Mingmen is a producer of locks and door hardware, based in Zhongshan, China. Every year Mingmen participates in a series of three day exhibitions, for which it needs exhibition pavilions to show its products. The client sought for an impressive architecture for its pavilions. The pavilion presented here is one in a series of pavilions that we have designed for Mingmen.
Mingmen’s products are small in size and exhibitions are often very crowded in China. It is difficult to see from a distance what is happening on eye level inside the pavilion. The client wished to have an “impressive overall architecture. Our design is based on an architectural solution with a ceiling landscape, consisting of 1500 suspended spheres that can easily be seen by passers-by. The spheres also have a function where they conceal a VIP-floor, which can be accessed via the back part of the pavilion.
The white perforated screen walls are mounted on a standard exhibition structure. Exhibition pavilions are temporary structures. We try to create maximum impact with minimum building effort. Most of the materials used can be reused afterwards. Designing these structures can be characterized as working in an area between set design and architecture, since the structures need to last for only a couple of days, but still need to fulfil their purpose during that limited time.
CREDITS
Architect: Markus Wikar, Geometria, Helsinki
Design management: Aava design, Shanghai
Builder: T&G, Guangzhou
