{"id":34825,"date":"2025-04-20T05:48:14","date_gmt":"2025-04-20T05:48:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/34825\/"},"modified":"2025-04-20T05:48:14","modified_gmt":"2025-04-20T05:48:14","slug":"copper-staircase-fronts-coldefy-carlo-rattis-france-pavilion-at-expo-2025-osaka","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/34825\/","title":{"rendered":"copper staircase fronts coldefy & carlo ratti’s france pavilion at expo 2025 osaka"},"content":{"rendered":"

france pavilion opens at expo 2025 osaka<\/p>\n

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Expo 2025 Osaka\u2019s<\/strong><\/a> France<\/strong><\/a> Pavilion, designed by Coldefy<\/strong><\/a> and CRA\u2013Carlo Ratti Associati,<\/strong><\/a> is envisioned as a permeable, performative space \u2014 what the architects describe as a \u2018theater of life\u2019. Located near the expo\u2019s main entrance on Yumeshima Island, the structure employs a layered design strategy to pose both a threshold and a gathering space, defined by a striking copper<\/strong><\/a>-clad staircase<\/strong><\/a>. This sculptural feature forms part of the facade<\/strong><\/a> and draws movement into the public realm before winding through the pavilion<\/strong><\/a> and doubling as an elevated viewing platform.\u00a0<\/p>\n

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Around it, the 3,600-square-meter building is veiled in suspended fabric curtains, 17 meters high, which animate the facade in response to wind and light. Overhead, a ceiling of suspended acrylic rods filters natural illumination, contributing to the pavilion\u2019s ephemeral character. Visitors are thus invited to observe and participate, navigating a series of spatial transitions that foreground the relationship between human activity and the built environment.<\/p>\n

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all images by Julien Lanoo \u00a9 Coldefy & CRA-Carlo Ratti Associati<\/p>\n

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coldefy & carlo ratti create a \u2018theater of life\u2019<\/p>\n

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This staging of experience is deliberate. \u2018Both actors and spectators in this production, visitors traverse a path through the pavilion that is an expression of the symbiosis between humanity and its environment,\u2019 notes Thomas Coldefy of French studio<\/a> Coldefy.\u00a0\u2018<\/strong>Above all, the design seeks to create a welcoming space that is open and accessible to all.\u2019 The staircase, which might traditionally be an internal element, emphasizes this as it is here externalized as it blurs boundaries between inside and out, individual and collective. At the same time, it serves as a symbolic gesture, echoing the broader theme of Expo 2025 Osaka: Designing Future Society for Our Lives.<\/p>\n

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Italian practice<\/strong><\/a> CRA\u2013Carlo Ratti Associati frames the project within the context of architectural discourse itself. At a time when the relevance of the universal exposition is increasingly under review, the pavilion responds both with monumentality and a nuanced investigation of form and function. \u2018We must seek new ways to imagine the relationship between the natural and artificial,\u2019 architect Carlo Ratti explains<\/strong>, \u2018combining different forms of intelligence, whether organic or technological, to redefine connections between people and their environments.\u2019<\/p>\n

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France Pavilion is envisioned as a permeable, performative space<\/p>\n

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the porous pavilion balances enclosure and exposure<\/p>\n

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This question of balance, veering between monumental scale and subtlety, enclosure and exposure, runs through the entire concept of the France Pavilion. The choice of materials, from the polished copper stair to the diaphanous curtains, lends the building both presence and impermanence, allowing it to stand out while remaining porous. The pavilion further proposes itself as an open-ended framework that adapts to visitors\u2019 movements, encourages spontaneous interactions, and foregrounds the experiential over the objectified. In doing so, it aligns with broader efforts to rethink the role of national pavilions at global events \u2014 particularly to demonstrate the role of architecture as a platform for dialogue and a stage for human life.<\/p>\n

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designed by Coldefy and CRA\u2013Carlo Ratti Associati<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"france pavilion opens at expo 2025 osaka \u00a0 Expo 2025 Osaka\u2019s France Pavilion, designed by Coldefy and CRA\u2013Carlo…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":34826,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3939],"tags":[20182,4021,4020,3884,20183,20184,4022,77,10487,6884,20185,20186,20187,10489,16,15],"class_list":{"0":"post-34825","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-arts-and-design","8":"tag-architecture-in-france","9":"tag-arts","10":"tag-arts-and-design","11":"tag-carlo-ratti","12":"tag-coldefy","13":"tag-copper-architecture","14":"tag-design","15":"tag-entertainment","16":"tag-expo-2025-osaka","17":"tag-facade","18":"tag-facades","19":"tag-spiral-staircases","20":"tag-staircases","21":"tag-temporary-pavilions","22":"tag-uk","23":"tag-united-kingdom"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/114368722042384704","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/34825","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=34825"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/34825\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/34826"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=34825"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=34825"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=34825"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}