Bricklab is a studio for architecture, design and experimental research based in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. The Gazzaz brothers Abdulrahman and Turki are architects who situate their practice around innovative approaches to research, space-making, and materiality. After studying at the University of the West of England in Bristol, and McGill University in Montreal, respectively, the brothers returned to Jeddah and established Bricklab with like-minded architects. For almost ten years, their practice has been associated with a revived interest in architecture, design, art, and history in Saudi Arabia. Their work has aimed to advance design as a discipline bridging multiple fields and practices. It also investigates how design shapes social and community structures. Bricklab were the designers of the Saudi Pavilion Spaces in Between at the 16th Venice Architecture Biennale in 2018, where they produced a scenography of cast resin and sand walls. In 2019 the practice won the competition to design the Hayy Cinema at Hayy Jameel in Jeddah, a landmark cultural commission. More recently, they have compiled and exhibited the first edition of a long-term body of research on modern architecture in Saudi Arabia, titled Saudi Modern (2021), which traces recent architectural histories and urbanism in Jeddah from 1939–64. Bricklab are the architects for the Diriyah Biennale Foundation venue and offices in addition to multiple projects in the JAX District. They were also participants in the inaugural Diriyah Contemporary Art Biennale in 2021–22 and the Islamic Arts Biennale in 2023. In addition to their practice’s design work and research, the Gazzaz brothers initiated Rawdah Print, a publishing house and store for printed matter and design.

For this edition of the Biennale, Bricklab has been invited to show the development and research behind various projects within the studio’s wide range of intellectual explorations. Their presentation highlights two core aspects of the studio’s work. The first, Diriyah Biennale Foundation Building, introduces their architectural practice with a focus on the development of the JAX District and the refurbishment of the industrial site where the Biennale takes place. It displays the floor plans, models, and sketches that guided their design process. The second, Saudi Modern, presents archival materials, incorporating drawings, photographs, casts, and historical artifacts that have informed their ongoing research on this topic.