The Horizon: Revive the Spirit of Mosul

Designer：2050+

Location：Venice, Italy; | ;View Map

Project Year：2021

Category：Exhibition Centres;Art Galleries;Exhibitions

The Horizon: Revive the Spirit of Mosul tells the story of a journey – a journey from sorrow and destruction to hope and recovery.

Revive the Spirit of Mosul aims to add texture to our understanding of the recent history of the city of Mosul, from its occupation by Daesh in 2014 to ongoing projects for reconstruction and restoration. Reflecting on the question asked by the seventeenth Architecture Biennale – How Will We Live Together? – the project casts light on the resilience of diverse communities in the face of traumatic events.The exhibition unwinds chronologically, against the backdrop of a curtain, narrating the different histories of Mosul, from the recent past to projections for the years to come: Destruction; Liberation; Action taken by UNESCO; Future, the reconstruction of Al-Nouri Mosque complex.

The curtain spools through multiple rooms, serving as a guide for visitors. It functions as a backdrop, defining the domains of the display with precision, and acts as a canvas for vital information. An abstraction of Mosul’s horizon, in the form of a gradient that stretches from top to bottom of the curtain, provides a surface where different events and periods from the narration can be unpacked and underlined.

The ratio between ground and sky is suggestive of the activity that is foregrounded – fluctuating between phases of destruction and phases of reconstruction. These are narrated through testimonies, digital reconstructions, maps and site pictures. The pleats of the curtain speak to the intensity and frequency of specific events by highlighting a series of particularly disruptive cases along the path. A two-sided print of Al-Nouri mosque sits in the entrance portico, emphasizing the importance of rebuilding heritage monuments asa way of creating common ground between different cultures.

UNESCO - Director-General: Audrey Azoulay / Exhibition Coordination: Lodovico Folin Calabi, Sara Noshadi / Project Management Team: Maria Rita Acetoso, Rakan Al-Allaf, Paolo Fontani, Nuria Roca-Ruiz, Paula Ion / Contributors: Nada Al Hassan, Moamin Al-Obaidi, Lazare Eloundou Assomo, Husamaldeen El-Zubi, Matthieu Guével, Osama Maqdoni 

PARTNERS - Ministry of Culture of Iraq, H.E. Dr Hassan Nadhem, Minister / Sunni Waqf of Iraq, H.E. Dr. Saad Kambash, President / Ministry of Culture and Youth of the United Arab Emirates, H.E. Noura Al Kaabi, Minister / United Arab Emirates National Commission for Education, Culture and Science, H.E. Salma Al Darmaki, Secretary-General / Governorate of Nineveh province in Iraq, Najm Al-Jubouri, Governor / City of Mosul, Zuhair Mouhsin Al-Araji, Mayor Special thanks to the Ministry of Culture and Youth of the United Arab Emirates for supporting the project. 

EXHIBITION - Curated and designed by 2050+: Giacomo Ardesio, Guglielmo Campeggi, Francesca Lantieri, Camilla Morandi, Ippolito Pestellini Laparelli / Produced and installed by ALTOFRAGILE: Lapo Gavioli, Giulia Mainetti, Francesco Rovaldi / Thanks to Colorzenith, Hi-Segno, LPD Design, Videosistem / Security and Supervision: Vincenzo Casali Architetto / Hosted by the UNESCO Regional Bureau for Science and Culture in Europe, Palazzo Zorzi, Venezia 

PARTICIPATING EXHIBITION - First Prize: Salah El Din Samir Hareedy; Country: Egypt; Team Leader: Salah El Din Samir Hareedy (Associate Professor at Alexandria University, Egypt. CEO. of HEADS) / Second Prize: atArchitecture and Matharoo Associates; Country: India; Team Leaders: Avneesh Tiwari (Founder of atArchitecture) and Gurjit Singh Matharoo (Founder of Matharoo Associates) / Third Prize: Francisco Javier Maroto Ramos; Country: Spain; Team Leaders: Francisco Javier Maroto Ramos (MBA.MECES. PHD Senior Architect, ETSAM. UPM) / Fourth Prize: PRODUCTORA; Country: Mexico and Belgium; Team Leaders: PRODUCTORA (Wonne Ickx, Carlos Bedoya, Victor Jaime, Abel Perles) / Fifth Prize: Clément Blanchet Architecture; Country: UAE and France; Team Leaders: Clement Blanchet (Clément Blanchet Architecture).

Photographer: Laurian Ghinitoiu 

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