The Serpentine has announced that Marina Tabassum, a Bangladeshi architect and educator, will design the 2025 Pavilion. Titled “A Capsule in Time,” the proposal draws inspiration from the ephemeral nature of architecture in the Bengal Delta. The design features a semi-transparent structure composed of four wooden capsule forms, intended to evoke a sense of community and connection.
The Pavilion, supported by Goldman Sachs, will open to the public on June 6th, 2025, marking 25 years since the Serpentine’s first commission of Zaha Hadid’s inaugural structure in Hyde Park in 2000. Marina Tabassum Architects’ work focuses on socially, environmentally, and politically engaged projects, addressing the challenges faced by marginalized communities in Bangladesh.
Their design approach emphasizes a contemporary style rooted in local climate, context, culture, and history. The 2025 Pavilion incorporates a central, movable capsule element, inspired by traditional South Asian Shamiyana tents, creating a versatile space for diverse events and public gatherings.
“When conceiving our design, we reflected on the transient nature of the commission which appears to us as a capsule of memory and time,” said Marina Tabassum, Architect, Marina Tabassum Architects. “The relationship between time and architecture is intriguing: between permanence and impermanence, of birth, age and ruin; architecture aspires to outlive time.”
The pavilion’s design will be accompanied by a catalogue published by Serpentine in June 2025, featuring essays and a conversation between Tabassum and Serpentine’s Artistic Director.
