MPavilion 2018—Carme Pinós
MPavilion 2018—Carme Pinós
In 2018, the foundation commissioned Barcelona-based architect and educator Carme Pinós of Estudio Carme Pinós as esteemed designer. Carme is one of the world’s leading architectural voices, with projects spanning public architecture, social housing, urban refurbishment and furniture and object design. Internationally influential for her community-focused philosophy of design, Carme Pinós’s MPavilion marks the first public work in Australia by a female Spanish architect.
In true Pinós form, the sculptural design incorporates majestic wings inspired by origami that, rather than make a heroic statement, open the MPavilion to the city, encouraging movement, meetings and new experiences.
The geometric configuration assembled in two distinct halves intersect with each other to form the pavilion’s roof. An altered topography forms three mounds that incorporate seating, allowing a multitude of community-focused activities to ‘unfold’. For the pavilion, Carme has also released a special commissioned stool made in Spain by hand-tinted birch plywood.
““In a nod to Pinós’ passion for inclusive and engaging, community-focused architecture—which highlights the project’s overall ongoing commitment to ‘building communities and women in leadership’—the architect imagined the space as a set of wings that ‘open’ the pavilion to the city.””
Ellie Stathaki, architecture editor, Wallpaper*
Image by Timothy Burgess
Image by John Gollings
Image by Timothy Burgess
Image by MarieLuise
Image by MarieLuise
Image by John Gollings
Image by Alan Weedon
Sir Nicholas Serota and Rebecca Coates in conversation
Image by Alan Weedon
Outcomes
133,000+
Visitors over 139 days
500+
collaborators including cultural institutions, architects, artists, musicians, dancers, choreographers, scientists, designers, and festivals such as the Melbourne Festival, Melbourne Music Week, and Multicultural Arts Victoria’s Mapping Melbourne.
30+
International guests including architects Carme Pinós, Carlo Ratti and Sir Peter Cook; former Tate director Sir Nicholas Serota; Google USA director of user experience Elizabeth Churchill; 10th Berlin Biennale curator Gabi Ngcobo; V&A curators Marie Foulston and Rory Hyde; Future Laboratory’s Chris Sanderson; Singapore’s SA Collective; and Hyphen-Labs co-founders Ece Tankal and Carmen Aguilar Wedge.
From 9 October 2018 to Sunday 17 February at Queen Victoria Gardens, Melbourne. The program addressed themes of: Building resilient communities, inclusivity, women in leadership, landscape and nature, visual languages—fashion and architecture, and design and science.
Awards and Accolades: Received a gold accolade for Architectural Design by the Good Design Awards. Shortlisted for the World Architecture Festival small spaces award and the Sustainable Architecture for Australian Institute of Architects Awards Victoria.
Highlights: MPavilion’s 2018 Artist in Residence was award-winning Melbourne artist Esther Stewart, who created an interactive children’s installation inspired by Carme Pinós’ geometric pavilion design. MPavilion’s own curated MRelay series of tag-team talks focused on fostering inclusive and equitable cities. The greatly expanded Indigenous architecture forum series BLAKitecture, also took place curated by MPavilion’s Sarah Lynn Rees. New in 2018 was MPavilion’s Writer in Residence program, which welcomed recipient Maddee Clark, a Yugambeh writer, editor and curator who investigated the intersections between architecture and the written word.
Second Life: MPavilion 2018 by Carme Pinós of Estudio Carme Pinós has been gifted to the people of Victoria by the Naomi Milgrom Foundation and will be relocated to a permanent site in 2021.
CASE STUDY
Community Hubs at MPavilion
In 2018, MPavilion engaged with the community behind the scenes. Community Hubs Australia Incorporated is a not-for-profit organisation that helps build social cohesion within the community. In collaboration with Community Hubs, MPavilion hosted a family picnic, bringing the Victorian community together in Melbourne’s cultural centre.
CASE STUDY
Fixperts at MPavilion
Fixperts community engagement design intervention teamed members of the UK-based global design initiative with design students from RMIT, with the aim to assist people in the community. Over a period of six weeks, the teams worked with people from the community to create design solutions to problems that were hindering their everyday lives—and the results have been fantastic.
Projects included designing a writing implement for Ann, a retired doctor with an Essential Tremor; making enhancements to a motorised scooter owned by Margherita, a short-statured person; and creating a plough to assist Jax, a disability rights advocate, to pick up her daughter’s toys from the floor. Along the way, the students documented their processes to create short videos that can now be watched around the world, helping people with similar everyday problems.
Fixperts at MPavilion
MPavilion 2018 Stool by Carme Pinós
Image by Tom Ross
COMMISSION
MPavilion 2018 Stool
Designed by: Carme Pinós, Estudio Carme Pinós
Manufacturer: Focus Taller - Francesc Rubio, Spain
Material: Birch plywoodDescription: The commissioned stool is comprised of three pieces assembled by intersection, making them perfect for a space used in multiple ways. The stool was designed to store flat, and can easily be disassembled.
Dimensions: 380D x 550W x 440H
Colour: birch green and hoop black