The Slovenian Pavilion at the 19th Venice Architecture Biennale presents Master Builders, an exhibition curated by Ana Kosi and Ognen Arsov. In the context of this year’s Biennale theme Intelligens. Natural. Artificial. Collective., the curators highlight the know-how, techniques, and skills of craftsmen as an integral and irreplaceable part of architectural production, thereby repositioning the role of construction workers in the architectural process.
The project explores modern architecture by shifting attention from completed architectural objects to contemporary techniques of making — specifically, construction on the building site. The question posed is whether this shift can contribute to a new understanding of contemporary architecture.
Master: a person who is very skilled in a particular job or activity (Cambridge Dictionary)
The curators address the evolution of construction technology, which today includes robotics, prefabrication, artificial intelligence, 3D printing, and other systems. Yet, this technological advancement exposes an unexpected paradox: the quality and development of the built environment still strongly depend on the tacit knowledge of craftsmen on construction sites.
An analysis of contemporary Slovenian building sites reveals that construction continues to rely heavily on human labor and builders’ expertise. Meanwhile, the industry faces a shortage of skilled workers who possess the ability to transform a design into a well-executed architectural reality.
To overcome this “labour problem,” the industry is increasingly turning to digitization and mechanization, aiming to reduce reliance on manual work. Taken to the extreme, this logic would eliminate all unpredictable human elements. And yet, human involvement has proven indispensable. Current conditions reaffirm that the skills of craftspeople are virtually irreplaceable. The most valuable aspect of their work lies not only in manual expertise, but also in its cognitive dimension. Building practices once seen as merely physical are now understood to contain significant “intelligence” or tacit knowledge.
The Slovenian Pavilion at the Arsenale features four totems representing a family of master craftsmen and a large-format documentary video by Rok Kajzer Nagode documenting their making.
A totem is a spirit being, object, or symbol serving as an emblem of a group, tribe, or clan. Here, the totems are conceived and executed as a physical manifesto of craftsmanship.
The exhibition results from an experimental process that investigates the relationship between architect, craftsman, and architecture. The totems were designed using standard architectural tools and methods. Their individual components reflect construction techniques currently used in Slovenia and were fabricated on a building site in Kranj.
The positioning of the totems responds to the specific conditions of the Arsenale exhibition space while encouraging interactions between them. Although each totem reflects a particular builder’s skill, they function in the pavilion as symbols of mastery that transcend individual authorship — open to new associations, meanings, and interpretations.
A bilingual publication, designed by Studio Nejc Prah, accompanies the exhibition. It includes essays by the curators, interviews with builders and architects, and photographs by Klemen Ilovar, offering deeper insight into the project’s research, collaborations, and material experimentation.
The discourse initiated in Venice will continue in November, when the Museum of Architecture and Design (MAO) in Ljubljana hosts a symposium bringing together architects, master builders, construction companies, and educational organisations to reflect on labour, authorship, and construction in architecture. Master Builders thus aims not only to present outstanding work but also to provoke critical dialogue about how value is assigned in architecture — and to whom.
