MPavilion 2018

Overview

MPavilion, Queen Victoria Gardens' pop-up building designed by Barcelona architect Carme Pinós, is hosting one of the year's largest collections of free events — 400 of 'em, to be exact. This year's bioluminescent-themed program is inspired by Pinós and will take over the gardens from October 9 to February 3, 2019.

Focusing on inclusion, women in leadership and the architecture of education, the four-month program spans live music, dance performances, talks, workshops and installations — all located inside Pinós' floating geometric structure.

Many of these events aren't what you'd expect, either. Think dog walking adventures, fashion shows, regular morning yoga sessions, guided meditations and contemporary dance classes. Hands-on workshops include one with designer Vicky Featherston Tu, in which participants build a pedestrian-only city using origami techniques. A discussion on beekeeping and baking and a talk on building video game worlds and virtual reality experiences are on offer, too.

Two massive parties will take over the space as well — first a Halloween ball on October 27, and then a marriage equality celebration on November 17 (featuring JOY 94.9 radio and the city's best queer DJs). There'll be plenty of local and international musicians on throughout the four months, including weekly gigs at Friday Night Fiestas.

Other highlights include Hope St Radio's live broadcast on October 27, a performance by emerging Indigenous singer-songwriter Alice Skye on November 18, and a series of Bakehouse Studios' secret rehearsal sessions, with the artists announced the day before. Plus, Cuba's La Buena Vida Social Club will play three Sunday arvo sessions on October 14, November 11 and December 9, with special sangria served at the kiosk during these shows.

If you're interested in the strictly architecture and design side of things, discussion topics include: 'the future is gender neutral design', 'how to start and sustain your creative project', 'perfectionism: pressure to be perfect' and the 'living closer together: symposium'. There'll also be five panel talks on Indigenous built environments with architecture forum BLAKitecture, including 'women's business' and 'Indigenising procurement'.

To meet this year's MPavilion designer, you can catch a talk with Pinós on October 9, titled 'the land on which we stand'. For 2018, they've also signed on writer-in-residence Maddee Clark and artist-in-residence Esther Stewart, who will explore the intersection between architecture, writing and art. Stewart will also create a large-scale interactive installation that'll fit alongside Pinós pavilion, open from December 24–January 6.