Romania Pavillion for Shanghai World Expo 2010
The concept design competition for the Romania Pavilion, “Exchange of Ideas”, was won by SC M&C Strategy Development who designed Greenopolis, “The green mega polis”. Name of the pavilion is term with universal meaning, metamorphosed in a fruit, the apple, which means health, knowledge, freshness, temptation, eternity. The surrounding Greenopolis landscape recreates principal elements of the nature (the lawn from the hills, rivers, grass).
The apple is divided in two parts: the main body from which is detached a slice, the secondary body. The inside architectural design has generous and multifunctional spaces, disposed on 5 floors and the access in Greenopolis follows a natural line which allows visiting all the modules without passing over any zone. Seen at Big Creative Industries. More images after the break.
Related articles:
59 comments »
Hmmm…the metaphor may be too literal in this case. Also, the apple has various negative connotations, as in the biblical apple that ruined the garden which this proposal is attempting to replicate (i.e. the utopian Eden). That aside, the spaces are VERY generic (almost devastatingly so), but I suppose that is in keeping of the World Expo Pavilions. Exciting perspectives, look forward to seeing more of this project.
where in the bible does it say it was an apple?
I’m from Romania and i’m sorry to see this. I keep believing this is a joke.
I find the proposal inappropriate for this event, if i can call it architecture at all. The emphasis on the meaning that this fruit can have is puerile. I see it at best ironic, even if most likely the designer didn’t have irony in mind when he come up with the idea.
An architecture that should represent an unique way of thinking shows a very bad understanding of what’s happening at a global level nowadays, and lacks any of the subtleties that architecture as a whole gathered along the … way.
This is not how architecture is done here…
I am also from Romania and I couldn’t agree more, and I haven’t herd an argument that would back it up. It’s sad we don’t have any control over such things that supposedly “represent” us.
a waste of time and money
This expo is an architectural freakshow.
mmm.. no
thats all you hav to say cristian .. i know this is terrible awful
Alex, I am also from RomaniaI I agree with you.
when this project is built it will single handedly discredit the profession of architecture.
Horrible!
I wonder how dizzy you can get by running down those spiral stairs…
Also, the nighttime renders look pretty funky, but I doubt the building would have much effect during the daytime. A shiny green shell would just blend into the sky.
Looks more like a failed attempt at a U2 stage to me.
I`m an architecture student here in Romania, and all I have left to say is “I am sorry”. Please take into consideration that this is not how we do or learn architecture here.
I want a bite… lol!
i think it doesn`t matter what country you are from… unless from macau maybe.. but apple=building… greenopolis?
its all a joke
“The concept design competition for the Romania Pavilion, “Exchange of Ideas”, was won by SC M&C Strategy Development who designed Greenopolis, “The green mega polis”.”
1 – They won, which means : some people approved this
2 – The green mega polis = The green mega apple, BIG BRAINS
3 – “…as in the biblical apple that ruined the garden”. Yeah, they really ruin the garden
Conclusion: My Architect heart is dying.
oh wow. erm… what. wait, really? nevermind.
as a freaky side note, one of the four-strong jury which selected this project was ceausescu’s (romania’s second communist dictator: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Communist_Romania#The_Ceau.C5.9Fescu_regime) pet architect (here’s a highlight in case you miss it:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palace_of_the_Parliament).
The Parliament Palace was highlighted and admired as the Romanian Masterpiece and one of the greatest construction in the World by Cultural representative of European Union…have you ever been inside the building…?
But to come back to the point, my son is in Shanghai in this moment and Romanian Pavillion in one of the attraction of this
World Expo….Have you seen the Dutch Pavillion…that’s what I
would call ugly.
In no other nation in the World, people are throwing mud into
each other like Romanians, so if you are a Romanian stop doing that and have a little pride.
Thanks and have a great day,
A good Romanian
ahahhahahahha…. sorry… can’t say anything more…
It is very… very bad.
By the way… why do most of the pavilions have building designs that are only well appreciated from a birds eye view? why don’t they design the experience for average joe on the ground who will not have a clue it is an apple. Same goes to many other pavilions like Macao.
it’s true.i am an architecture student in lebanon. it might look appealling from an aerial view, but who the hell is gonna be flying that high?looks cute though:P
This is a joke, right ?
Seems the world expo is sharing the same urban planner than Ordos!!
it’s like advertising
exactly, at least shape it like the apple logo and make it white, than you might get some funding ^^ ;) ….
That’s what I thought.
Product placement. Steve Jobs couldn’t be happier.
This is not about architecture. This is about corruption. MC Strategy bla-bla… is not an architectural practice but an obscure advertising agency linked to a media empire. They won the competition because there was no such thing. It wasn’t publicly announced, the jury members weren’t what they should be in such a case(ie architects recognised for their past work etc.) and the “winners” were the ones with the right connections. When the romanian architects found out about the hole story they filed a public protest to the Ministry of Culture and that’s all folks…
EXBOOOOOOOOO……
I heard about what AD is talking and it’s sad but true.
As a romanian i would prefer to not have a pavilion than to have this … thing. Should it be a comity in Shanghai that can have the autority to approve or not the pavilions?
Dear Alexandru, that’ your real name, am I wright….
I’m living in North America for 15 years and I cannot belive
Romanians are still ashame of each other and have no pride at all….
After so many years of capitalism (that’s what we wanted)we are still wining and complainning about what we,the Romanians are doing…You will see that,the Romanian Pavillion
in Shanghai will receive a lot of apreciations from the World…
It’s already started and Romanian design it’s had captured a lot of attention by the World Media…so shut up and be proud you are Romanian. Coruption is all over the World, in highly civilized, industrialized countries, maybe you will learn that those guys in Romania are little children compare with what is happening in West….Throwing mud on your own people is very easy….so learn something and get rid of old habbits.
All the best,
A good Romanian
beeing proud of my nation – that’s one lesson i would really like to learn. that’s one lesson i’m affraid is learned easyer by people that get out and manage to see the country in a broather perspective. and by that i mean, you emigrate because of the higher living conditions in other places but those came with a price [like everything] – you try and find your identity and you eventually turn back to the country you left and start developing nationalism/patriotism how ever you wanna call it. I’m trying to learn from this lesson even if i get tangled up in what things should be and what they really are.
the success the pavilion is having is in my opinion because the simplistic nature of it is mistaken for simple one. simple things with simple meanings are ussualy more easy to accept and have an opinion about because they accept huge amouth of deviation and abstratization.[for instance i could see in the romanian pavilion as it is this year in shanghai a harsh critique on the eco way of buildings things, or exactly the oposite, there's nothing that tells me i'm wrong in whatever i like to think about it, you could say that this is exactly that the one that came up with the idea wanted, baseing it's design exactly on the diversity of perception and the individual impresion of it, i strongly doubt that]. architecture’s journey into the abstract has it’s downfalls…
i hope i wasn’t to harsh [not my intention].
Alexander, te inteleg, dar sti bine ca prin asta ne-am facut destul de tare de rasul curcilor, dar incearca sa treci peste. Macar stiu ca tu ai fi venit cu o idee mult mai geniala, deca un apple si 1/2. Asta e.
stim cu totii cum se castiga concursurile pe la noi.
nu inteleg de ce a aparut pe site.
translation: it is well known how competitions are won in romania. i do not understand why this someone would post this.
it’s rubbish…
they should have gone with the orange
Ion, aici au aparut cam toate pavilioanele lumi, se pare ca al nostru este de departe cel mai prost :)).
Translation :Ion, here, on this site, all the pavilion of the world are presented, but you can see that our is the ugliest ever made :))
When this came up there were clearly 2 sides: architects and the others…the Education Minister chose not to be on the architects side…the argument: architects cannot decide all the time what is best for a nation, therefor the so-called competition for this pavilion was won by a group of graphic designers…OAR got mad, we all got mad but there’s nothing we can do…don’t worry: there are other pavilions that are worse than ours :))) I’m just glad I don’t have the money to get to Shanghai and see that:))
good/
I’m from china, and I’m not a architect.though, I like this architecture.Apple is a good fruit with abundant nutrition and also represents environment friendly.
Hei,
You got the point, it seeemed like every other nation in the World apreciate Romanian originality – idea….except…The Romanians.
All the best,
A good Romanian
At least Romania will have a pavillion. Have you seen the Bulgarian one?! I haven’t.
well…judging by this,it would have been better for romania not to participate…
acest pavilion reprezinta exact nivelul social roman. nici nu putea fi mai bine definit. visam la mere verzi si nu ne gandim nici o secunda inainte de a face ceva. e exact superficialitate si neprofesionalismul romanesc!
si cei ce mimeaza ceva in tara asta vor pleca sau vor fi ingropati!
Adio Romania!!! pusi…
i’m an architect and as most of you, i don’t like this project. it’s ashame romanian architecture should be represented by it, but i’m not sure it would be better not to have a pavillion at all, as some suggest.
even though this is (maybe) not the true face of romanian architecture, it is one of romania’s faces – let the world know it! it will probably react to it and to our comments!
I’m glad that they chose an apple to represent Romanian architecture. They could have chosen much worse : a caravan for example, which main goal would have been to kick down foreigners prejudice. Everybody would have laughted at us !
Not a bad choice after all…
Meet you all there for the world expo !
LOL, maybe they should have chosen a caravan! It would have been proof of self irony, but this is not a Romanian quality!
i don`t think an apple is representative for the romanian architecture or culture…so please stop trying to see the good part of this action: there’s NONE! a bunch of amateurs came up with this idea…the minister approved cause there wasn’t much time left and everything was done in a sec. there’s nothin to be done…cause we just don`t know how to coordinate ourselves and that’s it…
Mie mila de voica nu vedeti “The bigger picture”! Parerea mea e ca pavilionul romanesc e unul foarte reusit.Cu toti ati reusit sa gasiti tot felul de motive pentru critica acest proiect care din contra este unul futuristic,interesant si cu o conotatie ecologica. Tari cu bugete mult mai mari ca al nostru nu au reusit mare lucru, precum Irlanda care nu au decat o cutie si SUA care au un pavilion care arata ca un Shopping Center.
Bai tu esti arhitect sau ce dracu? Nu vezi ca e un rahat, nu exista concept, idee, directie – find un rezultat instinctual de arhitect prost. Nu vezi ca persoane fara o pregatire in domeniu au ales o solutie in urma un concurs de arhitectura de care nu a stiut nimeni? Problema e mult mai grava decat marul gaunos cu care ne-am facut de tot ca__tul.
serios?! ce e ma atat de “futuristic” intr-un mar???? si daca ai face niste cursuri de estetica poate ai intelege si tu ca un om foloseste termenul “interesant” atunci cand nu poate spune despre ceva ca`i frumos sau urat…nu se poate pronunta.
Doamnelor, domnisoarelor, domnilor, ce a fost a fost, nu e nevoie sa ne pierdem si farama de demnitate care ne-a mai ramas certandu-ne in romaneste pe forumuri straine, nu rezolvam nimic in felul asta. La bere, intre prieteni, mai merge scos limbajul de lemn … asa nu. Toata lumea este bucuroasa de faptul ca exista injuratura, in felul asta nu ajungem mai toti la nebuni dupa cum zicea cineva de-al nostru, nu indemn deci la refulare ci la o retinere fata de mediul asta. Daca nu credeti ca archdaily merita macar asta nu inteleg de ce va mai obositi sa mai scrieti ceva. [daca foarte multi arhitecti romani vad si citesc ce s-a scris aici si tac asta nu inseamna ca nu le pasa]
Lucrurile se vor schimba, sa ne pastram putinul optimism [pe care ni-l ascundem de parca...].
Keep the faith compatriots, and have patience…
Is there anything worse?
Yes, your opinion about Romania and Romanian in general
Bye,
ce dezamagire !!!!
puteai sa zici si tu asta in romana…;) chiar daca sunt si eu in state, nu poti sa-i schimbi pe romani, asta datorita mentalitatii media care li se baga pe gat de la bucuresti, oamenii din romania sunt buni la suflet si naivi-usor de intors pe dos, media de acolo mai poata sa faca rating doar daca ii face pe oameni sa-si imagineze cum deasemenea zambesc a bani si paguba cei care fac deal-ul – firma constructoare si cei insarcinati de guvern… asta este, un fel de speculatie a mediei si asa intr-o istoria haotica si plina de coruptie a Romaniei… ——– si acum sa va dau si eu una: marul e frumos dar parca e asa construit incat iti imaginezi ca pe acolo pe undeva se afla si un vierme, cel putin asa pare a sugera…
mda, pe comentariile astea se vede cel mai bine cum suntem: frustrati.. si avem pe buna dreptate muulte motive. iar frustrarea nu stiu daca are vreo legatura cu demnitatea. cat despre proiect.. tipic: cu totii am auzit de el de la altii [arcdaily] si nu putea sa fie decat un cosmar al grinzilor cu zabrele menit sa faca reclama la greenoopooliis, nicidecum tarii noastre. tare penibil
Hello,I’m from Bulgaria and i agree that this concept of the apple is a little confusing to the masses.Some of you critisized it and related to the architecture as a whole in Romania but check out Bulgaria’s Pavilion.It’s beyond any kind of comments.I am ashamed of my country’s image in front of the world because i know a fair competition did not exist.I don’t know how it is in Romania presume it’s pretty much the same story.So don’t blame it on the architecture,blame it on the government that lets useless architects embarass our countries.
hahahaha, it looks like they dont care about this expo at all!
its the same story: we care more about how the world looks at us but we dont care at all what we show to the world:))
p.s.: The good romanian, please try to understand that shame feels only the people who understand what pride is, so dont be upset that people want to feel what you cant even accept and that’s not shame::))
19 links to this article »