Czech Paivlion Expo 2020 Dubai by Formosa AA

The concept refers to the substance of the S.A.W.E.R. system as the heart and technological core of the pavilion. It turns air in water, arid desert in a flowering garden and it also changes the way people perceive the Czech Republic. An inevitable condition of such transformation potential is a considerable complexity of the system that grows through the whole object.

Architect: Formosa AA
Location: Dubai, UAE
Year: 2018
Author: Jan Tůma, Jindřich Ráftl
Contractor: MCI group
Builder: Nüssli group
Visualization: Jan Hostinský

From the architect: The technology is naturally integrated to the pavilion organism and, together with it, is strongly manifests a hybrid ecosystem in the framework of which nature and technology interact. The intermingling of these two words, so different at first sight, forms an unexpected symbiosis. The lifeblood of the pavilion organism is water that penetrates and unifies all its parts starting with the garden that is irrigated by it to a spring that is fed by it up to an organic form of a cloud that is inspired by it. At the same time, water features a symbol of transformation force hidden inside the pavilion.

The object becomes an embodiment of transformation and metaphor of technology that is not hidden in closed premises - it is displayed to be admired in the form of a  pipeline cloud - Sawer Cloud that interconnects all its components. Trajectories between individual transformation process points are veins of the pavilion organism and they feature the foundation of the organic form. The structure is not a mere passive decoration, it individual components are connected to the S.A.W.E.R. system. This way it becomes an active part of the system it represents. In the central space, water drops from the end bunches, circulating air blows at the entrance, veins in the garden may work as lines distributing nutrient solution. The pavilion is not a mere dead shell, it is a living organism and the transformation process works as its metabolism. This architectural concept underlines quite well the central topic of the mysterious transformation of seemingly empty invisible air to tangible water. This miraculous process is an outcome of new magic based on science and technology.

The complex cloud form interconnects not only system components but it is spiritually related to the topic of the EXPO 2020 - Connecting Minds, Creating Future. Connectivity is another property of the system S.A.W.E.R. The number of flows inside the system is difficult to be understood at the first sight. The understanding of the transformation process is simpler thanks to the structure that interconnects all. The pipeline shaped as a cloud in the exterior enters the interior where is gets mixed with other technological distribution pipelines that are mostly designed as exposed ones. Emphasis is placed primarily on parts of the cultivation system that are located in a way to be directly bound to the centre of gravity of the pavilion. The installation of the technological systems  in the pavilion has been promoted to their exposure.