SAE pavilion for the Shanghai Expo 2010 by Foster + Partners

There are still 160 days until the opening of Expo 2010, but the countries that will be showcased at the largest world exhibition in history are taking preparations well in advance. The construction of the United Arab Emirates pavilion began on April 2, 2009. The design by British architect Norman Foster is meant to symbolize the desert landscape of the federation of seven emirates. The building, which shines in gold, is intended to mimic the shape of two merging sand dunes. Like a sand dune, the pavilion has one wrinkled side and one smooth side. The stainless steel facade reflects sunlight during the day and allows the building to shine gold. The pavilion will offer a total of 3,000 square meters of exhibition space with a capacity for 450 visitors, who will enter the 20-meter-tall building through a side entrance. The structure of the building consists of a grid structure of flat triangular panels made of stainless steel. This allows the entire construction to be assembled very quickly and cheaply on site, and then disassembled again. After the conclusion of the Expo world exhibition in Shanghai, the pavilion will be rebuilt at the end of October 2010 in the United Arab Emirates. Info>