This year's Serpentine Pavilion in London's Hyde Park is a jumbo, 3D grid that grows organically from the ground. Articulated by slender, white, steel bars, this assemblage of small cubes - a cross between a garden folly and a mathematical model - is the product of the Tokyo architect Sou Fujimoto. In this short film, we take a look at the making of the pavilion, and follow its journey from concept to reality.
See more images of the 2013 pavilion and its predecessors
'The experience is more like a labyrinth but the space is very simple,' says Fujimoto. Sized more like furniture than architecture, the main frame consists of 80 cm cubes, many subdivided into 40 cm cubes that double as stairs and stepped seating. While railings outside minimize missteps and roof climbing, guiderails inside prevent bumped heads.
The decision to build with a white grid stemmed from Fujimoto's initial goal of creating an 'architectural landscape'. To forge a strong connection between his building and its surroundings, he needed to create a translucent volume. A small scale, 3D grid - Fujimoto has been grappling with grids since the start of his career - fit the bill perfectly. To sculpt the pavilion's form plus place clear polycarbonate inserts, vertical panels for windbreaks and horizontal, disks for rain protection, Fujimoto used a 1:10 study model. '[The design] is so complicated that we had to make a big model to understand it exactly,' explains the architect.
Prefabricated at creative manufacturers Stage One's facilities in York, Fujimoto's design was then trucked to London in preassembled units that were bolted together on site by the engineers at Aecom, under the direction of David Glover, who has worked a succession of Serpentine Pavilions, though formerly with Arup. At the end of its tenure, the pavilion can be taken apart and carted off to a new home.
ADDRESS
Serpentine Gallery
Kensington Gardens
London W2 3XA
-
The artistry of Japanese wineFine wine from Japan may not yet register highly on the radars of most oenophiles, but for those who know, it's a hugely rewarding and rich tapestry of flavour. Drinks expert, Neil Ridley visits London's Luna Omakase for the launch of a new dedicated Japanese wine pairing menu
-
In Los Angeles, Darling doesn’t want to be your average dinner spotVinyl, live-fire cooking, and California’s finest ingredients come together in this immersive new concept from a celebrated Southern chef
-
Ashlyn, the quietly romantic New York label from a Yohji Yamamoto alumnaThe focus of our latest Uprising column, Seoul-born Ashlyn Park worked for fashion greats before starting her own label in 2020. Showing her S/S 2026 collection at NYFW yesterday, she talks to Wallpaper* about marrying Japanese influences with the romance of Parisian savoir-faire
-
Five of the biggest art exhibitions to see in London in 2026From Marilyn Monroe, to David Hockney and Tracey Emin – get these art exhibitions in your diary now
-
Out of office: the Wallpaper* editors’ picks of the weekWith the return of back-to-school, it's back to business for the Wallpaper* team, who’ve been making the rounds at fashion pop-ups and pavilion launches. Elsewhere, we’ve been indulging in new literature and old restaurants, and taking in a farewell exhibition at a landmark gallery...
-
From art to fashion, and back again: Jonathan Schofield’s figurative work is back in styleAfter graduating from London’s Royal College of Art, Jonathan Schofield began a career as a creative director at Stella McCartney. Now, he has returned to his first love, painting
-
Watch: artist Shezad Dawood lights up The Gaumont, King’s Road’s creatively focused new hubIn our short film, meet the artist, see his new work in the making, and discover more about The Gaumont
-
Out of office: the Wallpaper* editors’ picks of the weekHere in the UK, summer seems to be fading fast. Moody skies and showers called for early-autumn rituals for the Wallpaper* team: retreating into the depths of the Tate Modern, slipping into shadowy cocktail bars, and curling up with a good book
-
‘A Single Man’ is now a ballet – we go behind the designAs ‘A Single Man’ is presented by The Royal Ballet and Factory International in London, here’s how its set designer brought protagonist George’s inner and outer worlds to life on stage
-
Artists imbue the domestic with an unsettling unfamiliarity at Hauser & WirthThree artists – Koak, Ding Shilun and Cece Philips – bring an uncanny subversion to the domestic environment in Hauser & Wirth’s London exhibition
-
Inside the fight to keep an iconic Barbara Hepworth sculpture in the UK‘Sculpture with Colour’ captures a pivotal moment in Hepworth’s career. When it was sold to an overseas buyer, UK institutions launched a campaign to keep it in the country
