Polish Expo Pavilion 2005, Aichi
-
Ingarden & Ewy Architekci, Poland
The Polish pavilion at the EXPO 2005 Aichi, Japan
The motto of the 2005 EXPO exhibition in Nagoya, Japan, was “Nature’s
Wisdom”. This term is close to the concept of sustainable development
understood as the balanced development of human civilization and its environment
– both natural and cultural. The main theme of the Polish pavilion
was interpreted in connection with the supplementary motto – “Notice
the Beauty”. The Polish Chamber of Commerce, the main organizer of
the Polish Pavilion, defined the scope of presentation in Japan relying
on symbols which are both resonant and easily associated with Poland.
They are: the music of Chopin and the unique tourist attraction of the
salt mine in Wieliczka. The architectural concept of the pavilion was
to illustrate these two themes.
A direct and literal architectural solution of such an express goal was
doomed to fail (for instance attempts at designing a pavilion in the shape
of a grand piano or in the shape of a crystal of salt…) The designers
chose therefore to search for an unconventional architectural vocabulary
which would facilitate the construction of metaphors. Such metaphors should
be indirectly but suitably linked to the immaterial nature of music and
to the physicality of the underground chambers of the unique salt mine.
At the same time they should play on the image of Poland in a way that
would be understood both in Japan and in the world at large. Finally,
all these should be related to the idea of sustainable development.
Such a concept was complicated and utterly difficult in realization. The
first step towards gaining control over the exhibition space and its thematic
contents was the decision to divide that space into two parts: “underground”
and “above the ground”. The first part was to express the theme
of the salt mine along with its dramatic, dynamic, sculptural beauty and
its sensual physicality. The other part was intended to express the musical
theme with its ethereal element. The idea of putting an inclined plane
into the pavilion was developed. That plane was to symbolize the geological
composition of Poland – from the sea to the Tatra mountains. Above
the section the space of the sky arose, filled with the resounding music
of Chopin and encapsulating a multimedia presentation of his oeuvre. Accordingly,
below the plane of the section there was the space of the salt mine. It
was accessible through a lift that was placed near the point representing
Krakow, at the end of a path traversing the plane rising towards the Tatra
mountains.
The second important design decision pertained to the problem of defining
the form and matter of the elevation. The elevation itself sends the first
signal of the pavilion as it is seen from afar from a funicular that transports
the visitors towards the region of the “Common 4” – group
of pavilions of the Northern European countries. This reception of that
short signal quite often decides in a split second whether a visitor shall
enter the pavilion or whether he or she might be disappointed by its unintelligible
or banal message, hence choosing not to look inside. The designers intended
to give the elevation the form of a cloud hovering above the aforementioned
symbolical section of Poland. It was also to be related to the Polish
landscape and the music of Chopin. The architects could not find a traditional
material that could transport a message defined in that way. On the other
hand artificial materials like plastic, glass and steel seemed to be over-exploited
and were rejected. The key to the solution was found in the monument to
Chopin, standing in the Wazienki Park in Warsaw. A pensive Chopin is portrayed
there sitting under a willow tree. That image, as well as an association
of the composer’s music with the Mazovian landscape lined with willow
trees, an association generally known in Poland, created an impulse to
search for a method of application of willow branches in the construction
of an elevation. Wicker (Salix Sp.), a variety of willow, proved to be
ideal in this respect. It is an utterly spatially flexible material, and
one that is light and cheap. Moreover there is a long-established tradition
of wickerwork handcraft in Poland. Wickerwork as such delivers a message
that other construction materials are simply incapable of doing. Its reference
to Chopin’s music, Polish landscape and culture is widely understood,
as is the reference to the main message of the EXPO – ecological
solutions and sustained development.
The Polish pavilion was the first building where the prototypal technology
of the construction of an elevation was used - of manually made wickerwork
on steel frames that were spatially formed using the most recent 3D computer
modelling. It is a specific combination of “high-tech” design
methods with “low-tech” material and modes of production. Adequately
prefabricated modules of steel frames were delivered into the region of
Rudnik on the River San, where traditional wickerwork handcraft has been
cultivated for more than 100 years. During 3 months, the best craftsmen
from more than a dozen villages of that region completed about 700 modules
according to the design of a uniform pattern of white wickerwork. This
manufacturing process inspired a huge interest in the entire project.
Both the firms and the local community felt that they were a part of a
greater action, that they were contributing in their fragments to a greater
whole, thus building an image of Poland in Japan. As a result, the wickerwork
elevation plays an unusual, multilayered symbolic role: firstly, through
the precise reference of the manufacturing process to the idea of sustainable
design, the elevation fulfills the programme of the EXPO; secondly, it
aims at the reconstruction of the long-deformed relations between man,
nature and architecture; and last but not least, regarding its function
– the elevation is a metaphor of contemporary Poland as a country
which skillfully and harmoniously combines tradition with contemporary,
dynamic technological development.
Japanese Architecture
- key projects
Polish Pavilion, Expo 2005 Aichi, Japan
Client: Polish Chamber of Commerce
Credits of Architects : Ingarden & Ewy, Architects, Krakow, Poland
Krzysztof Ingarden, architect
Aleksander Janicki, artist
collaboration: Jacek Ewy, architect
project manager: Piotr Urbanowicz, architect
Team: Piotr Hojda, Bartosz Haduch, Sebastian Machaj, Dominik Starzycki,
Grzegorz Smogulecki, Piotr Chuchacz (K3), Benedykt Bury, Rafa? Chowaniec
glass piano sculpture : Tomasz Urbanowicz, artist
Design Architect and supervision in Japan :
ADH Architects, Tokyo –
Makoto S. Watanabe, Yoko Kinoshita, Nao Kameyama
Structural engineer
Concept design & elevation:
Ove Arup & Partners Poland,
Andrzej Sitko, Sebastian Szafarczyk;
Structural engineer
Design development & supervision:
Umezawa Structural Engineers, Tokyo,
Ryozo Umezawa, Shin-itsu Hiraoka
Equipment engineer (M&E):
Kankyo Engineering, Tokyo:
Hiroshi Takayama (mechanical)
Michinori Matsuishi (electrical)
Lighting: Lighting Planners Associates, Tokyo
Yutaka Inaba
Acoustics: Nagata Acoustics, Tokyo
Chiaki Ishiwata
Wieliczka decoration: Marek Grabowski, artist, Krakow, Poland
Multimedia: TRIAS, Torun, Poland
Contractor: Holtmann Messe + Event, Gmbh., Germany
ZBiD, Wroclaw, Poland
Shinto Tsushin, Nagoya
Area:
SIte Area: 758 m2
Building Area: 650 m2
Gross building area: 998 m2
Main structure : Steel frame modular building
Facade: wicker mesh on steel frames
Interior materials:
Ceiling: acoustic mineral ceilings
Wall: GB
Floor: timber
Construction schedule:
competition design: 02/2004
design: 04-09/2004
construction: 12/2004 – 03/2005
Polish Expo Pavilion Aichi from Ingarden & Ewy Architekci in 2008
Japanese architect
: Tadao Ando
World Architecture : e-architect
- a guide to key buildings across the globe
Polish
Expo Pavilion 2005 : Ingarden & Ewy Architekci
Tokyo Architecture
Japanese architect
: Toyo Ito
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Expo Pavilion Japan Building
: page - adrian welch / isabelle lomholt