. Two Twin Cities design studios—landscape architecture firm Ten x Ten and architecture firm VJAA—have a hand in PORCH: An Architecture of Generosity, an exhibition at the U.S. Pavilion, a Palladian-style building by Delano & Aldrich completed in 1930.
Ten x Ten was part of the curatorial design team for a dynamic porch installation with Marlon Blackwell Architects, Stephen Burks Man Made, and D.I.R.T. Studio. “PORCH” was co-commissioned by Peter MacKeith, dean of the Fay Jones School of Architecture and Design at the University of Arkansas, Susan Chin, principal of DesignConnects, and Rod Bigelow, executive director of the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art.
VJAA was selected as one of 54 firms across the U.S. to present work in the exhibition, which takes an expansive approach to its exploration of the American porch. Nine VJAA projects are showcased, including the Lilydale Park Pavilion in St. Paul, Goose Creek Safety Rest Area in Northern Minnesota, and 825 Arts in St. Paul. On the opening weekend, VJAA principal Jennifer Yoos, FAIA, and EskewDumezRipple principal Steve Dumez, FAIA, gave a Design Dialogue talk in the U.S. Pavilion titled “Porch as Resilience on the Mississippi River.”
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