Shanghai‘s Rockbund Art Museum Launches 2025 Biennale Focused on Urban Intervention
Shanghai, China – The Rockbund Art Museum (RAM) today unveiled its 2025 Biennale, titled “RAM assembles 2025: Shanghai Picnic,” a uniquely localized architectural exhibition prioritizing tangible impact over sweeping theoretical statements. departing from the often-abstract nature of international biennales, this iteration focuses on small-scale urban interventions designed to enhance daily life within Shanghai neighborhoods, running until September 28th with installations like Tangent Essays’ In Search of a Loggia.
While many architectural biennales grapple with broad, frequently enough impractical themes, RAMa 2025 distinguishes itself through a pragmatic approach. Curated by Choochuey, the biennale acknowledges the limitations of large-scale change and instead aims to foster meaningful improvements within a specific urban context. The exhibition features projects that directly address the needs and experiences of Shanghai residents, offering a model for localized architectural solutions. The installations are currently on display and will remain open to the public until September 28th.
The biennale showcases a diverse range of installations and projects, all centered around the concept of a “Shanghai Picnic” – a metaphor for reclaiming public space and fostering community engagement. Featured works, such as Tangent Essays’ In Search of a Loggia, demonstrate innovative approaches to integrating architectural elements into the existing urban fabric. Photographer Tian Fangfang documented the installations.
Choochuey has expressed a purposeful intention to avoid grand, unrealistic ambitions, stating the biennale’s goal is not to revolutionize the world, but to positively impact a single neighborhood within Shanghai. This focus on achievable outcomes sets RAMa 2025 apart as a potentially influential model for future architectural exhibitions.
