austrian pavilion at expo 2010

construction nearing completion on the austrian pavilion

41 days to go before the opening of the shanghai world expo 2010, and construction is being finalized on the pavilions.

here’s an update on the austrian pavilion designed by vienna based firms SPAN and zeytinoglu architects.

the austrian pavilion called ‘austria – feel the harmony’ reflects the country’s interaction of city, landscape, nature, urban habitats and urban cultural landscapes through its design. the pavilion is constructed on a 2,314 m2 site area. within the ground floor, there is an exhibition area (more than 500 m2) with a stage positioned in the main room to be used for various events. in all of the exhibition rooms, there will be staged multimedia performances projected onto ceilings, walls and floors. the ground floor also houses the austria shop and information counter.

construction nearing completion on the austrian pavilion

the support frame going up

austrian pavilion nearing construction

back view

detail of fascade

detail of fascade

entrance to the pavilion

rendering of the pavilion restaurant

rendering of the restaurant bar

rendering of the VIP area

rooftop terrace / garden

rendering of the austrian pavilion

inside the pavilion’s entrance area, there will be a kind of ‘geographical orientation guide’ – from shanghai to austria:

on top of the highest mountains with snow and ice bereich gletscher © SPAN & zeytinoglu architects

the first stage of the exhibition space presents a mountain pass-like ascent with snow and ice covered surfaces with temperatures close to freezing point. acoustic elements such as crunching snow or breaking ice will help amplify the experience.

water in all its forms and shapesbereich gletscher © SPAN & zeytinoglu architectsvisitors can experience ‘water in all its forms and shapes’, wandering across woody hills, along a path of water acoustically and optically outlined, from the river danube to the calm and relaxed waves of the austrian lakes.

a walk through the woodsbereich gletscher © SPAN & zeytinoglu architects

‘a walk through the woods’, reflects the importance of the forest as a local recreation area and a space for leisure activities for the city dwellers. here, the clear air and the atmosphere of the woods will be experienced, through smell, sounds and virtual animals inhabiting the forest.

arriving in the citybereich gletscher © SPAN & zeytinoglu architects

‘arriving in the city’, is the area of the pavilion where visitors leave the landscape and nature of austria behind and enter centre of vienna. sounds of music from such composers as mozart will be heard, and traffic will move to the rhythm of the waltz. images for this section are completed by the thematic integration of topics contributing to a ‘better city’, environmental technologies, alternative energies and mobility in urban areas.