From Environmental Bubble to Environmental Trouble

Venice Architecture Biennale (2025) 

Core Samples
PALAZZO DIEDO

May 8 - November 23    

'celebrating’ the 60th anniversary of Reyner Banham’s "Environment Bubble"

In 2025, five men decided to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the publication of Reyner Banham’s famous “Environment Bubble” that was described as “a transparent plastic bubble dome inflated by air-conditioning output.”  It housed five naked men with – Banham himself - puffing on a cigar. It was sited somewhat precariously on a rocky outcrop. At its center there was a console with radio, TV, lamps, air vents and an air-conditioning kit. The five men picked Capri because they loved the temperate climate of the Mediterranean and had read in a fashion magazine that it could provide the “Quintessential Mediterranean Experience.” The men became local celebrities. People from around the world came to photograph them. The men quickly discovered problems with Banham’s design.

 

no structural anchoring in case of wind

no entrance or exit

no kitchen

no bathroom

no source for electricity

no ventilation to clear out the cigar smoke

no privacy

(no cushions!)

 

Banham seems to have ignored quite a bit. Members of the Office of (Un)certainty Research went recently to Capri to visit the site and interview the men.

Reyner Banham, Environmental Bubble, 1965

O(U)R, Environmental Trouble, 2025

Venice Architecture Biennale (2025)