Dr Charles Walker, Associate Professor at AUT University’s Faculty of Design and Creative Technologies, has been selected as the creative director of the New Zealand Exhibition at the 2016 Venice Architecture Biennale.

The New Zealand Institute of Architects (NZIA) considered 15 submissions from New Zealand and overseas, to decide New Zealand’s official entry in the world’s leading architecture event.

The creative team will be led by Dr Walker and exhibition associate director Kathy Waghorn, of the University of Auckland School of Architecture and Planning.

The team includes architects Jessica Barter, Maggie Carroll, Jonathan Rennie and Rewi Thompson, model maker Minka Ip, exhibition builder Stephen Brookbanks, and video production specialists Bruce Ferguson and Emma Wolf.

Tony van Raat, the commissioner of the New Zealand Exhibition for the NZIA, says the winning scheme is an engaging proposition that promises to stand out among the 70 national exhibitions expected to be staged at next year’s Venice Architecture Biennale.

This is the second time New Zealand will be participating at the Venice Architecture Biennale, and allows New Zealand to showcase its architecture, creative talent and technological ability.

The New Zealand exhibition will be titled Future Islands, and will investigate the topic of New Zealand’s particular condition and its difference.

Walker explains: “Islands have always provided real sites for different ways of living, and imaginary sites for possible ways of living differently. Historically, they have inspired romantic and Utopian narratives, and they have always been, literally, places of discovery.

“In this spirit, we want our exhibition to present contemporary innovative architectural practice in New Zealand. We also want to explore possible future directions for New Zealand’s architecture.”

The Venice Architecture Biennale will open mid-2016, and will continue until November that year.

Read our Q+A with Michelle Tabet and Aileen Sage, Australia’s creative team for 2016 Venice Biennale here.