Eyes of the City. ‘Ascending Cities’ section

LORIS CECCHINI and ALESSIO DE GIROLAMO

Biennale of Urbanism/Architecture (UABB) in Shenzhen 

Futian railway station 

Shenzhen, China  

Directed by Carlo Ratti, Meng Jianmin, Fabio Cavallucci.

The Bi-City Biennale of Urbanism/Architecture or UABB is currently the only biennial in the world that is exclusively based on themes of urbanism and urbanization. Located in the quickly urbanizing Pearl River Delta, the biennial is organized collaboratively by the two closely situated cities, Shenzhen and Hong Kong. 2019’s edition focuses on Urban Interactions as its theme that is then divided into two parallel sections, ‘Eyes of the City’ and ‘Ascending City’. Under the latter section, Loris Cecchini presents the work Waterbones (black) + L System, sound produced by Alessio de Girolamo; his instantly recognizable steel modules on a black background resemble organic forms while evoking a scientific and industrial production. The main venue of the biennial, the Futian underground high-speed railway station in Shenzhen, through its exhibition design, succeeds in associating the anonymity of the urban experience with the concept of an urban gateway to a potentially digitally augmented city.