Production of the artwork for the Armenian Pavilion has begun in Los Angeles. Before a single plaster unit is cast in Venice, Zadik Zadikian is building the pavilion at full size, in foam, to test every proportion with his own body.
From sketch to full scale
The process runs from sketch, to 3D model, to full-scale foam. Squares and rectangles that look settled on paper behave differently when they stand taller than a person. So the forms are cut, stood up, walked around and cut again.
The Maquette, Los Angeles, February 2026.
Leaning Red
In the garden studio, a tall form is being built by hand: cardboard and tape at first, then a panel standing in the room. It will become one of the leaning red elements of The Studio.
Leaning Red, Los Angeles, February 2026. Music only.
Next
What is learned in Los Angeles travels to Venice. In the pavilion the forms will be made again, this time in pigmented plaster, by the artist and students of the Accademia di Belle Arti di Venezia, in public, for six months.
Films courtesy of the Armenian Pavilion.