What is the arch of China Pavilion in Shanghai World Expo and what is its meaning?

An architectural symbol that has been circulating for two thousand years.

On the morning of June 5438+February 65438+February 07, 2007, a pile driver in the Expo site on the south bank of Pujiang announced the start of the main project. What attracts the public's attention is the China Pavilion-a landmark building will be built. From then on, it will greet the rising sun from the East China Sea every day, and pay tribute to the whole world on behalf of the general feelings and aspirations of the people of China.

Since China and Shanghai won the right to host the World Expo, there have been many speculations about the architectural style of the China Pavilion. The host country's venues have always been the highlight of this World Expo, because they represent the national image and people's will, as well as the latest scientific achievements and various beautiful fantasies carried by human beings through buildings. After the World Expo, most of the venues will be demolished, leaving only the main venue. China Pavilion is a cultural heritage for future generations.

Now that the mystery has been solved, a huge bucket arch will rise in Ran Ran. It is red. In the color spectrum of China people, it symbolizes wealth, civilization, auspiciousness and progress.

Compared with the masonry structure system of western ancient buildings, the biggest feature of ancient buildings in China is the wood structure system. For thousands of years, the wooden architecture in China has been closely related to the natural environment and human environment, or influenced each other, which has played an obvious symbolic role in the establishment and spread of China culture. The most striking feature of ancient architecture in China is the large roof, which is not only huge, but also curved. The eaves around the roof are also higher than the middle, and the whole roof forms a curve. The huge roof, treated with curved surfaces and curves, is not so heavy and clumsy, and with some decorations, it has become an interesting part of China's ancient architecture, which the ancient literati happily called "like a bird, like a skin, like a fly". If you walk into the Forbidden City and look at the huge buildings such as the Hall of Supreme Harmony and the Hall of Baohe, there is no sense of heaviness at all. How much agility can be revealed in rigor and solemnity, because the cornices that are tilted in the air draw an arc outline, which makes the roof with large coverage light and become a part of great charm and expressiveness.

In the uppermost part of the ancient buildings in China, between the beam Fang on the column and the frame part of the roof, there is a layer of components assembled from bits and pieces of wood, which are evenly distributed on the beam Fang and support the overhanging eaves. This component is the bucket arch, which is the soul of China wood structure.

Dougong first appeared in the Warring States Period and matured in the Tang and Song Dynasties. According to the will of the country, the "Building French Style" promulgated in the Song Dynasty not only defined Dougong, but also gave it a respected position. From then on, the style of the bucket arch tends to be unified. In Ming and Qing dynasties, there were strict regulations on the use of bucket arches, which became a symbol of distinguishing architectural grades. At this point, Dougong further exudes a strong ideological color, and its cultural and class attributes have also been emphasized. After the collapse of the feudal dynasty, Liang Sicheng's generation's value discovery and humanistic care for China's ancient buildings often focused on his thin figure pulling Lin to climb Yingxian's wooden tower. If we look deeper, we can draw the conclusion that from him, the fruit of wisdom under the cornices of China's buildings has returned to the people. Today, we marvel at the exquisiteness of the bucket arch and no longer associate it with the rigid order. On the contrary, it is easier for us to express our feelings about the splendor of China's architecture and the road of revival that is unfolding in front of us.

Last year, at the 6th Shanghai Biennale with the theme of "Super Design", the artist restored a huge bucket arch, which clung to the external wall of the western-style building of Shanghai Art Museum. This is an extremely special exhibition work. The artist deliberately concealed his name to show his deep respect for the ancient craftsmen in China. In a series of activities to promote "super design", the audience felt the source of China culture rolling in.

Now, why did the World Expo choose Dougong?

Bucket arch structure

Several answers to a mystery

China Pavilion is located at the core of the intersection of the north-south axis and the east-west axis of the Expo Park, with Yuntai Road in the east, South Ring Road in the south, North Ring Road in the north, South Road in the west, and Rail Line 8 passing underground in the southwest corner of the base. China Pavilion consists of three parts: National Pavilion, Regional Pavilion and Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan Pavilion. The National Pavilion is 63 meters high, the raised floor is 33 meters high and the raised platform is 9 meters high. The maximum side length of the upper part138m times138m, and the outer distance of the lower four columns is 70.2m, with a construction area of about 27,000m2. The regional pavilion is13m high, with a construction area of about 45,000m2, and the Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan pavilions have a construction area of about 3,000m2. The Regional Pavilion and the Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan Pavilion will provide exhibition venues for 3/kloc-0 provinces, municipalities directly under the Central Government, autonomous regions and Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan to show the multi-ethnic elegance and urban changes of China. The China Pavilion will show the world the image of China and let the world know China more intuitively. These two pavilions can accommodate 7000 spectators at the same time.

After the World Expo, China Pavilion will serve as the exhibition base of China's history, culture and art, and the regional pavilion will be transformed into a standard exhibition venue. Together with the surrounding Expo Axis, Expo Center, Theme Pavilion, Performing Arts Center "One Axis and Four Pavilions" and star-rated hotels, it will create a modern service gathering area with conference, exhibition, tourism, activities and accommodation as its main functions.

Then, in such a striking geographical location and shouldering such an important mission of cultural identity, the form of China Pavilion is particularly important. It is the core building and the crowning touch of the Expo Park.

Under the guidance of the Ministry of Construction, China Architecture Society and Shanghai World Expo Bureau, Shanghai World Expo (Group) Co., Ltd., as the owner of China Pavilion, sent a strong signal to Chinese people all over the world on April 25th this year. In less than two months, 344 schemes were received. Finally, under the auspices of several academicians and architects of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, two rounds of evaluation were conducted and eight schemes were selected. Then the final round of selection is made around the criteria of "uniqueness, symbolism, regionality and times". Through voting, it was determined that the "Crown of the Orient" scheme of the Architectural Design Institute of South China University of Technology, the "overprint" scheme of Tsinghua Andy Architectural Design Company and Shanghai Architectural Design Institute, and the "Dragon" scheme of Beijing Architectural Design Institute won. At the beginning of September, the integration of the three schemes deepened. Only ministerial leaders attended the seminar for more than 20 times, and the the State Council executive meeting discussed it for three times, and finally determined the present architectural form. Liu Dai, chairman of the Expo Group, repeatedly stressed to this reporter: "This is the crystallization of the wisdom of leaders, experts, people and foreign counterparts."

On the computer screen, a super bucket arch slowly rotates and churns in the eyes of everyone. Whole and detail, bird's eye view and side view, individual and environment all show the inner charm and philosophical thinking of China culture.

"In fact, this building is just shaped like a bucket arch, and there are no beams, rafters and other parts interspersed with each other. It is a whole. " In the small conference room of the Expo Group, Liu Dai, the chairman of the Expo Group, accepted an exclusive interview with Xinmin Weekly. He explained the cultural connotation and value orientation of this building to reporters in a refined tone.

It has four thick square columns supporting the barrel-shaped main building. If you look from a distance or from below, you will find it is like an ancient crown and a bucket full of grain, so some people call it "the crown of the East" and "the granary of the world". Good architecture can give people multi-directional observation and understanding, and trigger rich associations. Of course, people will find that it got artistic inspiration and spiritual support directly from the archways of ancient buildings in China. The bucket arches are orderly, and the more they hold, the tighter they get. The seemingly fragmentary parts have incalculable bearing capacity and can hold up the weight of the Millennium. Think about it, China, a multi-ethnic and populous country, has not come to this day step by step with an extraordinary cohesion and a spirit of humiliation for thousands of years. Bucket arch is a symbolic image that can arouse sporadic thinking. I think China people are willing to give it such a meaning. At the same time, foreigners who come to the Expo will know that it belongs to China. There are three major architectural systems in the world, and only the ancient buildings in China have wisely adopted the bucket arch. Let's reveal it. Although the design team is all from China, the best architects in the world have expressed important opinions on the final scheme. "

Reflect profound humanistic care in new technology

In the process of President Liu Dai's explanation, this huge bucket arch seems to be turning slowly in front of reporters.

"As a central exhibition hall representing the image of the country, people must enjoy the sense of ceremony and appreciate the style of a big country on specific occasions." Liu Dai said: "In front of the National Pavilion is the city square. In large-scale activities, people will climb the steps and enter the South-facing National Pavilion to enjoy the pleasure of rising with the surrounding environment. In the rhythm like andante, the beautiful scenery is once again displayed before our eyes. If it is a large-scale event broadcast live on TV, the landscape here is also very good. The horizontally distributed regional pavilion is an empty building with an open water surface and a rich greening level on a 33-meter-high platform. Sunny weather and clear skies may become one of the most photographed public spaces in Shanghai. Then, we can enter all levels of the National Pavilion through two automatic elevators and four vertical elevators (three in each column). The direction of each elevator entrance is clockwise, which is convenient for tourists to identify, and each floor is stepped and rotated, and the design is very humanized. If we board the observation deck whose top plane looks like a nine-square lattice-the scenery here is unique, and at the commanding height of 63 meters, the beautiful scenery on both sides of Pujiang can be seen at a glance. "

According to the regulations, the height of exhibition halls in all participating countries should not exceed 25 meters.

Of course, if you go to Pudong Expo Park from Lupu Bridge and nanpu bridge, you will find that this building rises in the front view with the driving route of vehicles, showing many sides. If we come to it, we will also feel a majestic momentum and feel that the mountain is down. It can pick out the stratum 43 meters away and give us timely shelter.

On the exterior wall of the regional pavilion, the designer recorded the long dynasty of China with the ancient Chinese character of China-seal script, and conveyed the information of human geography of China. A 2.7-meter-square window will be embedded in the outer wall in time, and the province to which the exhibition hall belongs will be marked behind the wall. The concept of Jiangnan garden is introduced into the architectural boundary, and the modern garden space park softens the relationship between architecture and city. "Of course, we can also plant some crops, let visitors participate in or witness their growth process, and then process them into food or new energy in the harvest season, complete a modern agricultural experiment, and comprehensively enhance the demonstration role of the China Pavilion in science and technology, ecology and environmental protection." Liu Dai revealed an imaginative idea to reporters.

In order to conform to the world trend and the spirit of the times, the design of China Pavilion has also introduced the most advanced scientific and technological achievements, making it conform to the concept of environmental protection and energy conservation. Picking out such a wide building itself is a powerful challenge to mechanics and materials science, and the difficulty is self-evident. The hall under the four pillars is a space that can go from east to west and from north to Nantong. In Shanghai, which has four distinct seasons, no matter what the weather is like during the exhibition, the audience can feel the airflow suitable for the human body touching their skin. Exterior wall materials are non-radioactive and pollution-free green products. For example, all doors and windows are made of LOM-E glass, which can not only reflect heat and reduce energy consumption, but also spray coatings to convert sunlight into electricity and store it, providing energy for building exterior wall lighting. The covering layer with a thickness of 1.5m on the platform of the regional pavilion can save more than 10% energy consumption for the pavilion. The observation deck at the top of the National Pavilion may also introduce the most advanced solar film to store sunlight and convert it into electricity. There is also a rainwater collection system on the top floor, and rainwater purification is used to flush toilets and vehicles. The story of the main building forms a self-shading shape, which saves energy for the lower space. All pipes and even subway vents are cleverly hidden in the building.

It is particularly worth mentioning that the traditional architecture in China embodies the fence thinking, and the cultural implication of introversion and closure has far-reaching influence. However, the National Pavilion has broken through this "city wall" for thousands of years. This is no longer a closed venue, and there is no "pedestrian stop" order. Its empty design provides great convenience for people to enter and leave freely. With unprecedented openness and tolerance, Red Dougong shows the confidence and affinity of China people after 30 years of reform and opening up.

"At that time, we will also introduce advanced interactive information technology to create the latest and unforgettable Expo experience. Its functional extension is immeasurable. Liu Dai also revealed that in the future, people can directly enter the exhibition hall from the subway line 8 station and carry out various public activities. "This is the present form of ancient style, which combines traditional elements and draws inspiration from the source of China culture. At the same time, every detail exudes a modern spirit and conveys the positive, moderate, open and brave attitude of the Chinese nation when it rises peacefully. China Pavilion faces the future. The design and construction of the China Pavilion should grasp the development trend of the building itself and the exhibition to ensure that it will not fall behind in 50 years. "

Two years later, this huge red bucket arch will rise in our field of vision as scheduled, and its symbolic and mechanical aesthetic feeling and cultural connotation will greatly enhance the self-confidence and pride of China people. Every day, a corner of it will arouse a glow from the East China Sea, conveying the latest news of China's reform and opening up.