VENICE.- The Bulgarian Pavilion at the Biennale Architettura 2025 presents Pseudonature, an experimental installation at the intersection of nature and technology, reality and simulation. Conceived by architect Iassen Markov, the project challenges the future of sustainability in a world where natural processes are increasingly mediated by artificial intelligence and human intervention.
A Climate Paradox: When the Sun Creates Snow
At the core of Pseudonature lies a striking contradiction: a snow-covered courtyard in the height of summer in Venice. A solar-powered snow-making machine produces artificial snowfall—only to bury the very panels that sustain it. The sun becomes both creator and destroyer, driving the system while simultaneously erasing its own work. This self-regulating cycle reveals the fragile equilibrium of sustainable technology: the stronger the sun, the more efficiently the system operates, yet as snow accumulates, energy production slows, requiring constant adaptation to shifting conditions. The project raises fundamental questions: Do we control nature, or are we merely balancing on the edge of its ever-changing forces?
Interior: A Reimagined Traditional Space
Inside the pavilion, an abstract interpretation of the traditional Bulgarian odaya (living room) invites visitors into a space of reflection, discussion, and collective thought. Once the heart of the Bulgarian home, the odaya has always been a place for conversation, interaction, and the exchange of ideas—now reimagined as a meeting point where natural, artificial, and collective intelligence come together to shape new possibilities for the future.
At its center, a virtual fireplace flickers, generated by AI yet devoid of warmth, underscoring the artificiality of this reconstructed environment. A handcrafted carpet by artist Rosie Eisor weaves together tradition and digital aesthetics, reinforcing the dialogue between the organic and the synthetic. Just as the fragile balance outside is constantly shifting between sun, snow, and energy, the odaya reflects the equally complex struggle to find harmony between different forms of intelligence. Eisor’s carpet illustrates this tension through three mythological monsters, locked in a battle and bound together by a serpent—an allegory for the intricate and sometimes conflicting relationship between human, artificial, and environmental intelligence.
Catalog: Radical Recipes for a Better Climate
Beyond the physical installation, Pseudonature presents Radical Recipes for a Better Climate - an intellectual cornerstone of the Bulgarian Pavilion. This catalog diverse "recipes" from architects, designers, and scientists—individual strategies sustainable adaptation. These contributions are then fused into a collective recipe, generated artificial intelligence, revealing how AI can synthesize human insight into a vision for resilience. The result is a dynamic interplay between personal expertise and driven synthesis, exploring new ways to navigate an uncertain climate future. A series curated image sequences further amplifies theproject's atmosphere. They speculative visuals with documentary fragments to evoke the fragility and potential of evolving relationship with nature and technology.
Beyond Installation: A Platform for Reflection
The installation’s aesthetic deliberately evokes a construction site - bricks, aluminum profiles, and polycarbonate elements emphasize the human-made nature of the climate paradox. This raw, DIY aesthetic exposes the provisional, sometimes haphazard way we intervene in natural systems, highlighting the tension between control and uncertainty. Outside, physical interventions disrupt natural balances, revealing the fragile interplay between technology and the environment. Inside, the space shifts to a realm of contemplation, where the challenge of restoring equilibrium becomes a mental and collective endeavor. Pseudonature makes clear: Just as we shape the world outside, our ability to navigate and reconcile the contradictions we create begins within.
Pseudonature: A Call to Rethink Our Role
Pseudonature is more than an architectural experiment - it is a call to rethink our agency in shaping the world. As the boundaries between nature and technology dissolve, the project lays bare the paradoxes we create and the fragile balances we navigate. Sustainability is no longer just about preservation, but about adaptation, reinvention, and the dynamic interplay between human ingenuity, artificial intelligence, and the forces of the natural world.
Iassen Markov (b. 1980, Sofia) is an architect and designer based in Munich, Stuttgart, and Sofia. A graduate of the University of Stuttgart, his work spans academia, corporate architecture, and experimental design. He has taught at leading institutions, including the Technical University of Munich, the University of the Arts Zurich, and the Architectural Association in London.
With extensive experience in brand and corporate architecture, he has contributed to large-scale projects for global industries. However, instead of following the well-worn path of commercial design, he shifted his focus to deeper, more critical explorations of space, technology, and ecology. As co-founder of IMPERIA Holding Group and CEO of Technobeton, he now develops experimental architectural and artistic projects exhibited across Europe. His work challenges conventional narratives, engaging with cultural transformations and the evolving relationship between nature and artificial intelligence—an approach that continues to unfold in Pseudonature and beyond.
