Expo 2010: Pavilions – France, Germany, Italy (Zone C)

France pavilion

The final design “the Sensual City,” selected from 49 candidates, presented a simple building with a big French-style garden inside. Surrounded by water, it appears to be floating.

The French government has allocated a record 50 million euros (552 million yuan) budget for the national pavilion.  At least 80% of the total budget will be used in constructing the 6,000-square-meter pavilion.

The France Pavilion, designed by Jacques Ferrier and his team, provides a unique opportunity to reinforce France’s image in China. All the talents and financial forces will be gathered to make it real.

The France Pavilion is unique in terms of both form and technologies. It will present France’s contribution in the sustainable urban development for one of the biggest economic metropolises in the planet. The pavilion would use the most advanced building materials and environmental protection technology. It will be a shining example of energy efficiency and recycling techniques.

• Dining

A trip around French products and a gastronomic cooking signed Pourcel.

6sens, the restaurant of the France Pavilion will present a French and gastronomical table with a large Mediterranean tendency.

From gastronomy to the snacking while passing by the French traditional brewery, 6sens also offers you the possibility to privatize the restaurant for businesses lunch or organization of cocktails.

6sens makes you travel through the gastronomical and tasty universe of Jacques & Laurent Pourcel (photos above of twin brothers).

• Romantic Weddings

Come and be joined forever in the most beautiful and fairylike scene of the French Pavilion．

Every couple who will come to the French Pavilion wearing wedding clothes will be offered a wedding passport and a present.

• Godfather

Alain DELON, famous actor, Godfather of the pavilion

• Mascot

Léon

The French Pavilion chose a mascot as high as the event. It is LEON, the kitten, the kitten is a character who is approximately 7 years old, joyful and mischievous that will interact with the visitors of the French Pavilion.

Germany pavilion

The 6,000-square-meter Germany Pavilion, named “Balancity,” will showcase typical urban life in Germany and introduce how the country’s products help solve urbanization problems.

The German government invested 30 million euros (US$47.34 million) in the pavilion, some German companies will also contribute. It’s the Germany’s largest ever Expo structure．

In relation to Shanghai Expo’s theme, the German pavilion will be named “Balancity.” The name is a play between the two words “balance” and “city.” The organizer is defining the venue as: a city in balance between renewal and preservation, innovation and tradition, urbanity and nature, society and its individuals, work and recreation, and finally, between globalization and national identity.

The pavilion is composed of three floating spaces and one cone-shaped structure, said Lennart Wiechell, the architect of the pavilion. It will provide a “light and elegant” feeling.

The German pavilion will not be a building in the strict sense of interior and exterior. Rather, the building will be a three-dimensional walk through sculpture. The Expo Plaza (the square in front of the German Pavilion) and the surrounding landscape will simply flow into the pavilion. The space will be comprised of four exhibition structures, each of which will showcase German urban life and how the country’s design and products can help solve urbanization problems. The structures form a large roof above the landscape that will offer visitors shade and protection from the rain.

The highlight of the pavilion will be a cone-shaped structure housing a revolving metal sphere, 3 meters in diameter and covered with 30,000 LEDs, which will be activated by the noise and movement of spectators.

They are expecting about 50,000 visitors daily during Expo 2010, which means more than 9 million people may visit Germany Pavilion.

Italy pavilion

Italy reserved a 6,000-square-meter plot of land for its pavilion, which will be made with cutting edge “transparent concrete,” The pavilion, called The “City of Man”, is composed of 20 functional modules that can be assembled freely, Giampaolo Imbrighi, its designer.

The design was inspired by a traditional Shanghai game, Imbrighi said. In the game, children drop a batch of 20 to 30 sticks on a table and try to move one stick at a time without moving the others until all the sticks are cleared. Imbrighi said the shape of the pavilion is as changeable as the game, which is called “Shanghai” in Italy.

The design was selected out of 65 candidates from a competition among European Union countries; The 20 modules represent the 20 regions of Italy, making the whole pavilion embody a mini Italian city.

The design also represents the harmony of different cultures and regions. When people walk in the pavilion, they will feel like walking in a city that combines Shanghai’s Shikumen-style lanes and an Italian square.

The pavilion covers an area of 3.600 square metres and is 18 metres high. Inside it is divided into irregular sections of different dimensions, connected by a steel bridge structure where the connecting galleries are visible. If needed, the structure can be dismantled and reconstructed, on a smaller scale, in another part of the city.

The different sections of the building make up a geometrical variety symbolizing the tradition and regional customs which define the Italian identity: a type of mosaic of which each of the parts show a single picture. The form also highlights the topographic complexity of Italian cities, with its numerous short narrow roads and alleys which suddenly open onto a large square, a characteristic which can also be found in the traditional Chinese urban centres. A psychophysical effect of comfort is given by an internal garden, the presence of water and natural light which spreads throughout the area across the patios and by the walls.

Since Milan won the bid to host World Expo 2015, the country is more than just a participant at Shanghai Expo. He said the two countries are the hosts of “sister Expos” and will have many chances to share valuable experience.

Also, three Italian cities — Venice, Bologna, and Milan — will have the chance to exhibit in the Urban Best Practices Area at Expo 2010.

Vocabulary

法国         fǎ guó                                France

德国         dé guó                              Germany

意大利     yì dà lì                               Italy

米兰          mǐ lán                                Milan

美食的      měi shí de                      Gastronomical

具体化       jù tǐ huà                          Embody

地形          dì xíng                              Topography

露台          lù tái                                  Patio

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