The Serpentine Gallery Pavilion 2005 has been designed by the celebrated Portuguese Pritzker Prize-winning architect Álvaro Siza and the distinguished architect Eduardo Souto de Moura. As in past years Cecil Balmond, Deputy Chairman of Arup, together with his team, has worked closely with Siza and Souto de Moura to develop the scheme.

In designing the Pavilion, Siza sought to ‘guarantee that the new building – while presenting a totally different architecture – establishes a “dialogue” with the Neo-classical house’. The result is a structure that mirrors the domestic scale of the Serpentine and articulates the landscape between the two buildings.

The Pavilion is based on a simple rectangular grid, which has been distorted to create a dynamic curvaceous form. It comprises interlocking timber beams, a material that accentuates the relationship between the Pavilion and surrounding Park.

A translucent polycarbonate covering allows light to penetrate the Pavilion. This impermeable shell stops 1.3m from the ground so that the structure appears to hover above the lawn, poised like an animal with an arched back and taut skin, ready to pounce.

Each panel of translucent cladding has at its centre a solar-powered electrical lamp creating small pinpricks of light that provide a circular contrast to the overall grid of the Pavilion. The interior of the Pavilion serves as a café by day and a forum for learning, debate and entertainment at night and will feature furniture specially designed by Siza.

Siza is the greatest living Portuguese architect. He has been the recipient of numerous international awards for his architectural achievements and was named Laureate of The Pritzker Architecture Prize in 1992. Critics have praised his experimentation and freshness of approach. Born in 1933, he completed his first building in 1954. Siza's award-winning projects range from mass housing developments to swimming pools, private houses, banks, office buildings, restaurants, shops and art galleries, but he is best known for the Serralves Museum in Oporto.

Having worked with Siza for several years, Souto de Moura established his own practice in 1980. His work is characterized by a respect for vernacular architecture and abstract Modern forms. Among his many public projects, he is best known for the Municipal Market in Braga, the Portuguese Pavilion at the Hanover Expo 2000 built with Siza, and the Braga Stadium for the European Football Championships in 2004. The 30,000 seat Stadium serves as an anchor point for future development in the area north of Braga city centre.

Cecil Balmond’s commitment to architecture and design has led to successful collaborations with major international architects. He is Deputy Chairman of Arup and leads the Building Sector worldwide. His projects include the Stuttgart Art Gallery and Music School with Stirling Wilford, the Lille project and Bordeaux Villa with Rem Koolhaas, the Portuguese National Pavilion for the Lisbon Expo with Siza and Souto de Moura, and the sculpture ‘Marsyas’ with Anish Kapoor commissioned by Tate Modern for the Turbine Hall. He also collaborated on two previous Serpentine Gallery Pavilions – Toyo Ito with Arup, 2002 and Daniel Libeskind with Arup, 2001. He is currently working on the Battersea Power Station master plan project and with Koolhaas on the CCTV Headquarters building in Beijing.

The Serpentine Gallery Pavilion is a unique programme worldwide and has resulted in four landmark temporary structures and one that is still under development. The architects – MDRDV with Arup, 2004 – ongoing; Oscar Niemeyer, 2003; Toyo Ito with Arup, 2002; Daniel Libeskind with Arup, 2001, and Zaha Hadid, 2000 – were chosen because they consistently push the boundaries of architectural practice. At the time of their invitation, none had completed a structure in the UK.

For the second year running, the Serpentine Gallery Pavilion will be supported by Eurex, the world's largest futures and options exchange.  Rudolf Ferscha, Chief Executive Officer of Eurex, said: “We are delighted to be associated with one of London's finest and most accessible modern and contemporary art galleries and the Serpentine Gallery Pavilion offers us a fantastic opportunity to interact with our London-based customers and the community at large. Eurex stands for open and equal access to financial markets. We connect people across borders and, in this spirit, we support this exciting project.”

Finnforest Merk is Europe’s leading supplier in engineered timber products and construction solutions.  With a strong commitment to the environment and sustainability the engineered timber, Kerto (LVL), used in this year’s Pavilion will have been sourced from their own fully certified sustainable managed forests. Warren Dudding, UK Marketing Manager, Finnforest Merk said: “Finnforest Merk is proud to be able to contribute towards this year’s project and play its part in delivering yet another landmark Pavilion for the Serpentine.”

The Pavilion café, run by the award-winning Rivington Grill, Bar and Deli, will be open daily 10am to 6pm, sponsored by Lavazza.

Time Out Park Nights: Summer at the Serpentine Gallery will include two open-air films on a 50 foot screen in Kensington Gardens, Friday late-night architecture talks, film screenings and sound events until 10pm.

For more information please contact:
Erica Bolton,
Bolton & Quinn 020 7221 5000
Or Rose Dempsey, Serpentine Gallery 020 7298 1520/28
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