Lanza Atelier draws on historic "crinkle-crankle" walls for Serpentine Pavilion 2026

Exterior render of Lanza Atelier's Serpentine Pavilion 2026 in Kensington Gardens with undulating brick walls

Architecture studio Lanza Atelier explains how the history of the Serpentine Pavilion informed the design for this year's Serpentine Pavilion in this exclusive video interview produced by Dezeen.

The studio is known for its experimental approach to pavilions, furniture and residential design.

"Architecture, I think, exists in every scale for us – it has the same importance," said Lanza Atelier co-founder Alessandro Arienzo.

Aerial render of the Serpentine Pavilion 2026 showing its winding brick form — The pavilion references serpentine walls, also known as crinkle-crankle walls

The studio's design for the 25th anniversary of the annual Serpentine Pavilion commission, titled A Serpentine draws on serpentine walls, also known as crinkle-crankle walls – a type of English brick garden wall.

As its name suggests, the serpentine wall references the shape of a snake and features a one-brick-thick wall arranged in a winding formation.

"In the UK, between the 18th and 19th centuries, there was a strong tax on bricks, so people were looking for ways to use fewer bricks," explained Lanza Atelier co-founder Isabel Abascal.

"When you have a straight brick wall, you need to have at least two lines of bricks to prevent the straight wall from toppling down."

"If you have an undulating or wavy wall, the waves make that wall very stable, so you can have only one line of bricks," she continued.

The pavilion is constructed using Sienna bricks, which are one of the most common bricks used for construction in the United Kingdom. This use of a local, long-loved brick was important to the designers.

"The pavilion is built half with architectural history, and the other half is contemporary," Arienzo said. "That dialogue, I think, is very important for us."

The studio also noted that it studied previous Serpentine Pavilions and found that none had been constructed using brick.

Interior render of the Serpentine Pavilion showing curved brick walls, brick columns and a translucent roof structure — The layout was informed by the structure of serpentine walls

The architects discussed how Mexico City has influenced the practice and its ethos.

"[Mexico City], as everybody knows, is huge. Almost half of the city is self-built," Arienzo said. "You can learn a lot of things from the built environment."

Portrait of Isabel Abascal and Alessandro Arienzo — Lanza Atelier was founded by architects Isabel Abascal and Alessandro Arienzo

Experimentation plays an important role in the studio's work and often involves a close engagement with local materials and lived experience.

"It's more about playing and getting to know the purpose of the project," Arienzo explained.

"At some point,...you realise the project is leading you somewhere, and you just have to follow."

Previous pavilions by Lanza Atelier include a circular platform draped by water-dripping chains in the plaza of a Mexico City shopping centre and a temporary wood-and-steel structure designed as a gathering space in the city.

The Serpentine Pavilion will open to the public from 6 June to 25 October 2026 at the Serpentine Galleries in London. See Dezeen Events Guide for an up-to-date list of architecture and design events taking place around the world.

Partnership content

This video was produced by Dezeen for Serpentine Galleries as part of a partnership. Find out more about Dezeen partnership content here.

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