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Welcoming visitors at one of the main entrances to Expo 2020 Dubai is Alif, a pavilion named after the first letter of the Arabic alphabet and dedicated to Mobility. From the outside, its curvaceous, structure is impressive enough, but it hides an even more imposing sight: three giant figures of historical explorers, rendered in photo-realistic detail by the special effects team that worked on “The Lord of the Rings” films.
It’s one of three thematic pavilions at the event, along with Opportunity and Sustainability. Together, they function as visual landmarks for the latest edition of the World Expo, an international exhibition that also hosts individual pavilions from 192 countries and will run for six months until the end of March 2022.
Designed by British architect firm Foster+Partners, Alif features a ribbed and curved shape meant to evoke movement. Inside, three main galleries are connected by a central core that hosts the world’s largest passenger elevator, with a capacity of 160 people (reduced to 38 for social distancing reasons).
Perhaps most eye-catching of all is the gallery dedicated to an interactive, cinematic tribute to the history of human mobility. It was designed and built by New Zealand’s Weta Workshop, a special effects firm that has won five Academy Awards and has worked on films such as “Blade Runner 2049,” “Avatar,” and “The Lord of the Rings” and “The Hobbit” trilogies.
02:57 - Source: CNN
A spectacle of mobility at Dubai's Expo
“We’ve tried to create an immersive narrative on a monumental scale,” says Richard Taylor, co-founder of Weta Workshop. “The story of mobility is a very unique one, because people immediately (think of) vehicles, technology, horses, et cetera. But mobility is an incredibly diverse subject matter ranging across technology, the spoken voice, the ability to communicate. And now, of course, the very stars that we navigated by are stars that we’re reaching out to. So it spans through the whole of humanity.”
Watch: Singapore’s smart green pavilion at Expo Dubai
The exhibition’s main attraction is the giant statues of three key Arab figures in the history of exploration Al Bakri, Ibn Battuta and Ibn Majid, which would be over 50 feet tall if they were to stand up (they’re sitting down so they can fit inside the building). “All three of these individuals played significant roles in advancing the technology and the knowledge of the region, and then in turn in sharing that with the people,” says Taylor.
The characters were created in the form of giants to create a sense of awe and scale, Taylor says, so that when visitors travel around them, they get an almost movie-like experience.
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Expo 2020 Dubai is now open, revealing a spectacular array of pavilions, many designed by world-famous architects. The UAE pavilion, designed by Santiago Calatrava, is a sight to behold, shaped like a falcon -- the country's national bird -- in flight. The structure is topped by falcon-wing shapes made of carbon fiber and fitted with solar panels.
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A series of blue boxes draped in fired clay balls make up the Iran pavilion. Each box showcases different elements of the country's culture, tradition and handicrafts. Streams of water accompany visitors down walkways and into the pavilion, designed by architects Shift Process Practice.
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"Innovating for a shared future" is the theme of the UK pavilion. Designed by Es Devlin Studio, it offers to take visitors on a digital journey through the UK's role in space and artificial intelligence. The theme is reflected in the facade, which features continuously changing collective message generated by AI and visitors' contributions.
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The network of vertical aluminum panels that hangs like a cloud over timber structures is a key element of the Australia pavilion, designed by bureau^proberts. The "cloud" even lights up in the evening to mimic "the ancient and rugged landscape of Australia." Inside, the pavilion explores 60,000 years of Australian innovation, culture and creativity.
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Designed by Al Jabal Engineering, the Pakistan pavilion offers multi-sensory installations encapsulated in walls of color. The colorful façade is a "reflection of the beautiful changing seasons the country experiences, one of the most diverse on Earth," according to its designer, Rashid Rana. Inside, Pakistan's "hidden treasures" are showcased, including its spiritual traditions, history and sustainability initiatives.
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The Russia pavilion, designed by Tchoban SPEECH, is a huge dome covered by strings of giant multi-colored tubes. It's meant to symbolize the question: How do we find our place in an interconnected world? Inside, it explores scientific advancements and creative innovations past and present.
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A combination of traditional Arabesque and Japanese Asanoha patterns form the façade of the Japan pavilion, meant to symbolize the crossover of culture between Japan and the Middle East. Inside the structure, designed by Yuko Nagayama and Associates, visitors can see 3D art installations.
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The Swiss Pavilion, "Reflections," represents the country's traditions and spectacular landscapes. Designed by architects OOS, its giant interactive mirror façade reflects the red carpet that leads to it, to show the national flag. Inside, a "crystal cave" showcases technology, innovation and scientific achievements through immersive displays, before visitors are led through a "sea of fog."
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Built from reusable materials -- fabric, iron and wood -- the Spain pavilion is intended to promote sustainability. The structure, designed by Amann-Canovas-Maruri, is made of cone shaped "solar chimneys" that cool the pavilion and highlight Spain's links with the Arab world.
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Designed by Italian architect Marco Pestalozza, the Kuwait pavilion is a digital showpiece, displaying images of the country's landscapes on its façade, and showcasing a vision for the country's future. Water towers stretch upwards through each level of the structure, symbolizing Kuwait's "commitment to sustainability and water security."
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The German pavilion, themed as "Campus Germany," invites visitors to explore a "curriculum" covering energy, cities of the future and biodiversity within its "labs." The Graduation Hall features swinging seats and during a "graduation ceremony," visitors are encouraged to swing in unison to reflect how great achievements come from working together. The building, a vertical ensemble of cuboids, was designed by Facts And Fiction and LAVA.
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Baden-Württemberg is a state in southwest Germany, and is the only national state to have its own pavilion in Dubai. Built by NÜSSLI Adunic, with a distinctive timber frame, visitors can activate digital flowers in the landscape using their smartphones and explore different topics through augmented reality.
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Egypt's ancient civilization meets its vision for the future in its pavilion. Designed by Egyptian Hazem Hamada, the pavilion is decorated in hieroglyphs, while inside, giant screens explore the country's legacy and progress. The Great Pyramid of Giza is represented by the triangular gate through which visitors enter. Once inside, visitors are met with archaeological artifacts and interactive displays.
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The six-story Saudi Arabia Pavilion, designed by Boris Micka, is the second-largest pavilion after that of the UAE, and has a sloping, rectangular structure. The "Heritage" escalator takes visitors up to experience the country's history and culture, while the "Future" escalator takes them down to explore modern Saudi Arabia through an LED mirror screen and an interactive water feature. The pavilion has been awarded the LEED Platinum Certificate for sustainability.
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Not a pavilion, but a remarkable design nonetheless, the Al Wasl Plaza is the heart of Expo 2020, connecting the three thematic districts, Sustainability, Mobility and Opportunity. Al Wasl is the historic name for Dubai and also means "connection." The plaza holds the world's largest 360-degree projection dome. Made of 13.6 kilometers of steel, and designed by Adrian Smith + Gordon Gill Architecture, the trellis steelwork forms the Expo logo.
Each statue’s clothing is made of almost a mile of fabric, and they had to be dressed using forklifts and cranes. About 20,000 individual holes had to be drilled into the faces to insert the beards.
Development of the Mobility pavilion was spearheaded by Marjan Faraidooni, chief experience officer at Expo 2020 Dubai. She says the pavilion combines learning elements typically found in museums with fun, immersive features more associated with theme parks.
“What’s special about the Mobility pavilion is that we focused on the role that the Arab world has played in the progress of humankind,” she says. “This is a journey through time and space where you meet giants of mobility throughout the different times … and we try to tell you their story in a very cinematic way. It’s like you’re part of a movie, but you’re an active participant in this movie. “
The statues are accompanied by a bas relief – a form of shallow sculpture with roots in antiquity – which is 170 feet long and contains over 200 human figures, 100 animals and over 100 vehicles.
“It gives you the history of mobility right from the beginning of humankind,” says Faraidooni. “The first time we discovered shoes, how we domesticated animals for purposes of movement, up until we go to the moon and Mars, and hopefully Saturn in the future.
“It’s a beautiful piece of artwork that has very deep meaning and deep resonance to all of us, because it talks about our progress over the years.”
Taylor hopes that visitors find the pavilion uplifting, and that the people of the United Arab Emirates get a sense of pride from it. As a designer, he too feels pride, from the fact that the creations seen here are experienced by the audience directly, rather than through a screen.
“They’re not put through a filter of film, they’re not seen through someone else’s artistic lens,” he says. “They are seen pure, in the way that we have built them. And there’s something really delightful about that and something very exciting for the artists and technicians that build these items in the workshop.”