Murray O'Laoire Architects Expo 2000: Concept

This project was the result of a competition held by the Department of Trade in Ireland in 1998, The objective for the competition was to select a concept design for the Irish pavilion for EXPO 2000 Hanover, including its interpretative content, that would, in particular , raise the profile of Ireland among visitors, especially those from Germany, in an entertaining manner.

The Irish Pavilion is designed by Dúl -- an integrated Irish design team which developed this project through creative collaboration. The Irish word Dúl means Element, Nature or Created Thing and is, therefore, an appropriate response to EXPO's theme Humankind, Nature, Technology.

The Dúl team is a creative synergy between the building itself and the visitor experience, led respectively by Murray O'Laoire Architects and Orna Hanly Architect.

The competion model, created with PowerCADD, Form-Z, Artlantis and Photoshop

The Concept of the Irish Pavilion
The overall concept, which underlies the approach to the Irish Pavilion at Expo 2000, is derived from the Irish landscape. The most evocative of humankind's many imprints on the landscape are in the use of stone, in particular the ubiquitous field wall. It is these walls that provide the inspiration for the Irish Pavilion. Through the use of two contrasting walls, one a gabion wall of metal baskets containing undressed stone, and the other a polished Kilkenny limestone wall, they serve to symbolise the contrast between old and new, rural and urban, tradition and modernity. This concept is developed further by contemporary Irish artists working with traditional materials in an original and innovative way. Together they provide a visual and sensory experience of Ireland.

Elements of the Irish landscape

The exhibition space itself is a lightweight structure, which floats between the walls above the landscape. An abstracted field pattern forms the ground plane with a water body flowing under the building, interspersed with fibre optic reeds which are illuminated at night.

The visitor journey takes the form of an ascending spiral, a common Celtic symbol. This is achieved by a series of ramps divided into a number of sequential spaces.

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