The MIT Future Heritage Lab is proud to present Urban Heat Chronicles at La Biennale di Venezia, addressing one of our time's most urgent climate challenges through the power of collaborative design.
Our static installation transforms Venice's narrow alleyways with suspended textile canopies inspired by the city's traditional laundry lines. These upcycled textiles were indigo-dyed and screen-printed with intricate patterns depicting plant species' heat adaptation strategies. As they create much-needed shade, these botanical textiles tell stories of resilience and survival, turning Venice's dense urban fabric into a living lesson on passive cooling.
This installation is part of a larger collaboration with our amazing Italian partners: T12 Lab's mobile pavilion that follows the sun's path, and participatory workshops led by QuasiQuasi and Project for People that engage visitors in textile pattern design and printing.
As temperatures continue to rise globally, Urban Heat Chronicles demonstrates how traditional knowledge, community collaboration, and simple technologies can help us navigate an increasingly hot world.
The project is on display at the Arsenale from May 10–November 23, 2025. Learn more: https://urbanheatchronicles.com
Credits:
Static installation by:
MIT Future Heritage Lab (FHL) / Azra Aksamija. FHL Team: Merve Akdoğan, Christopher Hassan Allen, Ganit Goldstein, Kailin Jones, Lillian P. H. Kology, Penelope Phylactopoulos. Supported by the MIT Artfinity Festival.
Mobile Pavilion by: T12 Lab / Elisabetta Bianchessi
Participatory Workshops by: QuasiQuasi / Alberto Wolfango Amedeo D’Asaro. Project for People / Anna Doneda
Coordinated by: Emma Greer