The International Architecture Biennale Rotterdam (IABR) is a cultural institution fostering dialogue on today's spatial challenges. Architecture, landscape, and urban planning play a pioneering role in interpreting and addressing the societal and spatial consequences of a changing world and climate—designers act as guides to the future. Water safety, the energy transition, housing, CO₂ reduction, and food security are ultimately spatial issues, both in the Netherlands and globally. Designers contribute by critically engaging with these challenges and finding workable paths through their complexity.
From 18 September to 29 November 2026, the IABR presents its 12th edition: SYSTEMS OF SUPPORT, focusing on the systems that sustain daily life—water, energy, materials, housing, and infrastructure—many of which are under pressure. How can we transform them to be more efficient, fairer, more resilient, and future-fit? And what role can architecture, urban design, and landscape architecture play?
The biennale takes place at the Piekfabriek, on the former Hunter Douglas site in Rotterdam, combining an exhibition, public program, and partner collaborations. Once a hub of industry, the site is now being transformed into a place to live and work—making it a fitting home for SYSTEMS OF SUPPORT. Its ongoing transformation raises questions about housing, energy, materials, and what we carry forward from the past, making the biennale's themes visible in the location itself.
As part of this years IABR public program, PortCityFutures' very own Carola Hein acts as one of the events curators (alongside Wouter Veldhuis & Martina Muzi) with curated tours on the 10th & 17th October.
click here for the Entire Public Program Schedule
Start Symposium: September 18, 2026, 13:00 - 18:00
De Kantine, The Piekfabriek at the Hunter Douglas terrain, Piekstraat 2, Rotterdam
Program:
- 13:00 | Walk-in
- 13:30 | Shared Values | Curated by Wouter Veldhuis
On value extraction, collective action and alternative ways of organising society. - 15:15 | Flows and Architecture | Curated by Carola Hein
On the role of water, energy and material flows in shaping the built environment across time. - 16:25 | Pedagogies Intercepting Infrastructures | Curated by Martina Muzi
On learning, repair, knowledge production and new forms of engagement with social and ecological infrastructures. - The symposium concludes with a collective reflection on the role of design in shaping future systems of support.
- 17:30 | Drinks
Curator Tour with Carola Hein: October 10, 2026, 14:00 - 15:00
The Piekfabriek at the Hunter Douglas terrain, Piekstraat 2, Rotterdam
Reserve Your Space on the 10th OCT!
Curator Tour with Carola Hein: October 17, 2026, 14:00 - 15:00
The Piekfabriek at the Hunter Douglas terrain, Piekstraat 2, Rotterdam
Reserve Your Space ON THE 17TH OCT!
Closing Symposium: November 27, 2026, 13:00
De Kantine, The Piekfabriek at the Hunter Douglas terrain, Piekstraat 2, Rotterdam
Program:
- 13:00 | Walk-in
- 13:30 | Symposium