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Tallinn Architecture Biennale’s winning proposal rethinks the role of architects
'Fungible Non-Fungible' by iheartblob in front of the Museum of Estonian Architecture.
Image: TAB 2022
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Tallinn Architecture Biennale’s winning proposal rethinks the role of architects

As part of the sixth edition of the Tallinn Architecture Biennale, ‘Fungible Non-Fungible’ by iheartblob was announced as the winning proposal after Simulaa withdrew from the competition

by Almas Sadique
Published on : Jan 03, 2022

A new winning proposal was recently announced for the Tallinn Vision Competition, part of the Tallinn Architecture Biennale or TAB after the previously declared winner, Simulaa, an Australia-based architectural studio, resigned from the competition. The newly declared winners, iheartblob, will now showcase their installation as part of the 6th edition of the festival from September to October 2022 in front of the Museum of Estonian Architecture, which is located at the centre of Tallinn in Estonia.

tallinn-architecture-biennale-s-winning-proposal-rethinks-the-role-of-architects
'Fungible Non-Fungible' by iheartblob in front of the Museum of Estonian Architecture. Image: TAB 2022
tallinn-architecture-biennale-s-winning-proposal-rethinks-the-role-of-architects
'Fungible Non-Fungible' by iheartblob. Image: TAB 2022

The Tallinn Architecture Biennale is an international festival that hosts several programmes and events with the intent of promoting innovative thinking around the fields of architecture and urban design. They do this by inviting both national and international audiences from all fields and encouraging a dynamic interaction and dialogue of architects and designers with the general public. Some of the other prominent events that are organised as part of the month-long festival include a curatorial exhibition, a satellite programme and a symposium.

tallinn-architecture-biennale-s-winning-proposal-rethinks-the-role-of-architects
Prototype of 'Fungible Non-Fungible' by iheartblob. Image: TAB 2022
tallinn-architecture-biennale-s-winning-proposal-rethinks-the-role-of-architects
Prototype of 'Fungible Non-Fungible' by iheartblob. Image: TAB 2022

The upcoming edition of the TAB is titled ‘Edible; Or, The Architecture of Metabolism’. Curated by Lydia Kallipoliti and Areti Markopoulou in collaboration with Co-Curator Ivan Sergejev, this edition aims at reflecting on the impact of the metabolism of the natural world on cities and buildings. The Tallinn Vision Competition, which forms part of the festival, invited designers and creatives this year to design an experimental timber installation, while focusing on the concept of slowness.

iheartblob, a mixed reality design studio and research collective, approached these requirements from a different perspective, giving birth to a unique proposal that invited the community to contribute both as designers and as investors, thus contributing holistically towards the emergent structure. Titled ‘Fungible Non-Fungible Pavilion’, the project will be the first-ever blockchain-funded architecture initiative. iheartblob’s design aims to rethink the role of architects, so that they can be system designers instead of master builders and combine their skills and expertise for the sake of empowering communities and enabling local craftsmanship through the usage of blockchain.

tallinn-architecture-biennale-s-winning-proposal-rethinks-the-role-of-architects
Physical model of 'Fungible Non-Fungible' by iheartblob. Image: TAB 2022
tallinn-architecture-biennale-s-winning-proposal-rethinks-the-role-of-architects
Physical model of 'Fungible Non-Fungible' by iheartblob. Image: TAB 2022

An architectural design studio based in Vienna, iheartblob is made up by three designers, Aleksandra Belitskaja, Ben James and Shaun McCallum. Paying special attention on exploring new models of architectural thought and design, the studio aims to create work that is borne out of the critical reflection of normative trends that inhabit the architectural world today. Their pavilion design for TAB is a move in the same direction.

What also makes the pavilion unique is that it is not a definitive design, but an amalgamation of several creations by several individuals, thus making every part of the pavilion unique to its designers and consequently, reflective of the broader community. A hybrid of physical and digital realities, the pavilion will evolve and grow in both realms: the physical and the digital. It will also serve as a test for the efficiency and sustainability of the decentralized architectural design model in terms of producing designs that are more inclusive, both of diverse communities and of the natural world.

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