Troika has been commissioned by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office to create three new art installations for UK’s Pavilion at the Shanghai 2010 World Expo to be displayed alongside the main UK pavilion; the Seed Cathedral, designed by Heatherwick Studio.
Set in the centre of a soft and open surrounding landscape, the Seed Cathedral presents a striking visual spectacle. The Seed Cathedral is a 20m high building formed by 60,000 slender acrylic rods which organically wave with the wind, each encapsulating plant seeds to create a breath-taking display of the world biodiversity.
Instead of a classical exhibition design, Troika devised a narrative concept consisting of 3 immersive and multilayered installations, GREEN CITY, OPEN CITY and LIVING CITY, inviting the visitors to experience the pavilion through all their senses. In each walkway leading to and away from the SEED CATHEDRAL unfolds an installation, part of a triptyque narrative presenting the relationship between Nature and the British cities, past, present and future.
Within this narrative, the Seed Cathedral embodies the 'now'. The first and second walkways present the UK's longstanding tradition of integrating Nature within the urban environment. The third installation, concluding the pavilion experience, explores possible visions for the future, proposing how nature can be used as a catalyst for urban innovation.