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At the 19th Venice Architecture Biennale, the Chinese Pavilion presents Coexist, an exhibition curated by Ma Yansong, founder of MAD Architects. The pavilion assembles ten interdisciplinary teams, spanning architects, scholars, students, scientists, and even social media participants, to collectively investigate the potential of architecture to reconcile contradictions between tradition and futurity, artificial and nature, technology and emotion. Rather than presenting a singular vision, Coexist aims to open space for responses to the diverse realities shaping contemporary architecture. While on site in Venice, ArchDaily’s editors had the opportunity to discuss the ideas that shaped the Chinese Pavilion with the curator.
Pavilion of China. Image © demone
China has always been very diverse, with differences between the north and south, various regions, cultures, climates, cities, and the countryside. Also, we experienced a really fast development in the last three to four decades, and now we’re thinking about how the future city could link tradition to nature. – Ma Yansong, founder of MAD Architects
For Ma Yansong, the question of coexistence lies at the heart of the pavilion’s curatorial ambition. It is not merely a theme but a lens through which tensions between historical heritage and future aspirations are examined. The exhibition draws inspiration from traditional Chinese culture, from old civilizations to classical gardens, and reinterprets these legacies within contemporary design language. In doing so, it highlights how architectural practice in China today navigates inherited knowledge and contemporary urgency simultaneously. Ma sees the dominance of material innovation and structural rationalism in modern architecture as having diminished the discipline’s emotional and spiritual dimensions. The pavilion challenges this trajectory by foregrounding nature not as a passive backdrop but as an active participant in the design process, imbued with symbolism, memory, and affect.
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Pavilion of China. Image © demone
Coexistence means different values, different concepts, past and the future, nature and artificial, all these combined. When we talk about intelligence, we think about technology. I think that’s probably not enough when we talk about modern architecture. We talk a lot about materials, technology, and structure; these become revolutionary for modern architecture, but at the same time, we lose the ability to build up this emotional connection to nature. I think talking about the future intelligence world, it’s all about human, nature, and emotion, so we want to discuss around this topic. – Ma Yansong
Pavilion of China. Image © demone
As part of this year’s broader biennale theme, “Intelligens. Natural. Artificial. Collective.” Coexist aligns itself with the idea that architectural discourse must be shaped by collaboration. The pavilion is thus framed not as a finished artifact but as a process of conversation, between generations, between disciplines, and between modes of knowledge. In Ma Yansong’s view, such exchanges are essential if architecture is to regain its capacity to speak meaningfully to human emotion, to natural systems, and to social imagination.
We want this pavilion to be a process for people to know each other, to start some discussions, to raise some issues to be noticed by other people, and further on, continue discussions. – Ma Yansong
Pavilion of China. Image © demone
The Chinese Pavilion at the 2025 Venice Architecture Biennale is on view until November 23, 2025. It is one of 65 national contributions to this year’s exhibition, which brings together over 750 participants exploring architecture’s role in shaping collective futures. This year, the Kingdom of Bahrain’s national pavilion was awarded the Golden Lion for Best National Participation. Titled Heatwave, the exhibition explores passive cooling strategies, also inspired by Bahrain’s traditional architecture and reimagined through contemporary strategies. Other pavilions from the event include the Holy See Pavilion “Opera Aperta”, a project that positions architecture as a practice of collective care and responsibility, the British Pavilion, commissioned by The British Council, features the exhibition title GBR – Geology of Britannic Repair, and Unraveling: New Spaces, at the Serbia Pavilion exploring circular design.
We invite you to check out ArchDaily’s comprehensive coverage of the 2025 Venice Biennale.