‘A Capsule in Time’ in Kensington Gardens

Marina Tabassum Designs ‘Capsule’ for 2025 Serpentine Pavilion

John Hill | 28. January 2025
Serpentine 2025 Pavilion A Capsule in Time, designed by Marina Tabassum, Marina Tabassum Architects (MTA). Design render, exterior view. Photo: © Marina Tabassum Architects (MTA). Courtesy Serpentine.

It has been 25 years since Zaha Hadid designed the inaugural Serpentine Pavilion, and as such the annual commission for a temporary pavilion next to Serpentine Gallery in Kensington Gardens needs very little introduction. A primary criteria in the selection of the designer is the pavilion serving as their first built work in the UK, while the purpose of the pavilion is primarily to host various talks, events, and other live programs over the course of the summer. 

Past pavilions have therefore been highly varied formally as well as in the geographical reach of their designers: from Europe (Rem Koolhaas, Jean Nouvel, Peter Zumthor, SelgasCano, Bjarke Ingels, etc.), Africa (Francis Kéré, Sumayya Vally), the Americas (Daniel Libeskind, Oscar Niemeyer, Frank Gehry, Smiljan Radic, Frida Escobedo, Theaster Gates), and Asia (Toyo Ito, SANAA, Sou Fujimoto, Junya Ishigami, Lina Ghotmeh, Minsuk Cho/Mass STudies).

Serpentine Pavilion 2025 designed by Marina Tabassum, Marina Tabassum Architects (MTA). Design render, exterior view. Photo © Marina Tabassum Architects (MTA) Courtesy: Serpentine

Tabassum, the first Serpentine Pavilion designer from Bangladesh, describes how her studio's design of the pavilion relates to experiences in her home country:

“When conceiving our design, we reflected on the transient nature of the commission which appears to us as a capsule of memory and time. The relationship between time and architecture is intriguing: between permanence and impermanence, of birth, age and ruin; architecture aspires to outlive time. Architecture is a tool to live behind legacies, fulfilling the inherent human desire for continuity beyond life. In the Bengal delta, architecture is ephemeral as dwellings change locations with the rivers shifting courses. Architecture becomes memories of the lived spaces continued through tales. The archaic volume of a half capsule, generated by geometry and wrapped in light semi-transparent material will create a play of filtered light that will pierce through the structure as if under a Shamiyana at a Bengali wedding. The Serpentine Pavilion offers a unique platform under the summer sun to unite as people rich in diversity. The stage is set, the seats are placed. We envision various events and encounters taking place in this versatile space that unifies people through conversations and connections.”

Marina Tabassum

Serpentine 2025 Pavilion A Capsule in Time, designed by Marina Tabassum, Marina Tabassum Architects (MTA). Design render, interior view. Photo: © Marina Tabassum Architects (MTA). Courtesy Serpentine.

The renderings supplied by Serpentine show an elongated pavilion with four structures: two arched and two half-dome. A gap between the arched forms aligns with the bell tower of the Serpentine Gallery building and will be occupied by a tree — a mature tree per today's announcement. Not visible is the intention for one of the “capsules” to move and connect with an adjacent one, transforming the pavilion for certain events. In this aspect, Tabassum was influenced by Shamiyana tents, which are made from fabric attached to bamboo poles and are similarly kinetic.

A Capsule in Time will open on June 6 and be on display until October 26, 2025.

Marina Tabassum. Photo: © Asif Salman

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