Performing Bodies, Performing Architectures

The interaction between space and the human body holds profound significance in both interior and urban design, particularly in exhibition layouts. Space, defining the interiority of architecture, possesses its own corporeality despite being intangible, qualities we could resume in the expression "body of space". Similarly, human bodies within architectural spaces form complex spatial relations, involving flows, movements, and temporal dimensions, shaping the "space of the body(s)".This paper discusses a journey started in July 2022 with the workshop The Space of the Body, the Body of Space. Dialogues between arts and architecture at Iuav University of Venice, curated by Professor Renato Bocchi in collaboration with Valentina Rizzi. Thirty MA students in Visual Arts, Fashion, and Architecture from Iuav University, along with MA Spanish students from ETSAVA-Valladolid, participated. The workshop aimed to facilitate dialogue between architecture, visual arts, installations, and digital tools, exploring contemporary Spanish and Italian cultural trends.The seminar commenced with theoretical discussions on enactivism, perception, nonhuman performativity, digital roles in installations, and architectural performance. Subsequently, six working groups, guided by Juan Carlos Quindós and Valentina Rizzi, developed projects focusing on Ca' Tron Palace, a building overlooking the Grand Canal. The resulting exhibition at Fondazione dell’Albero d’Oro showcased these projects. A second edition of workshop, named Digitalstage, also curated by Professor Renato Bocchi, took place in September 2023 at the Real Academia de España en Roma, involving PhD Architecture students from Sapienza University of Rome and Digitalstage research by Universidad de Valladolid.These experiences aim to provoke reflections on how architectural space interacts with human bodies and fosters perceptual transformations. The proposal advocates for a transdisciplinary approach, blending theory with audio-visual materials from workshop outcomes.