2024-04-19 00:20:19
The Czech national pavilion at Expo 2025 will be built by the Japanese company Daisue. The representative of the construction company has already signed the contract with the general commissioner of the Czech side Ondřej Soška. The world exhibition will start in a year, the deadline is tight, but the Czech side believes that the pavilion will be built in time.
The representatives of the Czech participation approached six Japanese companies for the construction of the glass spiral of the Apropos Architects studio, because they could not find a Czech company that had a building license there. “That’s why we were looking for Japanese companies that want to cooperate with Czech suppliers. We plan to import Czech wood and glass to the Expo,” said Soška. The load-bearing structure and facade will be made of Czech materials.
The commissioner signed the contract with the supplier Daisue on Wednesday on the occasion of the opening of the Czech pavilion in virtual reality in a special hall in Prague’s Horní Počernice. A tour of the pavilion with 3D glasses is intended to prevent shortcomings even before the start of construction and will help in the recruitment of partners.
The winning design of the Czech pavilion at EXPO 2025 was developed by the Apropos Architects studio. | Photo: Apropos Architects
Only a disaster could destroy the building
“We realize that the deadline is a gallows, but it is a matter of national prestige. We are working day and night here in the Czech Republic and Japan to make it. We have verified delivery dates with all subcontractors, so unless some truly catastrophic scenario happens, it we will manage everything,” added Soška.
Last year, the Apropos Architects studio won the architectural competition for the design of the Czech pavilion for the world exhibition Expo 2025 Osaka with a glass spiral. The facade of the pavilion is designed from sheet sintered glass. The use of glass was a priority for the studio, as its craftsmanship has a tradition in the Czech Republic. The theme of the pavilion is “sculpting vitality”.
The pavilion’s new program director Přemysl Pela plans to issue open calls for Czech artists who will be interested in presenting themselves at Expo 2025. “In addition to traditional cultural attributes, we will focus on contemporary Czech artistic creation, which has the potential to interest the domestic Japanese public as well as foreign visitors to the exhibition,” he said.
The mascot of the national participation in the exhibition, which will be René made of crystal glass, also refers to the glassmaking tradition. It is named after its author, glassmaker and designer René Roubíček, who designed the sculpture “Cloud-Water, Source of Life” for Expo 1970 in Osaka. “This will probably make Mr. Roubíček the only world artist who will be represented at both world exhibitions in Osaka,” said Soška.
The exhibition will be from April to October 2025, its main theme is “creating the future society for our lives”. Organizers expect up to 28 million people to visit the exhibition. Expo will return to Osaka after 55 years. According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the then Czechoslovak pavilion of architect Viktor Rudiš attracted approximately eleven million visitors.
The government approved the Czech participation budget of 290 million crowns for the years 2023 to 2026. Another 170 to 220 million are to be financed from external sources.