On June 11th the head architect of Miralles Tagliabue EMBT, Benedetta Tagliabue, returned to her hometown Milan, to officially present Copagri Pavilion ‘Love IT’ and her latest urban furniture design ‘Minamora’ with Italcementi at Expo Milano 2015.
Image © Alejandro Quevedo
The pavilion designed for Copagri called ‘Love IT’ is located in the south-east part of the Lake Arena – a large circular pool of water at the end of the Cardo, one of the main axes of the Expo Milano 2015 masterplan – and surrounded by the European Union Pavilion and the Vanke Pavilion.
Image © Roland Halbe
In our project the domes are not only representing the magnificence of the Italian past, but they also show us potential for the future lying in the construction of domes.
– EMBT
Image © Marcela Grassi
The space inside is conceived to host a typical Italian ‘local market’, where each producer exhibits the product, tells their story, and introduces their company. Besides hosting an events area, part of the surface area is for the direct sale of products and the icons of Italian street food, pizza and ice cream, made with 100% organic products.
Image © Roland Halbe
Continuing the path illustrated by the engineer and inventor Buckminster Fuller, we propose and experiment domes as sustainable structures that, besides being beautiful, use a minimum of materials so that they can be optimized and designed for production in series with a consequent great ease of construction.
– EMBT
Image © Marcela Grassi
Read more about the design process and view initial drawings here!
Additional to the pavilion, EMBT has developed in collaboration with Italcementi Group, a special outdoor seating system made out of i.design Effix a very high performance cement mortar that offer unprecedented creative opportunities for architects.
Image © Marcela Grassi
Located in the courtyard next to the Italian Pavilion, the ‘Minamora’ seat takes its name from the Japanese word ‘Minamo’ which means water surfaces.
Image © Marcela Grassi
The entire concept revolves around the image of water and the free form associated with it. The sinuous form of the seat is achieved by two layers that are reminescent of waves and the tranquility they create. The organic shape creates a sunken central space, offering a community atmosphere by allowing people to face each other, a gesture in tune with the theme of the Expo. The use of i.design EFFIX made possible for the two layers of the seat to have a thickness of only 4-6 cm.
Image © Marcela Grassi
We deliberately designed and engineered an alternation of voids to give people who sit on these benches the feeling of being surrounded by water surfaces.
– EMBT
Image © Marcela Grassi
i.design EFFIX provides added value to the architectural projects for interiors and exteriors in urban environments: facilities for design stores, private residences, corporate offices as well as public amenities. The material is easy to work, making it particularly suitable for the construction of small prestigious architectural elements, streamline, slender, and with smooth or worked finishes.
Image © Marcela Grassi
Image © Marcela Grassi
Image © Marcela Grassi
*All images and information courtesy of EMBT.
