Sand Dune Architecture Edit
UAE Pavilion Will Shimmer, Morph and Change Color

Construction began on the United Arab Emirates’ pavilion like no other. Called the Golden Sand Dune, it’s inspired by one of the country’s most illustrious natural landscapes over which each of the seven emirates presides. Flawlessly combining nature and architecture to create a dream like structure, it will amaze visitors of the Shanghai 2010 expo. Outlined with gold-colored stainless steel and wind-shaped roof, the new structure will add a shimmer effect and change colors, molding itself as one with natural environments.

Designers said the shape of the pavilion is designed in response to Shanghai’s weather. It will protect against the direct glare of the city’s summer sun but allow indirect light to enter the pavilion via louvers.

The pavilion can be easily constructed and deconstructed on site and it will be one of the largest exhibition spaces for the expo.

Gerard Evenden, the project’s Senior Partner says, “The cities of the UAE rise from the desert and the pavilion will similarly emerge to form a natural counterpoint to Shanghai’s urban landscape. Like a sand dune, it is oriented to the direction of the wind and is a powerful example of an organic and highly effective passive environmental design.”

A great example of how two very different cultures can blend and create something unique and beautiful.