Experience architects Kossmanndejong and experience design studio Tellart co-designed the guest experience for the United Arab Emirates (UAE) Host Pavilion at Expo 2020 Dubai. The UAE, consisting of seven Emirates that united in 1971, has had fewer opportunities to present itself internationally than other countries. This Expo is the perfect opportunity for the UAE to present itself to the world. In close collaboration with the client, Kossmanndejong and Tellart transformed the UAE’s story into an immersive spatial experience that is accessible and captivating to a wide international audience.
Dreamers Who Do
Kossmanndejong’s and Tellart’s multi-sensory design presents the UAE as the ‘Land of Dreamers Who Do’. Guests can move through five sections, each telling a different chapter of the UAE’s story. For example, in the Desert of Dreams, sand gradually evolves into glass as guests emerge among grid-like glass structures to reference the UAE’s rapid urbanization. Near Future invites guests to imagine what lies ahead for the UAE. As guests pass multimedia screens, their shadows uncover mirages of future visions. In the final space, daylight pours into the Santiago Calatrava building’s monumental dome, imbuing the room and guests alike with wonder and hope for the future. Throughout the guest experience, architecture and scenography combine to heighten guests’ emotional connection to, and understanding of, the UAE.
www.uaepavilionexpo.com
www.tellart.com
www.kossmanndejong.nl
Photos: Thijs Wolzak
