UK PAVILION AT SHANGHAI EXPO-2010
INTRODUCTION
The UK pavilion at Expo 2010, colloquially known as the Seed Cathedral, was a sculpture structure built by a nine-member conglomeration of British business and government resources directed by designer Thomas Heatherwick. It referenced the race to save seeds from round the world in banks, and housed 250,000 plant seeds at the end of 60,000 acrylic rods projecting from the walls of the building.
The Seed Cathedral sits in the centre of the UK Pavilion’s site, 20 metres in height, formed from 60,000 slender transparent fibre optic rods, each 7.5 metres long and each encasing one or more seeds at its tip. During the day, they draw daylight inwards to illuminate the interior. At night, light sources inside each rod allow the whole structure to glow. As the wind moves past, the building and its optic “hairs” gently move to create a dynamic effect.
Inside the darkened inner sanctum of the Seed Cathedral, the tips of the fibre optic filaments form an apparently hovering galaxy of slim vitrines containing a vast array of embedded seeds. These fibre optic filaments are particularly responsive to external light conditions so that the unseen movement of clouds above the Seed Cathedral are experienced internally as a fluctuating luminosity. The studio’s intention is to create an atmosphere of reverence around this formidable collection of the world’s botanical resources; a moment of personal introspection in a powerful silent space.
PLAN OF THE PAVILION
SECTION OF THE PAVILION
SECTIONAL VIEW
PHOTOGRAPH OF THE SECTIONAL MODEL
PHOTOGRAPH OF THE PAVILION
PHOTOGRAPH OF THE PAVILION
PSEUDO SCRIPT
GRASSHOPPER SCRIPT
ANIMATION SCRIPT
GRASSHOPPER + ANIMATION SCRIPT
