Polish Pavilion at the Shanghai Expo 2010

  • Polish Pavilion exterior at night
  • Polish Pavilion exterior daytime
  • Polish Pavilion glowing internal

1 / Introduction

Inspired by folklore, the Polish Pavilion has a striking façade that features a number of inclined surfaces designed to resemble folded paper, cut out in a folk art design. Reflecting the main theme of the Expo – ‘Better City, Better Life’ – it is made up of three concepts; Human, Creativity and the City. The structure contains an entrance hall consisting of an information centre, a restaurant and a shop, as well as a main exhibition hall, concert hall and open-air restaurant created within the fold of the building under a partial roof.

Key facts

  • Façade design to resemble Polish folk art
  • Pavilion reflects the theme ‘Better City, Better life’
  • Covers approximately 3,000 m²
  • Structure made of steel and wood

Related Disciplines

The Project Details

  • Client:
    PAIiIZ - Polish Agency for the Foreign Investment
  • Architect:
    WWAA - Wojciech Kakowski, Marcin Mostafa and Natalia Paszkowska
  • Buro Happold services:
    Building services engineering, structural engineering, facades, lighting design

2 / Challenge

A significant challenge for our team was the precise form of the Pavilion, which does not have a single perpendicular wall. The lighting design for the façade also needed to be as innovative as the building itself to create the stunning visual display that had been envisioned.

With Shanghai’s high temperatures and levels of humidity, an additional challenge was the need to maintain a comfortable internal environment for the high volumes of visitors. It was also important for the exhibition spaces to be fully flexible to allow for the spaces to be reconfigured during the EXPO.

3 / Solution

Designed using specialist CAD software working in a 3D environment, the complex form was constructed in steel. The elevation was finished in wood, with its outer layer made of impregnated laser-cut plywood mounted on glued wood construction modules with flitch plates. The panel wall elements are made of glass, polycarbonate, hydro or UV resistant materials mounted on the outside of the modules.

Innovative lighting design provides an impressive visual effect for visitors to the Pavilion - during the day the space will be filled with light filtering through the patterns in the façade, while at night it will be lit with different colours that will also be visible externally. To ensure occupant comfort, the structure is air conditioned to cool and dry the air.

4 / Value

As well as achieving the architect’s vision for the structure, all of the materials used have been chosen so that they could be recycled after the EXPO and reconstructed in Poland. The Pavilion’s exhibition area is designed to be open and accessible for members of the public, with flexible spaces small enough to be divided into sections for smaller exhibitions, concerts and shops.