With the Little Toad, Little Toad: Unbuilding Pavilion, South Korea commemorates the pavilion’s 30th anniversary at the 19th Venice Biennale. The exhibition is commissioned by the Arts Council Korea and curated by Dahyoung Chung, Heejung Kim, and Sungkyu Jung from the Curating Architecture Collective (CAC).
As a part of the 2025 Venice Biennale, four new art installations are exhibited in the Korean Pavilion in the Giardini. Artists and architects Kim Hyunjong, Heechan Park, Young Yena, and Lee Dammy have put up their works within the Korean Pavilion reimagining and giving a new shape to the space.
The Korean Pavilion is embedded within a cluster of trees, reminiscent of the dense of forest that once existed. The pavilion takes an unusual shape following nature echoing the context where it sits with meandering walls and an unique carpet area.
Italian architect Franco Mancuso and Korean architect Kim Seok-chul designed the pavilion 30 years back, in harmony with its surrounding. The architects had gone that extra mile to include the trees in the surrounding into the design instead of just preserving them.
In order to leave the terrain and the roots of the trees undisturbed, the structure of the pavilion was raised on small pilotis, leaving the Korean pavilion elevated from the ground.
As the pavilion was originally built in 1995 and is one of the last existing permanent pavilions built at the site, CAC desired to preserve the pavilion’s legacy instead of demolishing and building a new structure in its place.
Subsequently, the main idea behind the pavilion’s design was to reflect on its 3-decade long architectural history, evolution and its prospective future. The four new installations also intend to highlight the Korean Pavilion’s Role through the years of the Venice Biennale exhibitions, while also addressing the current trend of sustainability and the theme of transformation.
Artist Young Yena’s ’30 Million Years Under the Pavilion’ explores the primordial history of the Korean Pavilion with an installation of imaginary ancient fictional guardians underneath the elevated pavilion and in the old brick structure.
Time for Trees is another installation designed by Architect Park Hee-chan. Directly, in front of the glass wall of the pavilion, a fabric screen sits, capturing the shadows of the trees, leveraging the forest-like context, and reflecting on the initial inceptional concept of respecting the trees within the context.
Architect Kim Hyun-jong wisely designed the ‘New Voyage’ installation on the rooftop of the pavilion visually resembling ship sails reflecting the historical maritime ties of Venice and Korea.
Overwriting, Overriding by architect Lee Dammy in the Korean Pavilion is an embroidery work that brings the hidden details of the pavilion like the locust tree to the Limelight. This installation also entertains the cat ‘Mucca’, which has made the pavilion it’s home since 2018.
Let us appreciate the sincere effort and commitment of the artists in celebrating the history of the Korean Pavilion by preserving it. Let us know your comments about the installations if you get a chance to visit the Korean Pavilion in the Giardini as a part of the Venice Biennale 2025!
Find more about Venice Biennale 2025 at our exclusive coverage about the event.
Little Toad, Little Toad: Unbuilding Pavilion Details
Pavilion Name: Little Toad, Little Toad: Unbuilding Pavilion
Representing Nation: South Korea
Commissioner: Arts Council Korea
Curators: CAC (Dahyoung Chung, Heejung Kim, Sungkyu Jung)
Exhibitors: Hyunjong Kim (ATELIER KHJ), Heechan Park (Studio Heech), Yena Young (Plastique Fantastique), Dammy Lee (Flora and Fauna)
Venue: Giardini
Photography: Park Yuna | The Korea Herald, Yongjun Choi | 2025 Korean Pavilion Promotion Team
