IE University Presents ‘Alternative Skies’ at the 19th International Architecture Exhibition of La Biennale di Venezia

Madrid, 9 May 2025 – IE University presents  “Alternative Skies” at the 19th International Architecture Exhibition of La Biennale di Venezia. Wesam Al Asali, professor and researcher at IE School of Architecture and Design, together with Sigrid Adriaenssens, director of both the Form Finding Lab and the Keller Center for Innovation in Engineering Education at Princeton University; Romina Canna, director of d-Lab at IE University; and Robin Oval, professor at Institut Polytéchnique de Paris, exhibit at the 19th International Architecture Exhibition of La Biennale di Venezia, curated by Carlo Ratti. Students from the IE School of Architecture and Design have had the opportunity to work over the past months and engage in the production process of the installation to enrich their learning experience.

The project, "Alternative Skies", focuses on horizontal elements in architecture—the roof as both a symbolic space and an architectural construct—to reconsider the boundaries between design, craftsmanship, and natural materials. It draws attention to overlooked vernacular construction methods and highlights the potential of collective intelligence in shaping architecture that is both environmentally and culturally attuned.

David Goodman, Dean of the IE School of Architecture and Design at IE University, expressed pride in the project's inclusion: "Our goal is to build a more sustainable, just, and beautiful world through innovative education and research. "Alternative Skies" reflects this vision, showcasing how architecture can address pressing environmental challenges through conscious design". Goodman also highlighted the project's sustainable lifecycle: “The installation was conceived with future reuse in mind. We plan to integrate most of it into our forthcoming Creative Campus after the Biennale Architettura 2025 concludes.”

Wesam Al Asali, the project’s lead, commented: “Alternative Skies" invites us to look upward and rethink our building practices.” He explained that the installation opens a dialogue between vernacular knowledge and emerging technologies, involving masters of traditional construction in Spain—Salvador Gomis, a tile vaulting specialist; Ángel María Martín, a geometrist and master of traditional Spanish carpentry; and Carlos Fontales, a basketry expert. “The project reflects our interest in exploring how design and fabrication technologies can draw on the many intelligences of craft, culture, and nature,” added Al Asali.

Sigrid Adriaenssens noted: “Patterns in craft emerged through hands-on experimentation and tacit knowledge—shaping materials to meet human needs with elegance and efficiency. Today, we use physics, mathematics, and engineered design to reimagine and scale these crafted artifacts for future-oriented large structures.”

The installation is composed of the "Arcade" —a 7.5-meter-long vaulted structure made with three distinct roof and floor systems techniques—and the "Alternative Skies Archive" below, which explores the relationship between natural materials and collective building knowledge through traditional crafts.

Beneath the Arcade, the "Alternative Skies Archive" is framed by two parallel cabinets that invite observation and learning. Developed with the design laboratory (d-Lab) at IE School of Architecture and Design, led by Romina Canna, this educational space involved students from the Bachelor in Architectural Studies program working alongside IWLab, the practice co-founded by Al Asali. The exploratory space presents a range of vernacular roofing traditions—from Egypt’s earthen dovecotes to Syria’s corbelled domes—highlighting the ingenuity and resourcefulness of place-based techniques. The "Archive" offers a reference for how local knowledge and contemporary innovation can meet to shape grounded, sustainable architecture.

Romina Canna highlighted the alignment between the project and the IE School of Architecture and Design d-Lab's mission: "At our design laboratory, we explore design as a means of connecting disciplinary knowledge with other realms of meaning and production. In "Alternative Skies", we developed a narrative that reveals both existing and potential links between traditional knowledge and techniques, material intelligence, and design innovation."

The 19th International Architecture Exhibition of La Biennale di Venezia, taking place from May 10 to November 23, is curated by Carlo Ratti under the theme “Intelligens. Natural. Artificial. Collective.” Structured around four sub-themes—Transdisciplinarity, Living Lab, Space for Ideas, and Circularity Protocol—the exhibition seeks to bridge nature, technology, and collaboration. Ratti emphasizes that advancing architecture today demands experimentation, cross-disciplinary engagement, and inclusivity. This edition explores how architecture can evolve in response to a rapidly changing world by drawing on diverse forms of intelligence. "Alternative Skies" makes a meaningful contribution to this conversation by demonstrating the possibilities of integrating natural intelligence and collective craftsmanship into contemporary architectural thinking.

The participation of "Alternative Skies" in the 19th International Architecture Exhibition of La Biennale di Venezia is made possible thanks to the support of the Princeton Institute for International and Regional Studies, IE School of Architecture and Design, Research Office IE University, and IE Foundation.

For more information about "Alternative Skies" and its exhibition at La Biennale Architettura 2025, please visit the project's website.

All photos and cover are by Luis Díaz Díaz.