An Emirati Jungle

Walk through the Singapore Pavilion at the Expo 2020 Dubai, designed by woha, and learn how building designs can draw from and give back to nature.

- David Ho

Visitors to the Expo 2020 Dubai will be able to enjoy a “City in Nature” at the Singapore Pavilion, happening from 1 October 2021 to 31 March 2022.

As the name implies, the display blends urban and nature elements to provide a uniquely Singaporean trip that embodies the theme of “Nature. Nurture. Future.”

“The Singapore Pavilion is a verdant island, where visitors are instinctively drawn to nature. We wanted to create an oasis in the desert, an escape from the hustle and bustle of the Expo,” says Quentin Sim, architect at WOHA Architects, the practice behind the pavilion’s creation.

The design does not aim to simply re-create a mini-Singapore in Dubai, but to mirror its story of thriving in a challenging environment.

Much like the tiny island nation, the pavilion sits on one of the smallest plots in the Expo but makes an impactful statement despite its size.

With no outer walls, Sim describes it as “open, porous and inviting.”

A canopy walk weaves through three thematic green cones under the shade of a hanging garden.

Visitors experience the pavilion as a walk in a three-dimensional garden.

The points of interest are set amid lush greenery and offer a place of respite.

“By integrating greenery into the building’s material palette and system, the Singapore Pavilion demonstrates that buildings can co-exist with nature to make an attractive and accessible environment,” says Sim.

GREEN LESSONS