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Expo 2010, Shanghai, on opening night, April 30, 2010.
BETTER CITY, BETTER LIFE
The theme of Shanghai’s World Expo 2010, Better City, Better Life, has inspired a plethora of urban and architectural designs by 190 countries, in what is touted as the most visited (and the most expensive) world exposition to date. At day 111 today, roughly mid-way through its 6-month stint, the number of visitors is listed as 41,764,500.
Within the context of Better City, Better Life, the various countries’ pavilions are organized in five zones over 5.28 square kilometers (roughly 1,300 acres). The main axis of the site, Expo Boulevard showcases innovative artwork from Chinese and international contemporary artists.
Studying the site from afar, we have found photos, renderings, videos and testimonies of the expo site and its various pavilions.
For more information on the participating countries’ pavilions, here are 2 sites:
Artists’ renderings and information about the Pavilions
A BRIEF TOUR OF SIX PAVILIONS
UK PAVILION
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The UK Pavilion is one of the most recognized pavilions of 2010. With the theme “Building on the Past, Shaping our future”, the 6000-square-meter UK pavilion is also known as the “Seed Cathedral” and the area around it is designed like a wrapping paper, as if the wrappers have fallen open to reveal a sparkling jewel of life. Visitors can relax around the open space or enter the “Seed Cathedral” to admire the seeds in the spines, marveling how such tiny seeds can produce wonders of nature and life. Designer Thomas Heatherwick hopes to raise awareness for the Millennium Seed Bank Project, an international conservation project launched by the Royal Botanic Gardens in 2000.
CANADIAN PAVILION
The Canadian pavilion touches upon the vitality of cities with the theme “The Living City: Inclusive, Sustainable, Creative.” The pavilion is the hub of a wide array of special events and activities. The presentation aims to give a brand-new impression of Canada to visitors, replacing stereotypes of cold and vast tracts of land. This three-story structure, located within Zone C of the Expo Site, is the product of collaboration between the Government of Canada and Cirque du Soleil, with building expertise from SNC Lavalin.
SPANISH PAVILION
With the theme “From the City of our Parents to the City of our Children” the Spain Pavilion at the 2010 expo is a remarkable blend of old world and new world architecture. The facade of the structure is made of more than 8,000 wicker panels woven by craftsman in Shandong Province. Workers stripped and treated willow stems to produce a range of panel colors and arranged the colors to form Chinese characters.
POLISH PAVILION
Located within Zone C of the Expo site, the Polish Pavilion takes on the themes of Humanity, Creativity and the City. This beautifully textured pavilion was inspired by traditional polish folk art paper cut-outs reinterpreted in a contemporary fashion. The idea was generated when the team sought to create a ‘cultural ideogram’ that would signify the country of origin in an iconic way. The project focuses on exploring the importance of the personal experience between buildings and people.
WWA Architects (Marcin Mostafa and Natalia Paszkowska), with the collaboration of Wojciech Kakowski, Maciej Siczek, Maciej Walczyna, Mikołaj Molenda strived to produce an architecture that mirrors the modernity and folk art of Poland.
DANISH PAVILION
Also located within Zone C of the Expo site, The Danish Pavilion presents “Welfairytales” – a combination of the words (and ideas) of welfare and fairy tales. The structure presents a fairy tale world with the Little Mermaid, the country’s symbol, set to make her first visit to Shanghai. It is arranged like a fairy tale in three chapters: the story of Danish cities, the story of the Danish people and the story of Danish technology and solutions for future urban living. Denmark’s contribution to EXPO 2010 has been developed by BIG (architecture), 2+1 Ideas Agency (exhibition and branding) and Arup (engineering).
DUTCH PAVILION
The Netherlands Pavilion, known as “Happy Street,” is constructed in a figure eight – a lucky number that suggests fortune in Chinese culture. It is composed of a 400-meter pedestrian street that curves in a figure of eight and 26 small houses along the street. Built completely on stilts, the street looks like a suspended roller coaster. Designer John Körmeling, created each of the 26 distinctive small houses to form a mini pavilion that celebrates Dutch innovation in the use of space, energy and water.
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“Thrice happy is the country with a glorious history.”
-Theodore Roosevelt
A bientôt,
Karin
Tags: Better City Better Life, Canada Pavilion, Canadian Pavilion, Cirque du Soleil, Danish Pavilion, Dutch Pavilion, Happy Street, Millenium Seed Bank Project, Netherlands Pavilion, Pavilion, Poland Pavilion, Polish Pavilion, Shanghai, Shanghai Expo 2010, Spain Pavilion, Spanish Pavilion, Thomas Heatherwick, UK Pavilion, World Architecture, World Expo, World Fair
