Documenting a new structure conceived as part of the 17th Venice Biennale's theme 'How will we live together?', The Majlis brings together an international array of individuals, cultural influences and artisanal skills. Showcasing innovative architecture, art and design that focuses primarily on creative ideas united within the traditional space of the majlis, this book is a forum for the key ideas of Caravane Earth, which was established to consider how we should live, with particular focus on the importance of craft, architecture, agriculture and education.
Before opening its seasonal Art Village in the Qatari Desert, the Caravane Foundation has brought the first of its eight principal structures, the Majlis - the work of leading Colombian architect Simón Vélez - to the wild-flower garden of the Abbazia di San Giorgio Maggiore, re-designed by Todd Longstaffe-Gowan for the 2020 (postponed to 2021) Venice Biennal e.Inspired by nomadic architecture, the Majlis is made from the most renewable building material on earth - bamboo - and shrouded in textiles handwoven in the Atlas Mountains of Morocco. Traditionally, a majlis is the place where people come together to deepen their connection with each other. In recognition of its cultural significance in the Arabian Peninsula, the majlis is inscribed on UNESCO's 'Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity'. This intervention explores the careful sourcing of materials, ethical processes of production and the legacy of the Majlis. With its international array of individuals, and in dialogue with the Benedictine community of the Abbazia di San Giorgio Maggiore, the foundation aims to restore a collective awareness of the sacred interconnectivity between humans, culture and nature.
With contributions by Fahad bin Mohammed Al-Attiyah; Dr Thierry Morel; Vera Trakhtenberg; Jorg Gruber; Nina Mohammad-Galbert; Lord Snowdon; Marjorie Hunt; Todd Longstaffe-Gowan; Nana Offoriata Ayim.
