Cover Rolex Learning Center, École Polytechnique Fédérale De Lausanne, Switzerland (Photo: Rolex)
Rolex Learning Center, École Polytechnique Fédérale De Lausanne, Switzerland (Photo: Rolex)
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Rolex’s support for architecture extends variously, all with an eye on perpetuating excellence in design and sustainability
Architecture is less a single pillar and more a multifaceted field that combines several disciplines from both the arts and the sciences. The design is central, of course, but it is built on and grounded in myriad considerations beyond aesthetics, from how it applies material sciences to its interaction with its users—and more.
These traits draw close parallels with watchmaking, which explains Rolex’s close ties with the world’s leading architects. The brand collaborates with these architects variously, including commissioning them to design its own buildings around the world as well as supporting the rising stars of the field through the Rolex Mentor and Protégé Arts Initiative. Since 2014, Rolex has also served as Exclusive Partner and Official Timepiece of the Biennale Architettura.
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Above The Rolex Pavilion at the 18th International Architecture Exhibition (Photo: Rolex)
The Rolex Pavilion at the 18th International Architecture Exhibition (Photo: Rolex)
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As one of the most important forums dedicated to architecture, La Biennale di Venezia, also known as the International Architecture Exhibition, serves as a platform to explore and showcase architectural solutions to contemporary issues. Titled “The Laboratory of the Future”, the exhibition opened on May 20 this year and runs until November 26, with more than half of the nearly 100 contributors being African or Diasporan. Their works engage directly with the biennale’s theme; areas of focus include decolonisation and decarbonisation, and how they can lead to a more sustainable future.
“Africa is the laboratory of the future,” says Ghanaian Scottish academic and educator Lesley Lokko, who serves as this edition’s curator. “We envisage our exhibition as a laboratory where architects and practitioners across an expanded field of creative disciplines draw out examples from their contemporary practices that chart a path for the audience.”
Rolex’s presence at the 2023 edition of the event marks its fifth consecutive participation. Main exhibition aside, the brand is supporting Carnival, a six‑month‑long cycle of events, lectures, panel discussions, films and performances that explore the themes of Biennale Architettura 2023.
Above Anne Lacaton (pictured left), a mentor in the Rolex Mentor and Protégé Arts (Photo: Rolex)
Anne Lacaton (pictured left), a mentor in the Rolex Mentor and Protégé Arts (Photo: Rolex)
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The brand’s participation extends to showcases of its own in the Rolex Pavilion at the Giardini. The pavilion itself is a master class in transposition, with its distinctive design that reflects the iconic fluted bezel of many of the brand’s watches.
THE ROLEX PAVILION
For this edition of the event, Rolex has curated a display featuring three sections. The first explores the brand’s work with materials, crafts and artisans, which highlights the materials employed by Rolex in its boutiques worldwide and gives visitors the opportunity to enjoy a sensory experience of the Rolex universe. From marble to travertine, stucco and glass, materials of the highest quality are fashioned into different surfaces and objects of great beauty by craftsmen, based on signature features of Rolex watch models, especially the fluted bezel and the Cyclops lens.
The second presentation is a retrospective that showcases the senstitive refurbishment of Melbourne’s Centenary Hall, where Rolex Australia is based. Working with Rolex, architect Peter Miglis, of Woods Bagot, has restored the heritage-listed art deco building to its former glory while applying a gold standard of sustainability. Care has been taken to enhance Centenary Hall’s environmental friendliness, of course, thus ensuring that the best possible use of space is equally matched by sustainability—much like how Rolex has approached its buildings’ architecture for more than six decades.
Above Rolex Australia’s headquarters in Melbourne (Photo: Rolex)
Rolex Australia’s headquarters in Melbourne (Photo: Rolex)
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The final presentation recounts and celebrates the Rolex Mentor and Protégé Arts Initiative, which marks its 20th anniversary in 2023. The programme is unique for pairing young artists with masters in their respective fields, with the aim of facilitating the transmission of knowledge and the exploration of creative collaborations. Six pairs of architecture mentors and protégés have taken part so far, and a special display is dedicated to detailing their experiences and resulting works. This naturally includes the participants in the 2023‑2024 edition of the initiative: renowned French architect and educator Anne Lacaton, and Lebanese Armenian architect Arine Aprahamian, her chosen protégée.
Rolex’s influence at Biennale Architettura extends to several participating individuals with especially close ties to the brand. Former mentor‑protégée pair David Adjaye and Mariam Issoufou Kamara, for instance, are involved in Force Majeure, part of the curator’s section at the Giardini’s Central Pavilion. They are joined there by Rolex Awards for Enterprise jury member Diébédo Francis Kéré. Elsewhere, the curator’s complementary Arsenale section, Dangerous Liaisons, sees among its participants two Rolex arts fellows: Congolese visual artist Sammy Baloji and Paraguayan architect Gloria Cabral, who are united by strong environmental and social concerns. Their work together was made possible by the Rolex Mentor and Protege Arts Initiative’s collaboration fund, which supports innovative and cross-disciplinary artistic endeavours among the Rolex arts fellows.
