The Majlis: a Meeting Place, at la Biennale di Venezia

The Majlis: A Meeting Place
Abbey of San Giorgio Maggiore
17th International Architecture Exhibition
La Biennale di Venezia

Website, identity, book, exhibition

The word “majlis”مجلس stands for a place to receive guests. It is also a word for assembly. It is a structure that embodies the bridge between the personal and the public. It is a space of hospitality that preserves tradition and nurtures the emergence of new communality. The Majlis is a multi-layered nomadic project created for the 17th Venice Biennale of Architecture. It comprises an architectural object, an exhibition, and a garden, all three hosted by the Abbazia di San Giorgio Maggiore. At its core is a bamboo structure with tent panels made of pure wool. The Majlis is a ground for communication, cohabitation, and collaboration. It is an ongoing experiment in the actual practice of living and working together. It invites a vast array of possible answers to the main question of the Biennale: “How will we live together?”

The Majlis is the inaugural project of Caravane Earth, a foundation based in the Netherlands with a mission to seed, practice, and promote ethical entrepreneurship and well-being through art, craft, architecture, agriculture, and education. We work towards positive systemic impact in social, cultural, and ecological realms. Caravane Earth supports craftspeople and strives to preserve distinct material cultures around the world, introduces organic agriculture in extreme climatic conditions of West Asia and North Africa, enhances connectedness of the region, and enables its participation in numerous intercultural dialogues. 

Here, we are presenting research conducted by Caravane Earth during the last three years and the key ideas that form our philosophy and agenda. 

Organisers: Caravane Earth Foundation https://majlis.caravane.earth
Concept Ideation: Galina and Johann Bott
Vision and Strategy: Fahad bin Mohammed Al Attiyah
Architects: Simón Vélez, Stefana Simic
Art direction and Exhibition Design : Igor Garin, Galya Larina
Editorial: Lesia Prokopenko, Ben Wheeler, Furqat Palvan-Zade
Public Relations: Bolton & Quinn 
Project Managers: Anneloes Bakker, Rasima Isaeva
Photography: Jörg Gruber
Artist: Irini Gonou
Textiles and Interiors Production: Prerna Saraff, Nina Mohammad-Galbert
Landscape Design: Todd Longstaffe-Gowan, Clay Baylor, Abhi Ramachandra
Partnerships and Symposia: Johnny Cornwell

Exhibition Loans: 

-Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani Museum
-The Dutch National Museum of World Cultures
-Monastero di San Lazzaro degli Armeni
-Scuola Grande di San Rocco
-Dott. Taher Sabahi
-Mohsen Chavoshbaran