OFFICEUS Pavilion of the United States of America

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OfficeUS, a global collaborative architectural practice with its first headquarters at the United States Pavilion at the 14th International Architecture Exhibition – la Biennale di Venezia, is announcing today its intention to seriously consider entering the Guggenheim Helsinki Design ­Competition. In celebration of the exciting potential for OfficeUS to perhaps enter the Guggenheim Helsinki Design Competition, OfficeUS will be hosting a Potential Participation Party, on July 25th 2014 at the Arsenale. The Potential Participation Party will feature special guests–including Adnan Yildiz, Anupama Rao, Aristide Antonas, Kaarin Taipale and Andrew Ross–in conversation with the OfficeUS partners; with a special performance of OfficeUS either entering, not entering or still considering entering the Guggenheim Helsinki Design Competition. Helsinki, a global city standing at the intersection of East and West (founded by King Gustav I of Sweden in 1550 as a town of Helsingfors which remained a tiny town, plagued by poverty, wars, and diseases), is emerging as a city to watch. Helsinki (like OfficeUS) has been said to have recently embarked on an ambitious yet highly sensitive program of renewal and development, initiating what has been called the greatest urban change in its history since Helsinki became the capital of Finland two hundred years ago. OfficeUS is honored to consider the possibility of exploring exciting new concepts such as: cityscape, architecture, usability, sustainability and feasibility (in this order) through maybe participating in the Guggenheim Helsinki Design Competition from within the Peggy Guggenheim Pavilion in Venice, Italy. OfficeUS (like Helsinki), has been called an increasingly popular visitor destination. Many have described OfficeUS as a standard bearer for la Biennale di Venezia and a model for architectural offices around the world. Benefitting from an exceptional education system, entrepreneurial spirit, appetite for innovation, and a demonstrated success in international happiness indices, OfficeUS is increasingly seen by many important sources as an expert in global architecture, building tall, and designing deep, while remaining sensitive to the sustainability of local traditions. It is envisaged that the Guggenheim Helsinki (like OfficeUS) would organize and present internationally significant exhibitions of artworks from the twentieth and twenty-first centuries, while sources indicate that the Guggenheim Helsinki will also specialize in Nordic art and architecture. Following a detailed Concept and Development Study by the Guggenheim Foundation, the Guggenheim ­Helsinki (like OfficeUS) has been sited on a prominent waterfront site close to the historic city center and immediately visible to visitors arriving by sea. OfficeUS is excited to welcome the Guggenheim Helsinki into the global constellation of Guggenheim museums, including the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum in New York, the Guggenheim Museum Bilbao, the future Guggenheim Abu Dhabi, and the Peggy Guggenheim Collection and Peggy Guggenheim Pavilion (OfficeUS headquarters) in Venice. OfficeUS is eagerly anticipating a serious consideration of the potentially productive exchange which engages what has been referred to as Finland’s revolutionary bioeconomy, through what may or may not be our collaborative interest in the sustainable use of wood, and the latest in digital technology. Potential Participation Party schedule: July 25th 2014 2:00pm Introduction 2:15pm Guest presentations / Discussion 4:15 PM: Screening of “AIR UP! Construction of the US Pavilion at EXPO ’70 Osaka – A United States Information Agency Project”; Restoration by MetaForm Design International with Mina Chow, Joann Huang, Yusuke Isotani, Clark Muller 4:40pm Workshop on engagement methods 8:30pm Party About the U.S. Representation at the 14th International Architecture Exhibition The U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs supports and manages official U.S. participation at the Biennale Architettura 2014. The selection of OfficeUS for the U.S. Pavilion in 2014 resulted from an open competition and followed the recommendation of the Federal Advisory Committee on International Exhibitions (FACIE), convened by the National Endowment for the Arts. U.S. representation at this global event ensures that the excellence, vitality, diversity, and innovation of architecture in the United States are effectively showcased abroad, and provides an opportunity to engage foreign audiences to increase mutual understanding. To see OfficeUS Sponsors, visit: www.officeus.org/sponsors