Expo Zaragoza Pavilion / Tatiana Bilbao

Architect: Tatiana Bilbao
Location: Zaragoza, Spain
Design Team: Tatiana Bilbao con Mariana Tello, Francisco Solórzano & Thorsten Englert
Structural Engineering: Juan F. de la Torre Calvo
Contractor: OHL
Interior Design: Esrawe Studio / Héctor Esrawe con Ricardo Casas , Alain Herrera, Marcela Compean, Ian Castillo, Diego Hernández
Installations: AT Asesores / Carlos Martínez
Artistic Intervention: Marco Roundtree, Jerónimo Hagerman
Photographs:Tatiana Bilbao

The Mexican Pavilion at the Expo Zaragoza 2008 is located at the western end of the Ronda 1 building. It occupies the two double heights set aside for it of a building already constructed by the organizers to be handed over “in the rough” to be developed by the participants.

The Mexican delegation chose the motto “We are water” as the guiding thread of the image and structure of the pavilion. This is reflected by the free-flowing architectural design of the exterior, which breaks with the forms established by the preexisting building. A great crack in the façade welcomes visitors to the pavilion, whose interior is the reinterpretation of a cenote which functions as the building’s distribution core. The opening in the façade is occupied by pieces by two contemporary artists: Marco Rountree and Jerónimo Hagerman. The design emphasizes lightness, with large glass panes, shifting planes, and unexpected images, designs, and reflections which configure the containers of the different rooms. Inside are the large platforms displaying what water represents to Mexico. There are four rooms, designated “experiences,” each with its specific character and content, from the maternal womb to immersion in the Caribbean Sea, with hi-tech projections and interactive episodes.

The interiors, designed by Héctor Esrawe, house a gift shop on the ground floor and a room dedicated to the National Water Commission (Conagua). On the upper floor is the restaurant/bar, which conveys the color of beach restaurants and the seafood outlets of Mexico City in Planta baja Lower level plan Planta alta Upper level plan Sección Section a contemporary language.