The Czech Pavilion at the Expo is an unusual laboratory with a giant bird at the forefront

Milan - The Czech pavilion at the World Expo 2015 in Milan will introduce visitors to unconventional laboratories, which was visited today by Foreign Minister Lubomír Zaorálek, a month before the opening. The Silence Laboratory, in the form of an interactive forest exhibition, will uncover the secrets of the plant world using advanced technologies, while the Life Laboratory will present contemporary Czech patents and achievements in science through works of art. The largest interest, however, is already being generated by the giant sculpture of a bird crossed with a car, which dominates the entrance to the Czech pavilion.
    "It is a kind of metaphor for a crossroads. On one side, it represents civilization and scientific-technical development, and on the other side, it is about opening up to the natural world," said its creator Lukáš Rittstein to ČTK and Czech Radio. Besides attracting visitors to the pavilion, it will also function as a fountain, from which water will spout. "This will create a rainbow and mist, and it will include both Šumava and the rainforest," he described the unconventional sculpture with the head of a large hummingbird.
    Its concept reflects the entire idea of the Czech pavilion, where nature is combined with modern technologies. "It is an unconventional laboratory, and the laboratory has been a symbol of the Czech Republic for Expo from the beginning. It was originally a presentation of science, culture, and industry, which aims to break down the barriers between states and continents. And we have scientists of such quality that they can not only inspire the world but also amaze it,” said Jiří F. Potužník, the general commissioner of the Czech participation to ČTK.
    One of the main attractions will be a 12 m² living forest with miniature cameras, motion sensors, and projections. The interactivity of the project lies in the detection of the visitor's presence - the longer one stays in the exhibition, the closer the plant camera will capture, reaching down to the cellular level. The motto of this Silence Laboratory, as the creators named it, is also: the slower we walk through nature, the greater the secrets it reveals to us.
    The Life Laboratory, in the form of seven works of art depicting Czech inventions and patents, permeates the entire pavilion. "The first one is down in the lake area and the last one is up on the roof, and as a person walks through, they actually go from the water molecule, through plant and animal cells, to the largest cell, which is the planet," described Potužník.
    Both laboratories fulfill the main theme of the World Expo "Food for the Planet, Energy for Life." The national pavilion also presents the Czech Republic and its regions to visitors. Some notable monuments have been adjusted for the visually impaired and will be literally touchable. Visitors will also be able to touch the former president Václav Havel, whose handprint is exhibited in the pavilion. Zaorálek was the first to "high five" with the deceased head of state there today.
    "It has ingenuity, lightness, and humor, which could lead people to enjoy sitting here with beer and food, and it can be a pleasant place not just for Italians but for all visitors to Milan during the summer," believes the head of diplomacy in the success of the Czech pavilion. He also hopes that the Czech presence at the Expo will help develop Czech-Italian relations and establish new business contacts. The entire World Expo should, according to him, help raise the profile of Europe, as was achieved in Shanghai during the last Expo in 2010.
    The Milan Expo starts on May 1. However, a month before the start, the exhibition grounds resemble more of a gigantic construction site, with little completed. The same is true for the Czech pavilion. Although the modular building made of recyclable modules was constructed first among all 145 participating countries, it still has several unfinished aspects before the commencement of the month-long trial operation on Wednesday.
    The most visible is the missing water, which the Italian organizers have not yet connected to the premises. The water surface in front of the pavilion, from which the giant "bird-car" will rise, and where visitors will be able to cool their feet in the hot summer, is still empty. However, Potužník believes that by the Wednesday launch of the trial operation, the pavilion will at least have some water.
    The Italian organizers expect that by the end of October, around 20 million people will visit the World Expo in Milan. The creators of the Czech pavilion hope that at least two million visitors will pass through it.