Lina Ghotmeh, acknowledged on this yr’s Artwork Energy Index, is altering the worldwide dialog between artwork, structure and place. Primarily based in Paris and raised in Beirut, Ghotmeh has emerged as one of many defining voices of a brand new architectural sensibility rooted in sustainability, reminiscence and cultural dialogue, moderately than spectacle. Her current and forthcoming tasks span continents and histories: the British Museum’s sweeping Western Vary redesign, the AlUla Modern Arts Museum in Saudi Arabia, the Jadids’ Legacy Museum in Uzbekistan and Qatar’s Pavilion on the Venice Biennale. Every challenge, in her phrases, sits “on the crossroads of this transformation—the place native narratives meet world dialogues.”
Ghotmeh’s strategy, which she refers to as an “archaeology of the long run,” treats structure as each excavation and invention, a technique of uncovering the social, materials and emotional layers of a spot earlier than imagining what comes subsequent. This philosophy took form in her acclaimed Serpentine Pavilion in 2023, a table-like construction that beckoned guests to sit down, share and converse, turning structure into an act of gathering.
The shifting energy dynamics within the artwork world, from the rise of voices throughout the World South to the combination of know-how and A.I., are redefining cultural establishments. Ghotmeh envisions museums as “dwelling environments” that immerse audiences within the artistic course of and join them to the broader human story artwork continues to inform. For the architect, buildings are by no means impartial containers however vessels for dialogue, resilience and renewal. In reimagining how and the place artwork is skilled, Ghotmeh is rethinking tradition itself as an area for belonging, continuity and care.
What do you see as essentially the most transformative shift within the artwork world energy dynamics over the previous yr, and the way has it impacted your personal work or technique?
Over the previous yr, I’ve felt a profound shift in each voices and geography throughout the artwork world. We’re lastly witnessing the rise of influential views from the World South and different traditionally underrepresented areas. This growth of voices shouldn’t be solely reshaping who will get to talk but in addition how and the place artwork is being proven. It alerts a transfer towards a extra plural and inclusive understanding of artwork as a vital platform—one able to partaking with essentially the most urgent social, cultural and environmental questions of our time.
This shift deeply informs the kind of work I pursue and aligns with a trajectory I’ve been dedicated to for years. Initiatives similar to designing Qatar’s Nationwide Pavilion on the Venice Biennale, the Jadid Museum in Uzbekistan, and the AlUla Modern Arts Museum in Saudi Arabia all sit on the crossroads of this transformation—the place native narratives meet world dialogues.
Equally, reimagining the British Museum as a vessel for a really world artwork historical past affords a chance to rethink cultural establishments as areas of trade moderately than dominance. It’s an invite to reframe how we inform the story of humanity by way of artwork—decentering conventional hierarchies and embracing a extra interconnected, equitable cultural panorama.
Because the artwork market and business proceed to evolve, what function do you imagine know-how, globalization, and altering collector demographics will play in reshaping conventional energy buildings?
Artwork not solely displays tradition however actively shapes it, serving as each a social power and an financial driver. As collector demographics shift, we’re witnessing new modes of gathering and new methods of setting up cultural narratives—ones that transfer past Western-centric frameworks and embrace extra numerous and interconnected views.
Know-how, notably A.I., is enjoying a transformative function on this course of. It permits new sorts of creative experiences and gives instruments for reinterpreting and visualizing knowledge in ways in which have been beforehand unimaginable. In our current work with A.I. artists, for instance, we’ve been exploring methods to visualise artwork histories from the Arab world. This course of begins with the essential activity of gathering and structuring knowledge that has lengthy been neglected or rendered invisible. By means of this, information and cultural reminiscence that have been as soon as marginalized are reemerging, permitting for a extra inclusive understanding of worldwide artwork histories.
On this sense, know-how and globalization are usually not merely reshaping the market—they’re redistributing cultural energy, enabling new voices, narratives and areas to take part in defining the way forward for artwork.
Trying forward, what unrealized alternative or unmet want within the artwork ecosystem are you most excited to sort out within the coming yr, and what is going to it take to make that imaginative and prescient a actuality?
I’m deeply fascinated with rethinking how we present artwork and in reaffirming its central function inside society. I imagine museums and cultural areas ought to evolve into dwelling environments—locations that not solely exhibit artwork but in addition immerse audiences within the artistic course of itself. Areas the place individuals can expertise how artwork is made, why it issues, and the way it continues to form our collective consciousness.
Artwork has accompanied humanity since its very beginnings—it’s how we’ve got sought to know ourselves, substantiate our existence and provides which means to the world round us. But many establishments nonetheless deal with it as one thing static or distant. The chance now lies in remodeling museums into dynamic ecosystems of studying, participation and dialogue—bridging artists, communities and new applied sciences.
Realizing this imaginative and prescient requires rethinking institutional fashions, fostering collaboration throughout disciplines and embracing innovation in each curation and structure. In the end, it’s about restoring artwork’s basic function: to attach us extra deeply to 1 one other and to the shared human story we proceed to put in writing.
You grew up in Beirut, a metropolis with a fancy historical past of destruction and rebuilding. How has that background formed your strategy to sustainability, resilience and place-making?
Residing in a metropolis the place buildings are always collapsing and rising once more, you perceive that structure isn’t solely bodily—it’s social, emotional and deeply tied to survival. Sustainability, for me, comes from that consciousness: to construct with care, to make use of what is out there, to adapt moderately than erase. In Beirut, you see nature reclaiming ruins, and folks reinhabiting them with extraordinary creativity. That taught me that true resilience lies in continuity, in working with the traces and assets already current. Each challenge I design begins with that very same listening to put, in order that what emerges feels born from its floor moderately than imposed upon it.
You coined the time period “archaeology of the long run.” How do you stability uncovering historic traces and designing one thing genuinely new?
“Archaeology of the long run” is each a technique and an ethic. It signifies that earlier than drawing, we excavate—not with shovels, however with analysis and a focus. We examine a web site’s geology, its crafts, its human tales, its previous makes use of. However this act of uncovering shouldn’t be nostalgic. The objective is to let these traces encourage one thing that speaks to right now and tomorrow. In Stone Backyard, the progressive strategy of hand-plastered façade carries Beirut’s collective reminiscence, echoing pure kinds discovered within the metropolis and belonging to the bottom, but its vertical kind factors to regeneration. The constructing rises as a novel kind anchored instead. Within the Bahrain Pavilion for Expo 2025, we drew on conventional boatbuilding to create a lightweight, demountable timber construction, fully new however rooted in cultural reminiscence. The previous shouldn’t be a mannequin; it’s a fertile floor from which the brand new can develop.
How does that translate when designing areas meant to carry artwork—objects that carry their very own histories and religious weight?
Designing for artwork calls for humility. These are areas of encounter, between artworks, viewers and time itself. Structure should provide silence and presence without delay. The area ought to speak concerning the place the place we’re. Constructing in AlUla, for instance, is an invite to consider the galleries as earthly buildings warmly welcoming artwork, all whereas framing nature. On the British Museum, we’re working inside a constructing dense with historical past, but our intention is to not add one other layer of authority however to open it up—to permit mild, porosity and new readings of the gathering.
The structure turns into a mediator, a body that encourages reflection moderately than spectacle. Some new areas we’re designing restore a misplaced feeling of openness, of sky, the usage of native stone for the end reminds us concerning the place we’re in. I like to consider structure as a vessel for dialogue, the place each the artwork and the customer can breathe, all whereas permitting us to dream.
Many up to date buildings really feel imposed moderately than born of their environment. How do you resist that tendency in your personal work?
A constructing shouldn’t be an train of favor; it’s a unprecedented place that must be inhabited. With my workforce, I start every challenge with listening, to the land, the assets, the crafts, the wind, the individuals. Context is about an setting; it isn’t a constraint; it’s the fabric of the work. I attempt to design buildings that really feel as if they might not exist anyplace else if they’re meant to remain nonetheless of their place. In Normandy, the Hermès Workshops have been constructed with bricks made out of the location’s personal earth. We labored with native brick makers and revived an artisanal work current for many years within the area. These gestures root the challenge in its setting. I feel structure ought to belong to its place as naturally as a tree grows from soil—it ought to really feel inevitable, not imported.
In redesigning main cultural and humanities establishments, you might be dealing not simply with structure, however with narratives, viewers behaviors and institutional function. What are you able to inform us concerning the expertise of collaborating with curators, conservators and communities?
Structure is the artwork of collaboration. It begins with an concept—an idea rooted in a spot and knowledgeable by its historical past and context. From there, it turns into an act of orchestration: a dialogue amongst disciplines, a collaborative course of by which all voices are heard, permitting the constructing to embody and combine numerous views and abilities.
In Qatar, we’re presently engaged on a number of museum and exhibition tasks. These are developed in shut collaboration with curators, whose expertise throughout completely different establishments brings depth and richness to the work. The group can be ever-present, by way of the methods individuals will use these areas, the chances they create and the processes of creating itself.
I imagine structure is a way to information information and empower individuals by way of creation.
What do you see as essentially the most under-addressed problem or challenges in cultural structure at this second?
We nonetheless design too many cultural buildings as static monuments moderately than evolving ecosystems. This dangers alienating artwork and cultural areas from the general public, rendering them inaccessible, regardless that artwork is important to our humanity and a part of on a regular basis life.
The longer term calls for openness and adaptability: areas that may adapt to altering applications, applied sciences and communities. One other problem lies within the diplomatic function of cultural areas: in a world which will develop more and more divided, museums and cultural establishments can function bridges between individuals, reminding us of our shared humanity whereas celebrating our variations as a supply of richness. They’re platforms for vital questions and areas for significant dialogue.
As Bruno Latour reminds us, “We’ve got by no means been fashionable,” and this perception urges us to rethink the substitute separation between tradition, nature and know-how. Cultural buildings should embody this continuity: turning into dwelling, relational environments that join human, materials and ecological realities.
Furthermore, the ecological dimension of cultural areas is an ever-growing concern. Museums stay among the many most resource-intensive constructing varieties. We have to rethink how we preserve artworks, how we construct, reuse and handle vitality, all with out compromising the sensorial and human expertise of artwork.
You typically function on the intersection of structure, nationwide identification and tradition with tasks just like the Osaka Expo 2025 Bahrain Pavilion or the AlUla Modern Arts Museum in Saudi Arabia, slated to open in 2027. How do you consider the function of structure in articulating each place and world aspiration?
Structure has the ability to specific identification whereas remaining open to the world. In Bahrain, the pavilion embodies the island’s maritime heritage—its picket craftsmanship and its relationship to the ocean—but it additionally speaks of shared ecological values with Japan. In AlUla, surrounded by desert and archaeology, the Modern Artwork Museum can be a dialogue between panorama and artwork, historical past and the long run. It means that the museum develop into a collection of open pavilions, intertwined and interacting with nature. For me, world aspiration shouldn’t imply universality by way of sameness, however connection by way of specificity. The extra rooted a constructing is, the extra it resonates past its borders.
While you think about the artwork areas of the long run, what do they appear and feel like?
I think about future cultural areas like a kitchen—alive with cooks and company in fixed interplay. They thrive outdoors the field, in full of life locations the place texture, mild and life unfold intensely.
These areas will even lengthen into immaterial worlds. With the rise of digital platforms, we’re invited to expertise artwork in a brand new, hybrid dimension—one which merges the digital and the bodily. This deepens the necessity to intertwine each realms, to strengthen the sensoriality of the bodily whereas embracing the chances of the digital.
Museums and cultural areas of the long run can be lighter, extra open and deeply linked to their setting. I think about buildings that breathe—stuffed with pure mild, porous thresholds and a tactile sense of fabric. Areas that invite individuals to collect, not solely to look. They’ll reuse what exists, evolve over time and dissolve the boundaries between artwork, nature and every day life. Above all, they are going to domesticate presence: locations the place individuals really feel grounded, impressed and linked to 1 one other by way of magnificence and thought.
