Magnet Design

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  5. 2019, project of Slovenian Pavilion for EXPO 2020 Dubai

Slovenian Pavilion for EXPO 2020 Dubai, realized in 2021

Slovenia is a land of many natural resources and one ofthe most water-rich European countries. We can boast of exceptional quality drinking water, numerous forests and quality wood. Natural resources andour sincere attitude to other people and nature are the guiding principle in creating a sustainable concept for the Slovenian pavilion at the world Expo 2020 in Dubai. The Slovenian pavilion is designed as a meeting point for people andbusiness visitors, which, with its presentation and businessconcept, enables the establishment of genuine links andopportunities for cooperation.

Slovenia is the green heart of Europe at an important hub in Europe. Due to our location and history, which intertwines the unity of Slovenia with a strong identity and meaning, we transferred it to architecture and designed a wonderful composition of three natural elements that are part of our, my nature:
– Water
– Forest
– Timber sieve
The conceptual design began with a thorough study of the location, as Dubai is extremely demanding to build (heat, cold and humidity). Assembling the technical, architectural and content levels of the building, which is basically the starting point for sustainability and the “green economy”, was really demanding and complex. The water carpet, as a basis, exposes “Slovenia” and all our water wealth. This naturally cools the entire area and invites visitors to get to know our habitat by circulating water. As a result, the water layer also symbolically exposes the “mirror of time,” which is the mirror of us all. In the mirroring of our images, time stops. It invites us to make everyone think about themselves, their own images and what glows for others. All these images are embraced by the image of a floating forest, which we raised to a height and created a green cloud or. “Smart green cloud”.
The forest, the second element that floats and is the main component of this work, is symbolically depicted as the green heart of Europe. We would like to point out that Slovenia has 60% forest cover. Wood is once again exposed as a strong building block of our identity. The forest is elevated, creating a sense of canopy and shade, conjuring up an authentic forest experience among the Saharan sands.
The composition of the forest is special especially from the architectural and micro-climatic environment that results. We have created an exceptional and innovative proposal: the greenery is planted in special “wet insulating panels-knauf”, which offer incredible protection against heat both to the surroundings and to the building itself. With the entire green architectural design, we create the conditions for a special natural climate, which is created automatically in the intertwining of water and plants. Because the design of the building is wooden and sustainable, it offers the highest quality micro climate.
For the greenery, we chose local vegetation, which we carefully selected with local experts.
Through the elements of water and forest, we stretch a wooden parasol or. sieve and recall the roots of the architect Robert Klun, who are from Ribnica. Ribniško sieve is the first export item of Slovenia, which 400 years ago brought the word about our economy to the world. We place it to the south so that, like a parasol, it additionally protects against the intrusion of the hot Arabian sun. This creates a subtle ambience of shadows that play at all times and create the liveliness of the pavilion. The pavilion, like the impression of a “mirage,” is moving. We have provided Slovenian marble and granite for the floor everywhere, which further upgrades the “Slovenian story”, supports the Slovenian economy and is very popular as a material on all prestigious world projects.