British architect David Chipperfield is to carry out major restoration works on the Procuratie Vecchie on Venice's Piazza San Marco, which will see the palace opened to the public for the first time in 500 years, reported The Dezeen. Due to be completed in 2020, the project will be a multi-million dollar undertaking for its owners, the Italian insurance company the Generali Group. For five centuries the building has been closed to the public, reserved for politicians and royalty. But once David Chipperfield and his studio complete the restoration work, the palace will become a venue for art exhibitions, installations and seminars. Built on top of stone arcades in the twelfth century, the Procuratie Vecchie runs along the north side of the iconic central square. At 152 meters long it is Venice's longest building. The original two-storey structure burnt down and was replaced in the 1530s by a three-storey structure in the early Renaissance classical style. Once at the heart of Venetian government, the building still has original frescos and ornate ceilings from the days it was used by the nine governors who aided the Doge administer the city-state known as the Most Serene Republic of Venice. At ground floor, the stone arcades are home to Venice's famous – and expensive – coffee shops, the oldest of which have been in situ since the 18th century. The restoration will also include opening a hidden passageway between Piazza San Marco and the Royal Gardens. The park on the bank of the Grand Canal has lain abandoned for years but now there are plans to restore a wisteria-covered pergola and plant an orangery. The unique location of Venice, a UNESCO World Heritage site, means all building materials will have to be bought in and out by boat along its canals.

The awards ceremony for the 14th International Architecture Exhibition is known and the results are in! The Golden Lion for Best National Participation went to South Korea for "Crow's Eye View: The Korean Peninsula". The jury cited Korea's "extraordinary achievement of presenting a new and rich body of knowledge of architecture and urbanism in a highly charged political situation." Chile received the Silver Lion for a National Participation for "Monolith Controversies". The jury said, "Focusing on one essential element of modern architecture - a prefabricated concrete wall- it critically highlights the role of elements of architecture in different ideological and political contexts." The three Special Mentions to National Participations went to Canada - Arctic Adaptations, France - Modernity, Russia - Fair Enough. Armenian delegation also is presented in XIV international Architecture Venice Biennale. Our pavilion is dedicated to Yerevan and called "The Capital of Desires". National Coordinator of Armenian delegation Arev Samuelyan reported that Armenia participates in exhibition for 6 years. This year Armenian side invited well-known international curators Ruben Arevshatyan and George Shellhammer. According to Ruben Arevshatyan there are presented three key Armenian modernist architecture schools of XX century. First, it is "Tamanyan School", second is "Constructivists School" and the third is "Rafael Israelyan School". XIV Venice Architectural Biennale under the slogan "Fundamentals" opened for visitors on June 7. This year it doesn't present any new architectural solutions or projects, instead, architectural experts of different countries tries to present their vision how architecture has evolved in the last century and what we can do with it now. Curator of the Biennale, which takes place every two year, became famous Dutch architect, Pritzker Price winner Rem Koolhaas. Exhibition theme "Absorbing Modernity 1914-2014" he announced early enough to invite national pavilions to discuss a single theme. In the contest Biennale attended 65 national teams.

The Palais Lumiere, a 245 meter-high skyscraper planned for the ex-industrial area of Marghera, 9.5 kilometers from the center of Venice, will not now be built. Public and government opposition has forced fashion tycoon Pierre Cardin to cancel plans for his pet skyscraper project. Pierre Cardin and architect Rodrigo Basilicati have axed plans for their 60-story Palais Lumiere, due to criticism about how the building would clash with the Venetian landscape. In March 2012, Venice government has approved a 60-storey tower designed and funded by fashion designer Pierre Cardin. But as told project architect Rodrigo Basilicati "The decision was inevitable after over two years since presenting the initiative we could not get a formal approval on a deal with all public bodies involved. Cardin's Palace of Light was to be built on Venice's mainland in the former industrial area of Porto Marghera and was to boast swimming pools, gardens and ponds on the upper decks and a helipad on the roof. Originally set for a 2015 completion, the glass palace was to include housing, hotels, cinemas, restaurants, research centers as well as educational and sports facilities. The skyscraper's three towers were to be connected by six horizontal disks. Opposition and criticism over the glass-walled skyscraper began in 2012. Locals have been concerned over the impact of the 245-meter structure would have on the Venetian landscape and the medieval city. The opposition largely consists of are "Venetians and Italians who are tired of seeing Venice abused by the vast cruise ships and mounting examples of the crudest commercialism.

Venice has approved a 60-storey tower designed and funded by fashion designer Pierre Cardin, reported British online publication BDonline. It will be the centerpiece of a vast project to build a whole new suburb on reclaimed land north of the historic city. City governor Luca Zaia described the Palais Lumiere project as Venice's Eiffel Tower and likened Cardin to Lorenzo the Magnificent, Florence's great Medici patron. Cardin, who was born near Venice 89 years ago, described the scheme as the "pinnacle" of his career. The tower will be built in the former industrial area of Porto Marghera and will be at the heart of a 1.6 million square meter project that will clean up polluted brown field areas and reclaim further land from the lagoon. Cardin's striking design involves 3 separate fins joined at a number of levels by six horizontal discs accessed by lifts. Its height and diameter will both be 244 meters. Conceived as a gateway to Venice, it will be a hub for the creative industries including a fashion and design college, exhibition space and incubators for start-up businesses. Some reports said it would also contain a hotel, restaurants, indoor and outdoor pools, a cinema, roof gardens, a heliport and even a hospital. The wider development will include 35 thousand square meter of residential, 25 thousand square meter of hotels and restaurants, 115 thousand square meter of offices, 600 thousand square meter of landscaping, 100 thousand square meter of parking, plus new infrastructure. The city authorities this week gave Cardin permission to enter a simplified planning process.

Venice is slowly sinking into the sea - but smart engineering, and a healthy dose of technology, will keep this would-be modern Atlantis above the waves. According to constructiondigital, in a joint effort by the Italian Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport, the Venice Water Authority, and local engineering firms, construction has begun on 78 large gates in temporarily drained portions of the city's three inlets. Named the MOSE project, the effort was first inspired by the city wide flooding of 1966, and gained momentum as water levels continue rising and soil erosion becomes more of a problem. MOSE is an acronym for Experimental Electromechanical Module, but some say it is also in connection with the figure of Moses, famous for his fabled parting of the Red Sea. During low tides, the gates would lay flat beneath the surface of the lagoon. The barriers will be full of water and rest on the sea bed. When flooding is forecast, compressed air will be pumped into the gates, emptying them of water and causing them to rise up and emerge, blocking the tide as it enters the lagoon. When the tide drops, the gates will be filled with water again and return to their housing. The Consorzio Venezia Nuova, leading Italian construction companies group is responsible for the project. Additional aspects of the project include reinforcing coastal areas and raising the quaysides. The project is estimated at US$ 6.7 billion, and plans to be operational by 2014. City planners hope the gates will put a stop to the onslaught of flood waters that submerge portions of the city up to five times a year. A more controversial benefit purported by the project is the preservation of coastal habitats, while some conservancy groups claim the barriers will disrupt the delicate ecosystems of the lagoon. For the human occupants, though, the MOSE project promises to keep the Adriatic where it belongs - out of the city streets.