Netherlands // Expo 2015

The Spirit of Life in the Netherlands

The theme of the Netherlands pavilion at World Expo Milan 2015 was “Share, Grow, Live” which represents the Dutch culture and attitude, in its food-industry from research and production to distribution and consumption. 

The pavilion has an open setup with a total size of 20x120 m. It had a very central position on the Expo site, with the Italian, French and Vatican pavilions as immediate neighbours.

The resulting Holland Pavilion was a pavilion reminiscent of Dutch Music and Cultural festivals and fun fairs: tents, greenhouses, informal seating areas, water floats and of course a Ferris wheel. Instead of a more ‘traditional’ Expo pavilion-setup (grand architectural structures and linear storytelling), the scenography focuses on creating an experience by evoking individual curiosity with a feeling of enjoyment.

The created Netherlands pavilion reflected the aim to entertain visitors while making them think, about the theme and in general. The open and modular set-up enabled visitors to follow their own path and take in all or parts of the story. 

This is also part of the Dutch Way: with little top-down pushing we encourage individual initiative and choices.