UK pavilion to focus on AI, innovations at Expo 2020
dubai — British artist Es Devlin OBE is set to design the UK Pavilion at Expo 2020 Dubai, which is set to highlight the UK’s expertise in artificial intelligence and the Space sector.
The UK Pavilion at Expo 2020 Dubai will be produced by the London and Dubai-based global brand experience agency, Avantgarde. The Department for International Trade will lead the UK government’s presence with cross-government support. Devlin and Avantgarde will join forces with Manchester-based structural engineers, Atelier One, and sustainability experts, Atelier Ten.
Es Devlin OBE is known for creating large-scale performative sculptures that fuse technology and poetry, including the interactive Fifth Lion sculpture installed in Trafalgar Square. Her design for the UK Pavilion is an illuminated sculptural message to which each of the Expos anticipated visitors will be invited to contribute.
Explaining her inspiration for the project and what she hopes it will achieve, Es Devlin OBE said: “The idea draws directly on one of Stephen Hawking’s final projects, ‘Breakthrough Message’, a global competition that Hawking and his colleagues conceived in 2015 inviting people worldwide to consider what message we would communicate to express ourselves as a planet, should we one day encounter other advanced civilisations in Space.”
“The quality of design proposals we received for the UK Pavilion were testament to the UK’s world leading creative talent and I’m confident that Es Devlin OBE and the team will help us take advantage of this unique opportunity to showcase the very best of British to a truly global audience,” said International Trade Secretary Dr Liam Fox MP. “Over six months, my international economic department will help connect with millions of Expo 2020 visitors who will make up the expected 25 million visits — that’s millions of buyers for our products, partners for our firms, tourists for our cities and students for our universities.”
Najeeb Mohammed Al-Ali, executive director of the Dubai Expo 2020 Bureau, said: “At Expo 2020 Dubai, our focus on empowering individuals and communities to create opportunities that help shape a better future drives everything we do. The UK Pavilion will be an intriguing platform for people to learn, have fun and work together to discover innovations and explore new frontiers in areas including space and Artificial Intelligence — echoing Expo 2020’s theme of ‘Connecting Minds, Creating the Future’. We look forward to seeing more compelling pavilion designs and themes revealed by other participating nations as we continue our countdown to Expo 2020.”