The Best Espresso in Town: What Collaborations in Architecture Does the “New Climatic Regime” Require?

Abstract

The 19th edition of the Venice Biennale of Architecture encouraged collaborations between disciplines that are commonly perceived as unlikely companions. A key task of the curatorial team was to facilitate connections among a range of scientists and designers — from fields as varied as physics, forestry, microbiology, data science, AI, nanoscience, network science, anthropology, and naval engineering — so they could embark on a shared creative process. In this article I discuss one noteworthy installation that exemplifies this approach: the Canal Café project by Diller Scofidio + Renfro (DS+R) studio, a collaboration between architects, water engineers, and purification experts. To trace the partnerships that proved so essential for the project’s realisation, I shadowed the curatorial team, interviewed architects from DS+R and followed the installation’s development from December 2024 until the vernissage in May 2025. By examining their work together and the concentration of collaborative processes, I argue that this case compels us to rethink the scenography of work of designers in the “new climatic regime”.