Architect Frida Escobedo, celebrated for dynamic projects that reactivate urban space, has been commissioned to design the Serpentine Pavilion 2018. Harnessing a subtle interplay of light, water and geometry, the Mexican architect’, atmospheric courtyard-based design draws on both the domestic architecture of Mexico and British materials and history, specifically the Prime Meridian line at London?s Royal Observatory in Greenwich.
Serpentine Pavilion 2018. Designed by Frida Escobedo, Taller de Arquitectura.Design Rendering, © Frida Escobedo, Taller de Arquitectura. Rendering by Atmósfera
Born in Mexico City in 1979, Escobedo is the 18th and youngest architect to accept the Serpentine Gallery commission for a  temporary Pavilion on the gallery lawn in Kensington Gardens. This pioneering commission, which began in 2000 with Zaha Hadid, has presented the first UK buildings of some of the biggest names in international architecture. In recent years, it has grown into a hotly anticipated showcase for emerging talent, from Sou Fujimoto of Japan to selgascano of Spain and Bjarke Ingels of Denmark. Serpentine Galleries Artistic Director Hans Ulrich Obrist and CEO Yana Peel selected this year?s architect, with advisors David Adjaye and Richard Rogers. Escobedo?s Pavilion will take the form of an enclosed courtyard, comprised of two rectangular volumes positioned at an angle. While the outer walls will be aligned with the Serpentine Gallery?s eastern façade, the axis of the ...