The 14th São Paulo International Architecture Biennial, held from September 18 to October 19, 2025, focuses on the future of cities amid climate and social challenges. The Biennial features leading global architects, including Professor Kongjian Yu, renowned for his Sponge City and Sponge Planet concepts, advocating nature-based solutions for urban flood management and climate resilience. It presents over 200 projects, plans, and installations from Brazil and more than 25 countries, including ex...

Between September 18 and October 19, 2025, the 14th International Architecture Biennial of São Paulo, organized by IABsp, will take place at the Oca Pavilion in Ibirapuera Park to discuss how architecture, urbanism, design, and landscape architecture can respond to climate change and extreme events. Prominent names include Eva Pfannes of the Dutch office OOZE, presenting the City of 1,000 Tanks project developed in India, and Kongjian Yu, known for China’s Sponge Cities, who will deliver the ope...

1. Project Statement Whispering Bamboo (语竹) is an immersive architectural installation within the Dongyuegu Music and Performance Valley, where the harmony of nature and human creativity is expressed through the medium of space, sound, and materiality. This intimate yet profound performance space stands as a poetic dialogue between tradition and modernity, evoking the timeless connection between bamboo, wind, and music in Chinese culture. 2. Design Strategy Concept and Des...

1. Project Statement Whispering Bamboo (语竹) is an immersive architectural installation within the Dongyuegu Music and Performance Valley, where the harmony of nature and human creativity is expressed through the medium of space, sound, and materiality. This intimate yet profound performance space stands as a poetic dialogue between tradition and modernity, evoking the timeless connection between bamboo, wind, and music in Chinese culture. 2. Design Strategy Concept and Design Ins...

1. Project Statement Spherical Symphony (闻籁) is a transformative architectural installation within the Dongyuegu Music and Performance Valley, where space and sound converge to create a sensory experience unlike any other. Designed as an immersive soundscape, this installation consists of two nested concrete cones strategically positioned among the surrounding service buildings. The form and materiality of the structure amplify and modulate sound, turning the space into a living instr...

1. Project Statement Spherical Symphony (闻籁) is a transformative architectural installation within the Dongyuegu Music and Performance Valley, where space and sound converge to create a sensory experience unlike any other. Designed as an immersive soundscape, this installation consists of two nested concrete cones strategically positioned among the surrounding service buildings. The form and materiality of the structure amplify and modulate sound, turning the space into a living instrume...

Sponge City and Sponge Planet

At the 12th World Urban Forum (WUF12) held in Cairo, Egypt, from November 4 to 8, the final winners of the 2024 UIA 2030 Award were announced. Turenscape, a Chinese landscape architecture firm, won the grand prize in the category of Access to Green and Public Space.

Sponge Planet: Architecture for Survival

Opening Speech