Herzog & de Meuron and Ai Weiwei commissioned to build the 2012 Serpentine pavilion

Fours years after collaborating on the 'Bird's Nest' Olympic stadium in Beijing, the Swiss architects Herzog & de Meuron and Ai Weiwei will reunite to design the next Serpentine pavilion. They plan to create a floating platform barely five feet off the ground, supported by 11 columns representing previous pavilions. The platform will collect rainwater on the surface, reflecting the moody London sky. The trio also plans to dig a few feet into the soil so visitors can walk beneath the roof.

The Herzog & de Meuron/Ai Weiwei pavilion will be the 12th in the series which began with Zaha Hadid in 2000 and has included giants such as Oscar Niemeyer, Alvaro Siza, Rem Koolhaas and Frank Gehry.
Image: Peter Zumthor's 2011 Serpentine Gallery pavilion