Design revealed for Belgian pavilion at Osaka World Expo in 2025

Details of the Belgian pavilion at the World Exhibition in Osaka, Japan, in 2025, have been released. The Belgian pavilion will illustrate the theme “Saving Lives”. Belgium will be showcasing its industrial and scientific trump cards to attracts visitors and foreign investors.

The winning consortium, led by Cyril Rousseaux, is made up of a team of architects, engineers, contractors and project managers: Carré 7, Beyond Limits, OneDesigns, Pirnay Engineering and Polytech Engineering in collaboration with their subcontractors: JMA, Make It Right, A-tech, Arter and Nihon Housing.

Rousseaux's project is on the theme of "saving lives" and puts human beings at the centre, as well as the sustainability of the building and the extent to which it can be restored. The architect focused on water and the cells that make it up to create life.

The building takes the shape of an icebox, reflecting the solid state of water, and is clad in a fabric that reflects light. On the building's driveway, a more dynamic, rhythmic and translucent material should reflect the liquid state of water, like a mirror of water that visitors walk through.

The roof made to look like acloud, made of inflatable shapes, should reflect the gaseous state of water. It acts as thefifth facade, playing an important role in the project, and will be visible from the main pedestrian ring on the site.

The so-called heart of the building "visually connects heaven and earth" with green facades and a waterfall. The building's designers assure that everything can be recovered and reassembled after the exhibition to ensure its sustainability.