A memorandum on the future of International Building Exhibitions Authors: the IBA Advisory Board at the BMI 25.06.18 13:33 IBA Advisory Board at the BMI: On the future of International Building Exhibitions 3 Contents A Memorandum on the future of 04 International Building Exhibitions 10 recommendations for staging an 06 International Building Exhibition Remit: knowledge transfer 08 and quality assurance Guidance notes 10 on the Memorandum 1 11 IBA companies: formal and operational dimensions 2 15 IBA projects: calls and qualification 3 18 Presenting IBA: IBA as a stage 4 IBA format: IBA in relation to other urban and regional 20 development formats 5 IBA format: IBA in relation to other urban and regional development formats 24 A retrospective: How international was each 26 20th-century IBA? IBA_Memorandum_en_2506_zD.indd 3 25.06.18 13:33 4 IBA Advisory Board at the BMI: On the future of International Building Exhibitions IBA Advisory Board at the BMI: On the future of International Building Exhibitions A Memorandum on the future of International Building Exhibitions // Entrance to the Zollverein complex, 2013 // IBA_Memorandum_en_2506_zD.indd 4 25.06.18 13:33 IBA Advisory Board at the BMI: On the future of International Building Exhibitions IBA Advisory Board at the BMI: On the future of International Building Exhibitions 5 A Memorandum on the future of International Building Exhibitions Over the course of 100 years, International exhibitions, biennials and capitals of culture, Building Exhibitions have evolved into an ex- IBA have to date not followed a fixed calendar perimental field for urban and regional develop- or been bound by pre-defined rules or stand- ment and have become the special hallmark of ardised quality criteria. There is no binding the planning culture in Germany that has gained convention defining what an IBA is, what issues worldwide recognition as "IBA" and continues it should tackle or what organisational form it to attract growing interest. International Build- should take. It is precisely because each IBA ing Exhibitions have changed over the years, has to invent itself from scratch that continuous expanding their focus from the aesthetic and quality assurance is essential, consolidating its technological aspects of architecture to include val-ue for architectural culture and for urban social, economic and environmental aspects, and regional development and making the as well as public participation and the quality of experience gained useful both for day-to-day processes. planning practice and for each subsequent IBA. An IBA deals with living environments, housing and building in cities and regions in a way that To ensure this happens, the “IBA brand” seeks to engage more widely with content, or- must first be re-examined in a context that ganisation and presentation. It sets new stand- goes beyond the historical significance it has ards for the day-to-day practice of planning achieved and then taken forward. This is not authorities and freelance planners and provides the exclusive responsibility of each new IBA but important impetus for politicians, businesses must also be tackled by Germany’s individual and academia. Each one of the IBA carried out states, local authorities and the federal govern- to date acquired a significance beyond its time ment, with critical support from independent and place. experts. Despite the differences in the issues dealt with, the success of former IBA is based Having developed from a combination of fac- on similar qualities. It is important to preserve tors – the need for action in a specific place, the these qualities, develop them further and in this particular constellations of local actors, quality way ensure there is a clear distinction be-tween standards that exceed the norm, and innovative them and other urban and regional planning instruments and formats – International Build- formats. ing Exhibitions have taken on a programmatic character. The criteria for this are derived from the achievements of former IBA. And they, in turn, IBA is an internationally unique planning, urban point to the following ten recommendations for and regional policy instrument. Unlike world future IBA. IBA_Memorandum_en_2506_zD.indd 5 6 IBA Advisory Board at the BMI: On the future of International Building Exhibitions IBA Advisory Board at the BMI: On the future of International Building Exhibitions 10 recommendations for staging an International Building Exhibition // Semi-detached house by Le Corbusier in the // Mont-Cenis Academy, Herne, IBA Emscher Park // Weissenhof Estate in Stuttgart, Werkbund Exhibition 1927 // 1 2 Each IBA focuses on the pressing challenges IBA are more than just exhibitions of architec- in architecture and urban and regional planning ture. They propose social blueprints for future that arise from local and regional problems. ways of living and offer answers to social prob- One of their main characteristics is that they lems, not just through the design of buildings, are forward-looking, exploring questions of but also through new ways of appropriating social change and focusing on those aspects urban and rural spaces. It is through the ex- that can trigger regional developments and be perience of memorable places that IBA convey influenced by the design of spaces in urban their messages. and rural contexts. IBA_Memorandum_en_2506_zD.indd 6 25.06.18 13:33 IBA Advisory Board at the BMI: On the future of International Building Exhibitions IBA Advisory Board at the BMI: On the future of International Building Exhibitions 7 3 7 10 recommendations IBA arise from specific challenges: while the The concentration of intellectual, artistic and central themes of IBA are of necessity based on financial resources for a limited period of time for staging an a specific issue and location, their relevance makes IBA unique showcases for the excep- extends far beyond the local context. Each IBA tional. They are experimental research and was preceded by locally or regionally focused development laboratories in which intense col- International Building Exhibition initiatives and events that served as stimuli for laboration between experts and stakeholders, programmes, which they then framed in more combined with their experience and success precise terms and translated into reality. Formal stories, can stimulate projects elsewhere, have and informal preparatory discussions among a lasting impact on local planning practice and experts and with the public serve as important motivate people to get involved. tools to help identify and define the relevant issues. 8 IBA call for the courage to take risks. They are 4 experiments with open outcomes that generate IBA strive to develop model solutions to cur- new ideas. They sometimes use provocation as rent or future problems – be they architectural, a way of doing that, which can create dissent. economic, environmental or social. By demon- Contentious issues and productive controver- strating the relevance of the issues, challenges sies are important as-pects of planning culture. and strategies on an international scale, they All stakeholders – especially public servants, set in motion an ongoing debate on the future politicians and the public – must be aware of of our cities and regions in the context of wider this from the outset to facilitate initiatives that social developments. step outside the realms of standard practice and to generate widespread interest in the 5 projects. The actual buildings and projects are at the core of any IBA. However, IBA draw attention 9 not only to the buildings, but also to the condi- Each IBA needs sufficient autonomy and tions in which they were created and the quality appropriate operative framework to be able of the processes that contributed to them. By to produce exemplary, generalizable solutions qualifying instruments and formats, each IBA that can act as beacons of excellence. In place aims to contribute to a new culture of planning of established processes and tried-and-tested and building that manifests itself in a spirit of courses of action, IBA call for imaginative cooperation and in the interplay between the programmes, designs and organisational ap- quality of the process and the results. proaches, coupled with a degree of improvisa- tion and the agility to respond quickly to unfore- 6 seen events. IBA must be created with an international dimension from the outset. The determining fac- 10 tors include the international relevance of their IBA thrive on sharing their themes, ideas, pro- central issues and the resulting model projects, jects and images of their built results with the the involvement of external experts, outstanding world. They are both a forum and a stage for contributions from abroad and the fact that their their participants, presenting their contributions public relations and networking activities have and commitment to a national and international international reach. audience. Modern communication and presen- tation strategies are essential to their success. It is vital that each IBA uses and drives forward the latest, most effective forms, formats and channels of communication. IBA_Memorandum_en_2506_zD.indd 7 8 IBA Advisory Board at the BMI: On the future of International Building Exhibitions IBA Advisory Board at the BMI: On the future of International Building Exhibitions Remit: knowledge transfer and quality assurance // Building site photography in May 2013 – the Energy Bunker, IBA Hamburg // IBA_Memorandum_en_2506_zD.indd 8 25.06.18 13:33 IBA Advisory