VENICE.- The Board of La Biennale di Venezia met on Tuesday, December 18 and, upon the recommendation of President Paolo Baratta, appointed Hashim Sarkis as Director of the Architecture Sector, with the specific task of curating the 17th International Architecture Exhibition to be held in 2020.

Sarkis is the principal architect of Hashim Sarkis Studios (HSS), established in 1998 with offices in Boston and Beirut, and Dean of the School of Architecture and Planning at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) since 2015. He was member of the international jury of Biennale Architettura 2016, and participated with his firm in the Pavilion of the United States (Biennale Architettura 2014) and Albania (Biennale Architettura 2010). Sarkis earned a Bachelor of Architecture and a Bachelor of Fine Arts from the Rhode Island School of Design, and a Master of Architecture and a PhD in Architecture from Harvard University. He is the author and editor of several books and articles on modern architecture history and theory, including Josep Lluis Sert, The Architect of Urban Design (New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 2008); Circa 1958, Lebanon in the Projects and Plans of Constantinos Doxiadis (Beirut: Dar Annahar, 2003); and Le Corbusier's Venice Hospital (Munich: Prestel, 2001).

President Baratta stated: “We have appointed the Curator of the next Biennale Architettura 2020, within the timeframe needed for organizing the Exhibition and in respect of the norms which govern La Biennale. With Hashim Sarkis, La Biennale has provided itself with a Curator who is particularly aware of the topics and criticalities which the various contrasting realities of today's society pose for our living space.”

“The world is putting new challenges in front of architecture," stated Sarkis. "I look forward to working with participating architects from around the world to imagine together how we are going to rise to these challenges. Thank you President Baratta and La Biennale di Venezia team for providing architecture this important platform. I am both honored and humbled.”

The Board also approved the dates of the 17th International Architecture Exhibition to be held from May 23 to November 29, 2020; pre-opening May 21 and 22; opening to the public on Saturday, May 23.

Hashim Sarkis is an architect, educator, and scholar. He is principal of Hashim Sarkis Studios (HSS), established in 1998 with offices in Boston and Beirut. He is also the Dean of the School of Architecture and Planning at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) since 2015.