University of Miami to present Earth Craft at 2027 Venice Architecture Biennale

The University of Miami School of Architecture has been selected by the U.S. Department of State to commission, organize, and curate the exhibition for the United States Pavilion at the 2027 Venice Architecture Biennale, according to newswise.com newswise.comnewswise.comnewswise.comOpen source ↗. Titled Earth Craft, the project focuses on the relationship between domestic building practices, native soils, and the labor forces that extracted and processed these geological materials. Germane Barnes, associate professor and director of the Master of Architecture Graduate Program at the university, will serve as lead curator alongside architectural historian and assistant professor Vyta Pivo.

Earthen materials and manufacturing heritage

The curatorial framework investigates structural media including brick, rammed earth, adobe, and concrete masonry. Rather than isolating structural aesthetics, the project traces raw materials from soil extraction through kiln firing and manual assembly, linking regional geology to mechanical properties.

The study encompasses manufacturing methods across varied geographic settings, including Southwest adobe communities, Indigenous North American earthworks, frontier brick kilns, and historical production centers such as Haverstraw, New York; St. Louis, Missouri; Tuskegee, Alabama; and Denison, Texas. Each site demonstrates specific adaptations to soil chemistry, moisture management, and thermal mass requirements.

Integration of robotics and physical workshops

The exhibition pairs traditional manual techniques with modern workflows, evaluating how historical masonry practices inform robotic fabrication and computational design newswise.comnewswise.comnewswise.comOpen source ↗. According to the curatorial team, analyzing historical knowledge of soil, water, and heat dynamics provides direct parameters for automated construction tooling.

Featured contributors include designers Nader Tehrani of NADAAA, Carie Penabad and Adib Cúre of Cure + Penabad, Rodolphe el-Khoury of RAD-Lab, Leah Wulfman, and the landscape practice Merritt Chase. Maxwell Jarosz will coordinate with university students to construct an exterior installation in the pavilion courtyard. Throughout the Biennale, the pavilion will operate an active material library alongside fabrication workshops, accompanied by a published research catalog.