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Saudi Arabia Pavillion Expo 2020 Dubai

Boris Micka Associates

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Comments
Innovation
Functionality
Creativity
Eco-Social Impact
Total
JURY VOTES
Exhibition
6.59
6.60
6.30
5.72
6.3
Filip Janssen
Filip Janssen Founder at Zware Jongens
5.5
6
5.4
4.9
5.45
Talar Bardakjian
Talar Bardakjian Creative Director at ODG
5.2
6.5
5
4.5
5.3
Claudio Pironi
Claudio Pironi CEO at Claudio Pironi & Partners
5
6
5
4
5
Arne Schultchen
Arne Schultchen Founder and Creative Director at design for human nature
5
5
5
4
4.75
Andre Flinterhoff
Andre Flinterhoff Cofounder at Archicon Architectural Intelligence
5
6
5.5
4.5
5.25
Bart Veen
Bart Veen Experience Designer at Bart.Agency
5
4.81
5
4.47
4.82
Stephanie Ledoux
Stephanie Ledoux Partner at AW²
4.3
5.95
4.18
5.15
4.9
Christina Wissing Oppermann
Christina Wissing Oppermann Commercial Director at Brandt Collective
5.79
5.69
5.88
4.26
5.41
Peter Culley
Peter Culley Founder and Creative Director at Spatial Affairs Bureau
4.74
5.17
5.24
4.24
4.85
Salone
Salone Founder at Salone del Salon
4.81
5.52
5
4.31
4.91
Tanya Khanna
Tanya Khanna Founder at Epistle
4.83
4.84
4.87
4.92
4.87
Comments
Innovation
Functionality
Creativity
Eco-Social Impact
Total
JURY VOTES
Cultural Space
5.64
6.06
5.89
5.56
5.78
Filip Janssen
Filip Janssen Founder at Zware Jongens
5.5
6
5.4
4.9
5.45
Talar Bardakjian
Talar Bardakjian Creative Director at ODG
5.2
6.5
5
4.5
5.3
Claudio Pironi
Claudio Pironi CEO at Claudio Pironi & Partners
5
6
5
4
5
Arne Schultchen
Arne Schultchen Founder and Creative Director at design for human nature
5
5
5
4
4.75
Andre Flinterhoff
Andre Flinterhoff Cofounder at Archicon Architectural Intelligence
5
6
5.5
4.5
5.25
Bart Veen
Bart Veen Experience Designer at Bart.Agency
5
4.81
5
4.47
4.82
Stephanie Ledoux
Stephanie Ledoux Partner at AW²
4.3
5.95
4.18
5.15
4.9
Christina Wissing Oppermann
Christina Wissing Oppermann Commercial Director at Brandt Collective
5.79
5.69
5.88
4.26
5.41
Peter Culley
Peter Culley Founder and Creative Director at Spatial Affairs Bureau
4.74
5.17
5.24
4.24
4.85
Salone
Salone Founder at Salone del Salon
4.81
5.52
5
4.31
4.91
Tanya Khanna
Tanya Khanna Founder at Epistle
4.83
4.84
4.87
4.92
4.87
Comments
Innovation
Functionality
Creativity
Eco-Social Impact
Total
JURY VOTES
Light
6.30
5.95
6.00
5.68
5.98
Filip Janssen
Filip Janssen Founder at Zware Jongens
5.5
6
5.4
4.9
5.45
Talar Bardakjian
Talar Bardakjian Creative Director at ODG
5.2
6.5
5
4.5
5.3
Claudio Pironi
Claudio Pironi CEO at Claudio Pironi & Partners
5
6
5
4
5
Arne Schultchen
Arne Schultchen Founder and Creative Director at design for human nature
5
5
5
4
4.75
Andre Flinterhoff
Andre Flinterhoff Cofounder at Archicon Architectural Intelligence
5
6
5.5
4.5
5.25
Bart Veen
Bart Veen Experience Designer at Bart.Agency
5
4.81
5
4.47
4.82
Stephanie Ledoux
Stephanie Ledoux Partner at AW²
4.3
5.95
4.18
5.15
4.9
Christina Wissing Oppermann
Christina Wissing Oppermann Commercial Director at Brandt Collective
5.79
5.69
5.88
4.26
5.41
Peter Culley
Peter Culley Founder and Creative Director at Spatial Affairs Bureau
4.74
5.17
5.24
4.24
4.85
Salone
Salone Founder at Salone del Salon
4.81
5.52
5
4.31
4.91
Tanya Khanna
Tanya Khanna Founder at Epistle
4.83
4.84
4.87
4.92
4.87
Client
Saudi Aramco
Floor area
13059 ㎡
Completion
2021
Art Director
Boris Micka

The Saudi Arabia Pavilion at EXPO 2020 truly fulfills all the main goals of an EXPO building: to be a unique symbol of the country it represents, recognizable and memorable by the visitors, and offer an engaging exhibition experience. 

Boris Micka Associates, designers of the building and contents, and producers of the latter have participated in the development of this project, from first sketches to its public opening.

Universal EXPOs are extraordinary events where all countries gather to share with a multi-million audience the most significant features of their culture, geography, society, etc. As a design team involved in many EXPOs before, BMA was aware that this type of exhibition generates an over-stimulating environment where every participant competes with each other trying to call for attention through a striking architecture.

In this context, the Saudi Pavilion deliberately avoids sinuous and over-complicated forms. The building stands as a minimalistic, self-contained, prismatic volume; its refined construction and simple lines represent a society that values beauty in the essence of things.

The bold cantilevered structure rises from the ground towards the sky, symbolizing a country rooted firmly in its heritage but changing rapidly towards the future. The building is a recognizable statement for passing-by visitors, a point of attraction that sparks their interest in exploring further. The inclined building's façade opens like a large window into the future, and the entrance is set back to create a shadowed open plaza. This welcoming gesture promotes visitors' encounters and collaborative interaction and opens the path that will lead visitors through the contents displayed in the various exhibition areas.

Two suspended gardens are located on both sides of the building. The one on the East includes the dining and retail facilities and an additional exhibition area developing different aspects of Saudi Arabia. These spaces are open to all visitors, regardless of whether they visit the Pavilion's principal content areas.

The Pavilion is LEED-Platinum certified for its sustainable design and operation. It will remain a "legacy building" in the post-EXPO district, a new zone of expansion mixing residential, business, and cultural areas in south Dubai.

The Exhibition Contents. A journey through Saudi Arabia. 

The contents of the Saudi Arabia pavilion incarnate a country opening to the world and a very young society, proud of their heritage but rapidly evolving towards a new exciting future. 

A continuous flow and comprehensive linear visit guarantee minimum queue time and optimal experience for visitors. The media-based contents are self-explanatory, avoiding wordy printed texts or narrations requiring translation. 

Throughout the visitor's experience, traditional exhibition techniques are intertwined with state-of-the-art audiovisual installations to portray the transformation of the Saudi land and people. A vast range of exhibition resources encompasses the rich diversity of Saudi as the largest country in the Middle East. The fully animated LED façade, inclined over an interactive open plaza, fosters visitors to engage, play and participate. Large-scale curved screens to generate immersive environments, scenographic reproductions, last-generation digital interactives, shootings in 22 natural locations covering 11.000 km, a giant walk-in kaleidoscope developed in collaboration with Saudi artists; the most innovative technology supporting creativity to generate a mesmerizing experience for visitors of all ages.