GREEN DESIGN PRINCIPLES OF SHANGHAI EXPO BASED ON WORDLE STUDY
OF ONLINE PERCEPTIONS
By
Yiwei Lu

A THESIS
Submitted to
Michigan State University
In partial fulfillment of the requirements
For the degree of
MASTER OF ARTS
Environmental Design
2011

1

ABSTRACT
GREEN DESIGN PRINCIPLES OF SHANGHAI EXPO BASED ON WORDLE STUDY
OF ONLINE PERCEPTIONS
By
Yiwei Lu

The Shanghai Expo is one of the largest Expo events in recent history, with 73 million
visitors, 240 countries and regions participating, and about 7 billion dollars investment.
Green design is the highlight of this event and its design elements are reflected in many
perspectives all over the fair, such as site plan, pavilion construction, and landscape design.
This study explores the perceptions of Shanghai Expo relating to green design and planning
by applying media resources— blogs and three major newspapers, and visual analysis
tool--Wordle. The analysis reveals the role of expos in society and how people perceive and
experience them. Issues related to the green landscape design guidelines and principles for
mega-events are discussed.

Key words: Expo, Shanghai Expo, Green Design, Wordle, Blogs, Newspapers

2

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
I am heartily thankful to my supervisor, Dr. Pat Crawford, whose encouragement,
guidance and support from the start to the completion enabled me to develop an
understanding of the subject. It is also an honor for me to show my gratitude to Dr. Mark
Wilson who enlightened me by posing questions and being inspirational in the whole process.
I would like to thank professors and friends at Michigan State University who sincerely help
me to finish the work. Lastly, the deepest care and support from my parents make this thesis
possible. I truly thank them for their distance support.

III

TABLE OF CONTENTS
LIST OF TABLES ...................................................................................................................VI
LIST OF FIGURES ............................................................................................................... VII
CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION .............................................................................................. 1
Overview ............................................................................................................................. 1
Goals and Objectives .......................................................................................................... 2
CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE AND BACKGROUND ............................................................. 3
Over View of Expo History ................................................................................................ 3
First Stage: Industrialization (1851–1932) .................................................................. 3
Second Stage: Cultural Exchange (1933–1987) .......................................................... 8
The Third Stage: Nation Branding (1988–1993) ....................................................... 11
The Forth Stage: Environmental Development (1994–present) ................................ 11
The 2010 Shanghai Expo .................................................................................................. 13
Introduction ................................................................................................................ 13
Original Wetland ........................................................................................................ 14
New Wetland .............................................................................................................. 15
Constructions and Materials ...................................................................................... 16
Attendance, Facilities and Space Usage .................................................................... 19
CHAPTER 3: METHODOLOGY ........................................................................................... 22
Selection of Pavilions ....................................................................................................... 22
Selection of Blogs about the Green Features of Pavilions at Shanghai Expo .................. 22
Selection of Newspapers ................................................................................................... 24
New York Times......................................................................................................... 24
Hong Kong Standard.................................................................................................. 26
People’s Daily ............................................................................................................ 27
Wordle ............................................................................................................................... 28
CHAPTER 4: RESULTS ......................................................................................................... 30
Wordle Analysis of Blogs ................................................................................................. 30
Wordle Analysis of The New York Times......................................................................... 35
Wordle Analysis of People’s Daily ................................................................................... 39
Wordle Analysis of People’s Daily- Orange .............................................................. 47
Wordle Analysis for People’s Daily- Blue ................................................................. 51
Wordle Analysis of Standard- HongKong ........................................................................ 55
Overall Themes of Blog and Three Newspapers .............................................................. 57
CHAPTER 5: DISCUSSION ................................................................................................... 59
Conclusion and Implications in Green Design and Expo Planning .................................. 59
Site Usage .................................................................................................................. 59
IV

Architecture................................................................................................................ 61
Landscape .................................................................................................................. 68
Theme ........................................................................................................................ 77
Pavilion Highlights .................................................................................................... 85
Lines ........................................................................................................................... 88
Summary ........................................................................................................................... 92
Limitation.......................................................................................................................... 94
APPENDIX .............................................................................................................................. 95
APPENDIX A: Sample-- Raw Blogs ................................................................................ 95
APPENDIX B: Sample-- News from New York Times ................................................... 97
APPENDIX C: Sample-- News from People’s Daily ..................................................... 102
APPENDIX D: Sample--News from Standard- Hong Kong .......................................... 105
REFERENCES ...................................................................................................................... 108

V

LIST OF TABLES
Table 1: Deleted Words and Replaced Words in Blogs for Wordle Analysis .................. 31
Table 2: Top Frequency Words in Wordle Analysis of Blogs.......................................... 32
Table 3：Deleted Words and Replaced Words in New York Times for Wordle Analysis
.................................................................................................................................... 36
Table 4：Top Frequency Words in Wordle Analysis of New York Times ..................... 37
Table 5：Deleted Words and Replaced Words in People’s Daily for Wordle Analysis.. 40
Table 6：Top Frequency Words in Wordle Analysis of People’s Daily ......................... 41
Table 7：
Deleted Words and Replaced Words in People’s Daily-Red for Wordle Analysis
.................................................................................................................................... 44
Table 8：Top Frequency Words in Wordle Analysis of People’s Daily-Red.................. 45
Table 9：Deleted Words and Replaced Words in People’s Daily-Orange for Wordle
Analysis...................................................................................................................... 47
Table 10：Top Frequency Words in Wordle Analysis of People’s Daily-Orange .......... 48
Table 11：Deleted Words and Replaced Words in People’s Daily-Blue for Wordle
Analysis...................................................................................................................... 51
Table 12：Top Frequency Words in Wordle Analysis of People’s Daily-Blue .............. 52
Table 13：Deleted Words and Replaced Words in Standard-HongKong for Wordle
Analysis...................................................................................................................... 55
Table 14：Top Frequency Words in Wordle Analysis of Standard-HongKong .............. 56

VI

LIST OF FIGURES
Figure 1: The Unisphere stands in the middle of Flushing Meadows-Corona Park (Author,
2011) ......................................................................................................................... 10
Figure 2: Old steel and wood for bridge (Author, 2010) .................................................. 17
Figure 3: Old steel as walkway (Author, 2010) ................................................................ 18
Figure 4: The framework of the old steel factory building was reused as the framework of
the new stage (Author, 2010) ..................................................................................... 18
Figure 5: Three chimneys of the old factory building (Club China 2009) ....................... 18
Figure 6: An old man brought a chair himself (Author, 2010) ......................................... 20
Figure 7: Mobile restroom were used at Expo site (Author, 2010) .................................. 20
Figure 8: Over-crowded Expo Bus (Author, 2010) .......................................................... 21
Figure 9: Wordle analysis of blogs (Author, 2010) .......................................................... 30
Figure 10: Wordle analysis of The New York Times (Author, 2010) .............................. 35
Figure 11: Wordle analysis of People’s Daily (Author, 2010) ......................................... 39
Figure 12: Wordle analysis of People’s Daily- red (Author, 2010) .................................. 44
Figure 13: Wordle analysis of People’s Daily- orange (Author, 2010) ............................ 47
Figure 14: Wordle analysis of People’s Daily- blue (Author, 2010) ................................ 51
Figure 15: Wordle analysis of Standard- HongKong (Author, 2010) .............................. 55
Figure 16: The Huangpu River (Author, 2010) ................................................................ 59
Figure 17: Republic of Korea Pavilion (Author, 2010) .................................................... 62
Figure 18: Han-geul Pixels (the Korean alphabet) and Art Pixels (Author, 2010)........... 63
Figure 19: The walls reflected magnificent colors at night (designboom 2010) .............. 63
Figure 20: South Korean national flag pattern (designboom 2010) ................................. 64
VII

Figure 21: Light pass through the roof (designboom 2010) ............................................. 65
Figure 22: Shadows were projected on the wall and the floor (designboom 2010) ......... 65
Figure 23: China pavilion (Author 2010) ......................................................................... 67
Figure 24: Dougong style (Author 2010).......................................................................... 67
Figure 25: Hong Kong and Macao pavilions were in the shadow of the National pavilion
(Author 2010)............................................................................................................. 68
Figure 26: People relaxed themselves in the open space (Author 2010) .......................... 69
Figure 27: Grapes were planted outside of the wall (Author 2010) ................................. 70
Figure 28: The green wall (Author 2010) ......................................................................... 71
Figure 29: A small garden placed between the wall and the pavilion (Author 2010) ...... 71
Figure 30: The French style green roof (Author 2010)..................................................... 74
Figure 31: Pillars with plants decorate the walls (Author 2010) ...................................... 74
Figure 32: Details of green pillars can be observed clearly through glass walls on the
second and third floors (Author 2010) ....................................................................... 75
Figure 33: The bamboo structure (Author 2010) .............................................................. 76
Figure 34: The bamboo floor (Author 2010) .................................................................... 76
Figure 35: Living plants grew on bamboo containers (Author 2010) .............................. 77
Figure 36: The music box- like appearance of Singapore Pavilion (Author 2010) .......... 79
Figure 37: The USA Pavilion looked like a cinema (Author 2010) ................................. 80
Figure 38: The bamboo dome (Author 2010) ................................................................... 81
Figure 39: The wind mill (Author 2010) .......................................................................... 81
Figure 40: The green wall (Author 2010) ......................................................................... 82
Figure 41: The green roof (Author 2010) ......................................................................... 82

VIII

Figure 42: The brick floor (Author 2010) ......................................................................... 83
Figure 43: The UK pavilion was built on a folded paper-like playground (Author 2010)
.................................................................................................................................... 84
Figure 44: Showcase of a mix of living plants (Author 2010) ......................................... 84
Figure 45: Huge maps of English cities on the wall (Author 2010) ................................. 85
Figure 46: “Little Mermaid” statue sitting on the side of a lake (Author 2010) ............... 86
Figure 47: The giant baby in the Spanish Pavilion (Bureau of the Shanghai World Expo
Coordination 2010) .................................................................................................... 88
Figure 48: Visitors waiting in line outside of the UK pavilion (Author 2010)................. 89
Figure 49: The tourists waited under the sunshine (Author 2010) ................................... 89
Figure 50: Wonderful performance outside of the New Zealand Pavilion (Hudong 2010)
.................................................................................................................................... 91

IX

CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION

Overview

The World Expo is one of only a few truly worldwide cultural events, and has evolved in
many ways since its inception in 1851. Perhaps the most influential change has been in their
design, which has greatly altered the role of expos in society and how people perceive and
experience them. This research explores perceptions of the 2010 World Expo in Shanghai,
China through the use of on-line blogs, newspaper reports and on-site field studies.
The Shanghai Expo is one of the largest in recent history, with 73 million domestic and
international visitors enjoying more than 22,900 events and attractions over a six month
st

st

period between May 1 and October 31 , 2010. (Coordination 2011) The Shanghai site is
located on 2.04 sq miles of the Huangpu River. Over 200 countries participated in the
Shanghai Expo, with each one spending millions of dollars to design and build their pavilions.
In addition to the national pavilions, the Expo included many corporate, themed and various
service pavilions designed in different styles using unique planning, design and construction
techniques.
Each pavilion provides its own unique visual landscape, offering a feast for the senses as
visitors stroll through. Additionally, three beautiful parks are constructed on the Expo site,
providing a relatively quiet change of pace from the constant bustle of the crowded pavilions.
The Shanghai Expo successfully fitted an amazing array of highly creative constructions and
landscapes into a relatively small area while accommodating millions of visitors in only a few
months’ time. This makes the Expo a valuable mega event for the study of planning and
1

design.

Goals and Objectives

To evaluate the planning and design of Shanghai Expo, personal experiences, reference
studies and critiques from some of the Expo’s 73 million visitors are used. Two major media:
newspapers and Internet blogs are chosen for data collection. Wordle, a digital content
analysis tool, provides a visual hierarchy of the on-line content with supporting frequency
data of word/concept usage. The Wordle interpretation is augmented with field observations
and photographs made by the author while attending the Shanghai Expo. The goal of the
research is to explore perceptions of mega-events relating to green design and planning.
Objectives include, 1) document field experiences and green design practices of the Shanghai
Expo, 2) use Wordle as a visual analysis tool of text data, and 3) explore perceptions using
blogs and three newspapers, the New York Times, People’s Daily and the Standard- Hong
Kong, 4) formulate design principles for mega events.

2

CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE AND BACKGROUND

Over View of Expo History

International expositions have changed names over their history. Initially, they were
known as the “World’s Fair,” but in 1967 the name was changed to “World Expo,” which is
still in use currently. The first Expo was called “The Great Exhibition of the Works of
Industry of all Nations.” Since the first Expo in 1851, which was held in Hyde Park, London,
42 Expos have been periodically presented in different parts of the world. The most recent is
being held in Shanghai, China.
Even though there are many Expos, Walvis, a researcher in this area, argues that each
Expo is different. He categorizes Expos into three eras: industrialization, cultural exchange,
and nation branding, respectively. (Walvis 2004) He describes the current era as nation
branding. Before discussing the details of this study, it is relevant to first discuss the historical
evolution of Expos as described by Walvis. (Walvis 2004)

First Stage: Industrialization (1851–1932)

In the 19th century, with the dramatic development of industry, England led the world’s
economy. To reinforce its leading economic position and expand its global market, England
needed a platform to display its modern industrial machines and affordable products. It was
this need that led to the first Expo being held in London in 1851. Initiated by Queen
Victoria’s consort, Prince Albert, it was called “The Great Exhibition of the Works of
Industry of all Nations”, and was held in Hyde Park. (Rydell et al. 2000) The fair ran from
3

st

May 1

th

through October 11 . During this five months run, 28 nations participated, over

6,000,000 visitors toured, and about 17,000 exhibitors attended. (Findling and Pelle 1990)
The Great Exhibition had four categories of displays: Manufacturing, Machinery, Raw
Materials, and Fine Arts. These categories later became the standard for later exhibitions.
(Greenhalgh 2011) The grand centerpiece of this exhibition was called the Crystal Palace, and
was constructed of iron and glass plates. This building was extolled and loved by fair visitors
for its glorious appearance and eventually the Expo of 1851became known as “the Crystal
Palace Exhibition”. Following the dismantling of the Expo, the Crystal Palace was rebuilt in
suburban London and served as an exhibition and entertainment center. (Rydell et al. 2000)
The London World’s fair became a huge success and eventually turned a profit of
￡186,000. These funds were used for educational purposes, establishing Albert Hall, the
Science Museum, the Victoria and Albert Museum, and the National History Museum. (Davis
1999) The Crystal Palace Exhibition created a new kind of event which combined industrial
and artistic displays. Cutting edge technology was on display with new inventions and
innovations such as the steam engine and new manufactured products. New technologies
were also evident in the construction of the actual exhibits.
Inspired by the first world’s fair held in London, other western countries began hosting
world’s fairs in such cities as Philadelphia, Vienna, Paris and Amsterdam. Some of them
hosted multiple fairs. For example, Paris held no less than six world’s fairs, occurring in 1855,
1867, 1878, 1889, 1900 and 1937. Among them, the 1855 Paris Expo cost nearly 2.3 million
dollars to produce, exhibiting products in Agriculture, Industry and Arts. (Findling and Pelle
1990)

4

America is one of the most frequent countries hosting world’s fairs. Many cities in
America have hosted world’s fairs, such as New York, San Francisco, Chicago, Philadelphia,
Los Angeles, Boston and Atlanta. Some of these fairs proved to be very influential, with
perhaps the 1893 Chicago World’s fair being the most prominent.
In 1893, the World’s Columbian Exhibition was held in Chicago to commemorate
Christopher Columbus and the discovery of the New World in 1492. (Findling and Pelle 1990)
After being devastated by fire in 1871, Chicago was eager for an opportunity to rebuild the
city and reinforce its significant domestic and international stature. Moreover, in the City
Beautiful Movement, the middle and upper class proposed to transform the city’s appearance
by promoting its aesthetic function. At that time, four cities competed with Chicago for the
honor to host this event. In the end, viewed as the communication and commercial center in
western America, Chicago defeated its rivals, including New York, St. Louis and Washington.
(Burg 1976)
On May 1st, the Columbian Exhibition was hosted in Jackson Park, between Chicago
and Lake Michigan. (Burg 1976) Similar to other fairs in the industrialization era, the new
innovations of technology and industrialization brought many surprises to the public. The
buildings were covered with a bright white plaster mixture which looked like marble. Due to
this novel appearance, the fair site became known as the “White City”. (Rydell 1987) Another
innovation on display was the application of new electrical light bulbs created by Thomas
Edison. This allowed the White City to stand out due to its amazing illuminated night views.
Additionally, nearly every pavilion was constructed with a mixture of gray mud, cement and
jute fiber attached to a wood skeleton. (Harris et al. 1993) This new type of construction

5

provided people an economical method to build attractive buildings in a short time. The
White City impressed Chicago’s citizens so much that they hired Daniel Burnham, one of the
designers of the Columbian Exhibition, to do a master plan to apply the principles of the
White City in the real world. (Badger 1979) This exhibition helped to promote t he
appearance of the city by providing the public with an appealing vision of futuristic life.
The cultural and economic impacts of this Expo were many. Locally, the Columbian
Exhibition brought several advantages to the host city. The fair contributed to the city
re-planning and rebuilding, resulting in aesthetic and social gain for the area. The new
Chicago was full of beauty and grandeur compared to the old one, enhancing Chicagoans’
confidence in their future. The fair also stimulated local economic growth and provided extra
job opportunities. Thousands of people benefited from this due to the need to operate the fair
on a daily basis. On a much larger scale, job growth was also provided by the growing
demands of industries which were directly or indirectly influenced by the exhibition. New
technology and fresh products were viewed and accepted by the public. They enriched
people’s daily life and increased their quality of life. The desire for modern amenities and
products encouraged the creation of new technology. The fair also provided a blueprint for
future metropolitan areas which addressed the growing population, pollution, and many urban
social problems. After the Columbian Exhibition, there are another 40 World’s fairs in the
next 40 years held all over the world. The industrialization era has more fairs than any other
era. In the early 20th century, due to the impact of two world wars and the subsequent
economic and cultural upheavals they generated, the quantity and quality of the world’s fairs
declined significantly. Although several world’s fairs were held after World War I, such as the

6

1915 San Francisco Exhibition, most were organized by a number of countries as small
professional exhibitions, like the 1925 Paris Exhibition and the 1926 Philadelphia Exhibition.
During this period, world’s fairs were organized and conducted under the leadership of
national governments. (Greenhalgh 2011) Influenced by strong political factors, world’s fairs
in this period appeared chaotic and lacked uniform rules. In response to this situation, a
standard management of the world’s fairs was proposed.
In 1928, 31 countries gathered in Paris to discuss the standard management of world’s
fairs. At this meeting, representatives from 31 countries discussed what a host country’s
responsibilities should be, the obligations of participating countries and the frequency and
organizing methods of world’s fairs. (Davis 1999) At this same meeting, the BIE
(International Expositions Bureau) was established as the governing organization of world’s
fairs. The two main goals of BIE were as follows:
1) to oversee the calendar, bidding, selection and organization of World Expositions;
2) to establish a regulatory framework under which Expo organizers and participants
may work together under the best conditions. (Findling and Pelle 1990)
Expos within the industrialization era focused on promoting trade by displaying the
advancements of industrial civilization. In these fairs, numerous industrial advancements and
technological inventions were displayed. The advancement of knowledge led to the industrial
revolution, which promoted economic and social developments. Trade is the main purpose of
these exhibitions in the first era, however, the economic advantages gained were limited to a
national or local level. Although these fairs are called world’s fairs, they had few international
participants and little global attention. These exhibitions, which were the prototypes of

7

modern expos, can hardly be called real international exhibitions.

Second Stage: Cultural Exchange (1933–1987)

The second stage of World’s fair’s history is called “cultural exchange”. In this era,
although industrialization was still a significant focus of these exhibitions, they had switched
their emphasis toward new themes about people and cultures. (Walvis 2004) For example, the
influential Utopian ideals theory, which aimed to seek the ideal community, was presented
during this period. (Rydell et al. 2000) It was also in this period, BIE decided to call these
exhibitions “Expos” instead of “World's Fairs” in 1967. (Findling and Pelle 1990)
In 1933, Chicago planned a fair for its centennial to commemorate the huge success of
the 1893 Chicago exhibition. The theme of this fair was ‘A Century of Progress’. Its aim was
to celebrate advances in science and technology. (Findling and Pelle 1990) This is the first
time a theme was introduced at a world’s fair. After that, every subsequent world’s fair had its
own theme or concept. These concepts usually reflected an issue or issues concerning society.
The aim of these themes is to highlight these issues and capture people’s attention in order to
help participating countries and international organizations find solutions.
After the 1935 Brussels World’s Fair and Paris’s sixth World’s Fair in 1937, New York
hosted the 1939 World’s fair for the second time. (Findling and Pelle 1990) On April 30th,
1939, the New York World’s Fair opened on the site of Flushing Meadows, Queens. The
themes were “Building the World of Tomorrow” and “For Peace and Freedom”. The fair was
divided into two six month seasons in 1939 and 1940. (Rydell et al. 2000) In the first season
of 1939, the Expo painted an optimistic picture of the future. It focused on the future of

8

human beings, presenting Utopian ideals and the benefits of scientific progress. The designer
displayed a utopian futuristic urban space set in the year 2039 for the interior of the
Preisphere, which was one of the two main symbols of the fair. (Rydell et al. 2000)
Different from previous fairs, the 1939-1940 New York Fair selected an abandoned plot
of land as its site, rather than an existing park. Flushing Meadows was a marshy place located
in Queens, where the city dumped refuse. (Findling and Pelle 1990) Robert Moses, New York
City’s parks commissioner, who chose the site, wanted to develop the waste land by building
the fair which would later become a large park. (Rydell et al. 2000) The process of
developing the site was exactly like the words written on the placard of Flushing
Meadows-Corona Park, “Flushing Meadows-Corona Park, today New York’s second largest
park, has risen like a phoenix from the ashes.” The site today is the largest park in Queens,
and serves as a Tennis Center. Some structures from the fair remain, and have been adapted to
other purposes. The grand symbol of the fair, the Perisphere still stands, taking on the role of
landmark and story teller. (Figure 1)

9

Figure 1: The Unisphere stands in the middle of Flushing Meadows-Corona Park
(Author, 2011) For interpretation of the references to color in this and all other figures, the
reader is referred to the electronic version of this thesis.

With the outbreak of war in Europe in 1939, people changed their focus from visions of
the future to peace and freedom for the world. The theme of the Expo in the second season
was “Peace and Freedom”. The war influenced the 1940 expo in different aspects. It directly
led to a reduction in visitors and profitability, as well as the absence of some pavilions, such
as the Soviet Pavilion. (Findling and Pelle 1990)
Although the original plan was interrupted by the war, the New York World’s Fair can
still be considered a meaningful event. It successfully promoted the global exchange of
culture, technology, art and products. It presented contemporary demands, and expressed the
desire for an optimistic, peaceful future. Additionally, the New York World’s fair can be

10

called a truly international exhibition compared to earlier fairs. By the time the fair opened,
fifty-eight nations had agreed to exhibit. (Findling and Pelle 1990) This is the first time the
World’s fair actually presented on the world wide stage. The New York Fair also created a
way to combine Expo site usage and the development of wasteland. It provided later
designers a new concept to develop or revive a region.

The Third Stage: Nation Branding (1988–1993)

Since 1988, Expos have changed their focus from cultural exchange to national branding.
(Walvis 2004) In Expos of the Nation Branding era, countries always use their national
pavilions as windows to show off their advantages and achievements. These events provide
an ideal opportunity for counties to promote their national images. Expos were becoming
platforms for nations to brand themselves from different perspectives, particularly culturally
and economically.

The Forth Stage: Environmental Development (1994–present)

Since 1994, Expos emphasized on themes related with ecology, sustainability and green
design. The recent Expos all stress the relationship between environment and humans. The
hosting country raised environmental problems during the Expo, calling participating nation’s
attentions to the environment, and wished some effective resolutions could be achieved to
solve these problems.
Although world’s fairs and expos have been divided into four different eras according to
their different times, they were not limited to just the particular characteristics of their era.
Actually, today's world’s expositions incorporate elements of all four eras. They display new
11

inventions, industrial facilities; focus on cultural exchange based on a theme; are used for
shaping and promoting city, regional and national branding; and focus on environmental
issues about energy saving, pollution elimination, sustainable construction, and green design.
st

The 2010 Shanghai Expo was held in the Pudong District of China. It opened on May 1 ,
st

and closed on October 31 . (Bureau of the Shanghai World Expo Coordination 2011)The
theme for the Shanghai Expo is “Better city, Better life.” (Bureau of the Shanghai World
Expo Coordination 2011) This theme illustrates the goals of promoting quality of life in the
modern city while facing such urban social problems as, increasing population, pollution,
transportation problems and poverty.
The site is located in the center of Shanghai city, on the waterfront between the Nanpu
Bridge and the Lupu Bridge. The site is 1304.716 acres, of which 971.124 acres are located in
Pudong Park, and 333.592 acres in Puxi Park. (Bureau of the Shanghai World Expo
Coordination 2011) After seven years of preparation, the exhibition site now has a more
convenient transportation system through the use of various vehicles, including rails,
highways, water ferries and other transportation facilities. There were approximately 200
countries participating in the Shanghai Expo and 70,000,000 visitors are estimated to have
toured the exhibition. (Bureau of the Shanghai World Expo Coordination 2011)
The Shanghai Expo stands out for its dizzying variety of national and regional pavilions.
Many countries invested heavily in their national pavilions, such as France and Germany.
Among all these elaborate pavilions, the China Pavilion commanded the most attention
through its centralized location, size, extravagant appearance and culturally symbolic
meaning.

12

Painted in seven different shades of red, the China Pavilion at the 2010 World Expo, is at
first glance, a very obviously Chinese structure. (Bureau of the Shanghai World Expo
Coordination 2010) This houses an interior that is actually a complex structure celebrating a
diverse range of traditional Chinese elements, including architecture, calligraphy, gardening
and urban planning. The China Pavilion is 63 meters’ tall, triple the height of any other
pavilion, and is called "The Crown of the East". (Bureau of the Shanghai World Expo
Coordination 2010)
After the Shanghai Expo closed in October, the history of the Expo will still live on. The
Yeosu Expo will be held in Korea in 2012, and Milan Expo in Italy in 2015. As time goes on,
Expos in the future may have some distinctive meanings and goals; however, Expos will
always be vehicles of change to contribute to the lives of human beings.

The 2010 Shanghai Expo

Introduction

On May 1st, the 2010 Expo was held in Shanghai and it lasted for 6 months. During this
period, more than 200 hundreds countries were involved and over 73 million people attended.
(Bureau of the Shanghai World Expo Coordination 2010) There are numerous interesting
highlights in the Expo which attracted the attendees, and most of them are well connected to
the theme “Better City, Better Life”, which aimed to produce a green Expo. The idea of
holding a green Expo is not only beneficial to the 70 million plus visitors, but also leaves a
green legacy in Shanghai and contributes to worldwide initiatives of making cities greener
and more sustainable. (UNEP. 2009) The green Expo’s intent was to focus on the relationship
13

between city and environment while striking a balance between urban development and a
sustainable future.
This intent can be found in many aspects of the Expo, such as the emblem and Mascot, a
cartoon character named Haobao. (Bureau of the Shanghai World Expo Coordination 2011)
The emblem looks like the first Chinese word of Expo, and is designed as three persons’
hand-in-hand, symbolizing harmony between peoples. Haibao used the color of ocean—blue,
which represents the balance between humans and nature. (UNEP. 2009) Most of the designs
at the Shanghai Expo are called green designs. Although some of them are eco-friendly and
sustainable, others do not perform well enough to qualify as green designs.

Original Wetland

In Houtan Park, one of three main parks included in the Shanghai Expo, a wetland
occupies a large area. One part of the park belongs to an original wetland which is about 10
million acres and 1.1 miles long. (Yu 2010) It is the only remaining original wetland in the
Shanghai urban area, and plays a significant role ecologically and aesthetically. This includes
the storage of water, regulating the water cycle, improvement of water quality, transformation
of nutrients, habitat for a diversity of aquatic and terrestrial plants and landscape aesthetics.
Due to the Expo, as an integrated part of the ecosystem, the original wetland has been
preserved and is being cared for. The soil is nourished and more appropriate wetland
vegetation has been planted where needed while keeping the natural characteristics and
function of the original wetland. The project has produced results, successfully preserving
and nourishing the only original wetland in Urban Shanghai.

14

New Wetland

Due to the success of the preservation project of the remnant of wetland on the Expo site,
Shanghai devised a plan to restore the wetland to its original size. This was a monumental
task, as the rest of the old wetlands were occupied by a heavily polluting steel factory and a
shipyard. (Yuanyuan 2007)
After the removal of the steel factory and shipyard, what is left behind is a large plot of
polluted land. The soil is disturbed and polluted, and invasive plants have destroyed the
natural vegetation community. Additionally, the water resource is severely polluted. The
water quality in the nearby Huangpu River is sorted as grade V or even worse. (Yu 2010)
According to the Surface Water Quality Standards of People’s Republic of China, water is
sorted into 5 grades due to the purities. Among the 5 grades, grade V means the water has
been heavily polluted. (State Environmental Protection Administration of China 2002)
A series of measures are taken to deal with these severe environmental problems:
constructions are removed and garbage is cleaned up, toxic soil is replaced with high quality
soil, water is introduced from the Huangpu River to support the wetland (Yuanyuan 2007)
and appropriate vegetation is reintroduced. A few fountains and special benches are installed
to accommodate visitors. After all these projects are done, people surprisingly find that the
original brownfield has been transformed into an amazing wetland park. There are lush plants
and a diversity of living creatures, such as fish and birds. The whole of Houtan Park now
seems like a paradise of plants, fish, worms and birds.
The combined preserved and restored wetland now serves as a sustainable integrated
water system linked to the Expo. The water system contributes to the regulation of
15

stormwater, runoff, underground recharge, water volume, humidity and temperature,
reduction of sediments and minimizing erosion. Another significant benefit of the wetland is
that the water quality improved significantly because of the purification function of the
wetland. Additionally, the wetland provides an open space for mental restoration, recreation
and social activities. The wetland has proven to be an obvious highlight at the green Expo.

Constructions and Materials

Prior to the Expo, there were many old warehouses, workshops, factories and shipyards
located on the site. All of these structures had to be relocated and rebuilt elsewhere. This left
behind a great amount of old construction materials and waste. However, from the
perspective of sustainable site design theory, those wastes can be seen as raw material to be
used for the new development, such as bridges (Figure 2) and walkways (Figure 3). In the
process of building Shanghai Expo, a lot of these constructions are rebuilt and materials are
recycled. For example, the original chimney of Shanghai Nashi power plant is a 541 foot high
cylindrical structure and it is transformed into a 659 feet’s high sightseeing tower. (Jiemin
2008) This tower became a landmark for the Shanghai Expo and is named the “Expo
Harmony Tower”.
Other buildings were also recycled. An old steel factory is converted to house the
Baogang Stage. The framework of the old steel factory is reused as the framework for the
new building (Figure 4). This huge factory building covers about 2.5 acres which is large
enough to house numerous and sizable audiences. The Baogang Stage can seat 3500 people
and is the largest stage at the Shanghai Expo. (Window of China 2009) Plants used both

16

inside and outside of the construction, help cool the temperature and provide visitors with a
touch of nature. Three giant chimneys have been preserved and converted to vents in which
fans have been installed to control the temperature (Figure 5).

Figure 2: Old steel and wood for bridge (Author, 2010)

17

Figure 3: Old steel as walkway (Author, 2010)

Figure 4: The framework of the old steel factory building was reused as the framework
of the new stage (Author, 2010)

Figure 5: Three chimneys of the old factory building (Club China 2009)
The preservation and utilization of old factory buildings and recycling of materials in the
Baogang Stage project provide many benefits. A lot of funding and labor resources for
18

building construction and purchasing materials are saved. The project efficiently reduces the
consumption of energy and materials. It also reduces harmful gas generation and emissions,
and weakens noise to some extent. The comparatively simple project results in a shorter
project period. The preservation and reuse of old construction and unique elements contribute
to a strong sense of place. Lastly, the Baogang Stage rebuilding project will serve as an
example to influence design ideas of the future.

Attendance, Facilities and Space Usage

According to the official assessment, about 70,000,000 attendees were estimated to have
visited the Shanghai Expo during the six month period. That breaks down to about 400,000
tourists daily. The actual attendance is 73,080,000, (Bureau of the Shanghai World Expo
Coordination 2011) very close to the estimated attendance. Despite the best efforts of the
event planners, the facilities on site were inadequate to serve so many tourists. Lines for
pavilions were so long that visitors queued 6 hours or longer for a popular pavilion. There
were not enough available benches, prompting many visitors to bring their own chairs (Figure
6). Tourists complained of long waiting times for restrooms, leading to an army of mobile
restrooms being brought in to alleviate the problem (Figure 7). Free public vehicles like Expo
buses and ferries are always over-crowded and overwhelmed (Figure 8).

19

Figure 6: An old man brought a chair himself (Author, 2010)

Figure 7: Mobile restroom were used at Expo site (Author, 2010)
20

Figure 8: Over-crowded Expo Bus (Author, 2010)
Another interesting phenomenon is that, although the main expo site is so crowded that
visitors can scarcely draw a breath, few visitors can be found in the Expo parks. One can only
speculate at this point as to why the parks were largely ignored. Maybe visitors came only to
see the pavilions and performances. Perhaps the parks are too far away from the main
entrances. Newspapers and websites may have talked little about the parks. The exact reasons
have not been studied yet.

21

CHAPTER 3: METHODOLOGY

Selection of Pavilions

In the era of Environmental Development, environmental issues like ecological design,
sustainable construction are emphasized. In this article, several pavilions of Shanghai Expo
are chosen to analyze their green designs. Pavilions are selected due to their importance of
green features and visitors’ attentions. Pavilions selected in this article have the most
significant green features and high attentions of tourists. They include: China Pavilion,
Denmark Pavilion, French Pavilion, Indian Pavilion, Indonesian Pavilion, Luxembourg
pavilion, New Zealand Pavilion, Republic of Korean Pavilion, Shanghai Corporate Joint
Pavilion, Spanish Pavilion, and The UK Pavilion. However, Singapore Pavilion and the USA
Pavilion are selected due to their deficiency in design.

Selection of Blogs about the Green Features of Pavilions at Shanghai Expo

The method used to select blogs is relatively simple. Blogs were found by using a
“Google” search engine for the first step, then selecting the rough result one by one through
reading the main idea.
Google Inc. is a multinational public corporation investing in Internet search, cloud
computing, and advertising technologies. Google hosts and develops a number of
Internet-based services and products. (Google 2011) The Google web search engine is the
company's most popular service. According to market research of search engine rankings
published by comScore in November 2009, Google is the dominant search engine in the
22

United States market, with a market share of 65.6%. (comScore 2011) Google indexes
trillions of web pages, so that users can search for the information they desire through the use
of keywords and operators. Google runs over one million servers in data centers around the
world, (Pandia Search Engine News 2007) and processes over one billion search requests,
and about twenty-four petabytes of user-generated data every day. (techcrunch 2008) Google
search engine is one of the most efficient search engines in use today.
The steps I took to select the blogs about pavilion green features at Shanghai Expo are as
follows. For example, if I wanted to search blogs about the green features of the French
Pavilion, I input the keywords “France Pavilion”, “Shanghai Expo”, “Green Feature”, and
“Blog” into the search engine, and then searched. I would get millions of results listed on
thousands of pages. I then selected those results in the first 10 pages, and picked the suitable
blogs which efficiently reflected the comments on the green features of France’s Pavilion. If I
could not get enough blogs, I tried other keywords. In the end, I collected 144 pages of raw
blogs (Microsoft Word size 12-pointed font, and single space text in A4 pages with pictures
included). For example, by viewing the Shanghai Expo website and the blogs I selected in the
first search process, I found the two highlights: “roof garden”, and “green wall”. I then input
the keywords “France Pavilion”, “Shanghai Expo”, “roof garden”, and “blog”, and searched
and selected again. After the process finished, I would input the keywords “France Pavilion”,
“Shanghai Expo”, “green wall”, and “blog” for the third search. I would continue this kind of
search process until I get enough blogs about the green features of the French Pavilion.
This same method is used to locate blogs about all other Pavilions which are discussed
here.

23

Selection of Newspapers

To study the news about the 2010 Shanghai Expo, three newspapers are selected. They
are the New York Times, Standard- Hong Kong, and People’s Daily. Information about the
Expo was collected from these newspapers. Articles reported by the New York Times and
Standard- Hong Kong were collected, if they made mention of the Expo, from May 1st (the
st

date Shanghai Expo opened) to October 31 (the date Shanghai Expo closed). Meanwhile,
articles from People’s Daily about the 2010 Shanghai Expo were selected according to their
publication dates.
th

th

From May to August, articles were chosen from the 10 , 20

th

and 30 of each month.

In September and October, articles were collected on the following days: September 10th,
th

st

th

September 20 , October 1 , October 20

th

and October 30 . The reason that October 1st is

th

st

selected instead of September 30 , is because October 1 was the national day of China.
There were several high profile articles and an increased number of reports covering the Expo
on that day. Additionally, there were no articles about the Expo reported by People’s Daily on
th

October 10 .
The selection of newspapers was very important to ensure that the news about the 2010
Shanghai Expo was comprehensive, impartial and influential. The New York Times,
Standard- Hong Kong, and People’s Daily were selected due to their history, sizes, format,
range of issues and sphere of influence.

New York Times

The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded by journalist and
24

politician Henry Jarvis Raymond, and has been published in New York City since September
1851. (The New York Times Company 2011) The paper’s original name was the New-York
Daily Times until it was changed to The New York Times in 1857. (The New York Times
Company 2011) During 1870-1871, the New York Times was widely accepted by the public
and its influence grew considerably. In its 160 years of existence, the New York Times has
become a major international newspaper. Its coverage, circulation and reputation are
international in scope. According to the New York Times Company’s report, the 12-month
average circulation of 2010 was 906,100 each weekday and 1,356,800 each Sunday. (The
New York Times Company 2010)
The New York Times is mainly organized into three sections: News, Opinion and
Features. The contents cover a wide range of fields, including international and national news,
technology, science, health, sports, education, weather, arts and other varied topics. (The New
York Times Company 2011)
The New York Times is owned by The New York Times Company, which also publishes
18 other regional newspapers including the International Herald Tribune and The Boston
Globe. (The New York Times Company 2011) For the last 150 years, The New York Times
has maintained one of the most authoritative news vocabularies ever developed. According to
the data published by the Audit Bureau of Circulations, The New York Times’ average
circulation is the third highest of all American newspaper companies during the period from
st

st

Oct. 1 , 2010 to Mar. 21 , 2011, just behind The Wall Street Journal and USA Today. In the
list provided by the Audit Bureau of Circulations, the New York Times’ daily circulation was
916,911 and its Sunday circulation was 1,339,462. (Audit Bureau of Circulations 2011) The

25

Times has won 101 Pulitzer Prizes, more than any other newspaper. (The New York Times
Company 2011)
The New York Times has had its own domain—nytimes.com since 1996, and has been
ranked as one of the top web sites. According to the U.S. comScore media data for May 2010,
the New York Times ranks as the top online newspaper. The report showed that more than
123 million Americans visited newspaper sites in May, and the New York Times Brand had
more than 32 million visitors and 719 million pages viewed during the month. The average
visitor viewed 22 pages of content on the New York Times site, which also leads the top ten.
(Reston 2010) As of May 2009, nytimes.com produced 22 of the 50 most popular newspaper
blogs. (Carlson 2009)

Hong Kong Standard

The Hong Kong Standard is the first free English daily newspaper in Hong Kong. (The
Standard 2011) Originally named The Hong Kong Tiger Standard, it was founded after the
end of the Chinese Civil War. (The Standard 2011) On September 2007, The Standard
became a free newspaper to be distributed in commercial districts.
The Hong Kong Standard is sorted into two major parts: Sections and Features. News
sections present the latest Local news, Business, China, World and Sports events, while the
Features sections cover a wide range of topics. (The Standard 2011)
As the second largest newspaper in Hong Kong, the Hong Kong Standard is the first and
only free local newspaper. Distributed at 247 street points, the Hong Kong Standard has an
audited circulation of 222,413 copies a day. (The Standard 2011)

26

People’s Daily

The People's Daily is a daily newspaper, which was established on June 15, 1948. It was
published in Pingshan, Hebei, until its offices were moved to Beijing in March 1949. Since
its founding, the People's Daily has been under direct control of the Communist Party of
China’s top leadership. As one of the world’s top ten newspapers, the People’s Daily has
national and global influence.
st

On Jan. 1 , 1997, the People’s Daily began to operate its official website-- the People’s
Daily Online, using it as a large-scale information platform. (People's Daily Online 2011)
The People’s daily generally provides direct information on the policies and viewpoints
of the Party, so it is called the voice of the Communist Party of China. Issues are organized
into sections: news, opinions, China military, foreign affairs, learn Chinese, China study and
forum. (People's Daily online 2011) The People’s Daily mainly focuses on political news and
critics, and the contents of the paper mainly deal directly or indirectly with the great issues of
China.
The People's Daily is a daily newspaper, which is the organ of the Central Committee of
the Communist Party of China (CPC). It is also one of the most authoritative papers, as well
as the second largest comprehensive paper in China. The People's Daily is published
worldwide with a circulation of 2.35 million in 2009. In addition to its main
Chinese-language edition, it offers 15 versions in 14 languages. (People's Daily Online 2011)
It maintains an online presence--People's Daily Online. With users from 200 countries and
regions in the world, the People’s Daily online is also one of the largest comprehensive
Internet media. (People's Daily Online 2011)
27

Wordle

Wordle is online visual software which is used to analysis data collected from blogs and
newspapers in this article. Wordle clearly present the most frequent words in collections of
blogs and each newspaper by providing both the visual depiction of words and lists of word
counts. After reviewing the analysis results of wordle, the key words which relate the popular
topics about plan and design of Shanghai Expo are successfully found out.
A tag cloud (or weighted list in visual design) is a visual depiction of user-generated tags,
or simply the word content of a site, and is typically used to describe the content of web sites.
Tags are usually single words and are normally listed alphabetically, and the importance of
each tag is identified by font size or color. (Halvey and Keane 2007) It is possible to find a
tag alphabetically and by popularity. The tags are usually hyperlinks that lead to a collection
of items that are associated with a tag. Sometimes, further visual properties are manipulated,
such as the font color, intensity, or weight. (Lohmann, Ziegler, and Tetzlaff 2009) A simple
tool to create Word Clouds can be found at Wordle. The official website
is http://www.wordle.net/, where customers can create their own tag clouds.
The common use of the term "tag cloud" began in the first decade of the 21st century. It
was mainly used to describe the frequency distribution of keyword metadata that describe
website content, and as a navigation aid. (Tagcloud 2011) The first tag clouds on a
high-profile website were on the photo sharing site Flickr, created by Flickr co-founder and
interaction designer Stewart Butterfield. (Tagcloud 2011)
The first published appearance of a tag cloud in the English language may have been the
"subconscious files" in Douglas Coupland's Microserfs, while the appearance in German
28

occurred at least three years earlier. (Deleuze, Guattari, and Ricke 1992)
In recent years, tag clouds are becoming more and more popular because of their role
in search engine optimization of web pages. It is used to improve the site's search engine
rank.
Tag cloud applications in social software are categorized into three main types by their
meanings. In the first type, there is a tag for the frequency of each item. The size represents
the number of times that tag has been applied to a single item. (Bielenberg and Zacher 2005)
In the second type, there are global tag clouds where the frequencies are aggregated over all
items and users. In this type, size represents the number of items to which a tag has been
applied, representing each tag's popularity. (Tagcloud 2011) In the third type, the cloud
contains categories, with size indicating the number of subcategories. (Tagcloud 2011)

29

CHAPTER 4: RESULTS

Data from each of the sources is analyzed with a word cloud. Common words, such as
“the,” “and,” “if” are deleted and words with spelling or capitalization variations are replaced
for the analysis (see Table 1 as an example). Word frequencies are provided (see Table 2 as
an example) and a discussion is provided to explain in more detail the most frequently
mentions words.

Wordle Analysis of Blogs

Figure 9: Wordle analysis of blogs (Author, 2010)

30

Table 1: Deleted Words and Replaced Words in Blogs for Wordle Analysis
Delete

Delete

Delete

Replace

the
and
to
of
and
in
is
that
at
for
I
2010
on
was
are
as
with
not
it
this
you
be
from
have
by
an

they
post
one
more
or
so
others
will
can
all
their
no
about
were
also
had
my
would
am
only
what
very
out
which
like
people

some
there
pm
up
our
its
been
most
than
reply
do
if
says
just
get
see
think
first
day
good
many
really
different
well
but
we

Pavilions-Pavilion
pavilion-Pavilion
pavilions-Pavilion
expo-Expo
country's-country
Country-country
China-China
China-China
U.S-America
US-America
USA-America
American-America
Americans-America
visitors-visitor
India-Indian
Comments-comment
Design-design
designed-design
Singaporeans-Singapore

31

Table 2: Top Frequency Words in Wordle Analysis of Blogs
Word
Expo
Shanghai
Pavilion
China
Visitor
country
Singapore
Indian
first
time
America
site
way
comment
building
experience
design
architecture
government

Freq
253
219
187
148
95
74
65
42
39
31
31
30
29
25
25
24
22
19
19

Description of Top Frequency words in Wordle Analysis of Blogs
Singapore
There are a lot of descriptions and comments about Singapore Pavilion in the blogs.
People discussed that the music-box-like Singapore Pavilion was inspired by the
harmony of unique elements in Singapore, and the unique Singapore experience culminated
in the “Hanging Garden” – a rooftop garden where visitors had a first-hand feel of Singapore
as a Garden City.
Some tourists did not like the pavilion because they thought that the building said
nothing about Singapore. They did not understand why the appearance of the pavilion was a
music box. They argued that the shape of the architecture lacked imagination or relevance to
Singapore.

32

Despite numerous critics, many tourists liked the concept of the pavilion. Some of them
even listed the pavilion as “one pavilion you must go to”.
Indian

The content of the blogs includes many details about the Indian Pavilion’s appearance,
construction materials and structure. Comments were made about how the Indian Pavilion
successfully blended the concepts of sustainable ecological development with modern
technology and town planning - which is accentuated by the theme - Cities of Harmony.
Tourists also thought the pavilion, which was built entirely of environment-friendly materials,
successfully illustrated India’s unique brand of culture, history and soft power. Another blog
raised a theory that the pavilion offered an unprecedented opportunity to improve Sino-Indian
relations and enhance Indian's Soft Power in the further.
First
The word “first” has two meanings we will use from the blogs. One meaning refers to a
visitor’s “first experience” at the Expo. Another references the “first few weeks” of the Expo.
The overcrowding in the first few weeks of the Expo that led to widespread problems with
the availability of facilities and exhibits was mentioned in many blogs.
America
A few blogs complained about the US pavilion. They said the pavilion was just a series
of movie theatres that showed Americas doing schmaltzy things like speaking bad Chinese
and living in a paradise of happy social diversity. Additionally, the architecture of the actual
structure was described as “wacky”.
Site

33

Comments about the Expo site appeared in many of blogs. One article reported that
“The site of Shanghai Expo is separated by a wide polluted river that makes it very difficult
to access different parts of the Expo; the whole site is crawling with police and one has the
feeling of constantly being watched.” (languagep7 2010) In the article, the author also
complained about the inconvenience of the Expo’s internal transportation, pollution of the
river, and the uneasy feelings generated by the constant scrutiny of police.
Others thought the Expo was oversized and over the top (or OTT as people said in
Shanghai). The site, at just over two square miles, hosted the largest Expo in history, and took
many visitors several days to cover.
Building and Architecture
It was criticized that the shape of many buildings at the Shanghai Expo captured the
concepts of “Oriental Crown, Splendid China, Ample Barn, and Rich People.” Some critics
are upset that the China Pavilion is taller and bigger than all of the other countries’ national
pavilions. They complained that the Chinese introduced restrictions to prevent other countries
from having a larger pavilion than China. Others were out of sorts because the layout looked
as if China was "the center of everything".
The appearance of the U.K. Pavilion is described as the Seed Cathedral. Tourists are
amazed by 60,000 slender transparent fiber-optic rods which formed both the inner and outer
walls of the building. They said that it was creative that the U.K. Pavilion sat atop an artificial
landscape, and it was also the only national Pavilion that truly integrated concept, container
and content.
Experience

34

Tourists were impressed by their Expo experiences, such as the multimedia displays and
cutting-edge technology found in many pavilions.
One designer pointed out that the layout of the event allowed the visitor experience to
unfold slowly and kept visitors engaged.
Government
Articles praised the effort put forth by the Shanghai Government. They said that the
effort put in by the Shanghai Government in staging this world class event definitely
deserved great praise. To make sure all the people of Shanghai benefited from this event, the
Shanghai government gave each family in Shanghai a free Expo ticket and a transport card.
The government also encouraged students to visit the Expo at least 2 times during its six
month run.

Wordle Analysis of The New York Times

Figure 10: Wordle analysis of The New York Times (Author, 2010)
35

Table 3：Deleted Words and Replaced Words in New York Times for Wordle Analysis
Delete
the
and
of
to
a
in
is
that
for
The
on
said
it
was
with
by
are
would

Delete
as
at
from
has
be
will
this
have
Mr
an
But
he
his
more
about
like
were
when

Delete
Its
What
which
If
Been
One
I
Or
Most
Many
They
Who
We
All
Had
Also
their

Group
New York Times
New York
Hong Kong

36

Replace
Chinese-China
China's China
UK-Britain
U.K.-Britain
American-America
USA-America
United States-America
Japanese-Japan

Table 4：Top Frequency Words in Wordle Analysis of New York Times
Word
China
Shanghai
Expo
cameras
new
2010
Chopin
people
million
city
Beijing
pavilion
music
America
world
Philharmonic
World’s
countries
Yu
government
surveillance
New York

Freq
152
76
60
30
28
27
27
26
26
25
23
22
21
21
19
18
17
16
16
16
15
15

Description of Top Frequency words
Cameras and Surveillance
Cameras were installed at the Shanghai Expo for security reasons because ethnic rioting
had been taking place in some cities in China. Roughly a year ago, Urumqi’s ethnic Han and
Uighur populations took part in the worst ethnic rioting in modern Chinese history, killing at
least 197 people. The riots caught the eyes of the Communist Party and the local government.
This resulted in surveillance cameras being installed in cities by the Chinese government to
maintain public security. The government believes that cameras installed on street corners, at
airports, and other transportation stations can deter street crime and ethnic rioting.

37

Philharmonic
It was reported that the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra, a venerable ensemble that is on
the upswing from hard times gave performances to aid the World Expo. The Orchestra took
the stage on the Great Lawn for the second half of the New York Philharmonic’s free outdoor
concert during the Expo period. A series of concerts were successfully held in Central Park,
Cunningham Park in Queens, Prospect Park in Brooklyn, University of New York for the Arts
on Staten Island and at the Hostos Center for the Arts and Culture in the Bronx.
Chopin
A piano concert featuring works by Chopin was held each day in the center square and
music hall of the Polish pavilion. This was done to commemorate the Polish musician, who
was one of the greatest composers and pianists of all time. China’s major cities were also in
the grip of “Chopin fever” because the year 2010 was the 200th anniversary of Frederic
Chopin’s birth. “Chopin Week” was held in Shanghai, with the composer’s music featured in
concert halls and nightclubs across the city.

38

Wordle Analysis of People’s Daily

Three Kinds of Codes
Due to the large amount of materials about the Expo presented in the People’s Daily, the
selected sentences are coded by three different colors according to their relationship with the
landscape for additional analysis.
Red: the red sentences are comments which directly talk about the landscape, including
impressions on the appearance of pavilions and discussions about the layout of the site.
Orange: the orange sentences are comments about the landscape indirectly. These
indirect opinions and ideas can still reflect and infer information about the character of the
landscape.
Blue: the blue sentences are comments about attendance at the Expo and the cost of the
trip to the Expo.

Figure 11: Wordle analysis of People’s Daily (Author, 2010)

39

Table 5：Deleted Words and Replaced Words in People’s Daily for Wordle Analysis
Delete
day
also

Delete
have
has

Delete
all
10

Delete
time
30

Replace
China's-China
Chinese-China

the

as

Day

we

Pavilions-Pavilion

of
and
to
in
a
is
on
at
said
for
from
will
that
with
be
are
This

by
I
it
was
which
an
0
also
most
more
its
world
20
than
about
can
he

two
In
A
they
this
during
their
who
other
1
been
up
percent
theme
but
not
one

over
only
It
between
or
including

40

Table 6：Top Frequency Words in Wordle Analysis of People’s Daily
Word
Freq
Expo
190
China
160
Pavilion
140
Shanghai
131
2010
93
visitors
44
May
37
million
36
visit
34
city
31
countries
30
people
29
world
28
nuclear
28
tickets
27
June
25
July
25
technology
24
National
23
tourists
22
theme
22
Description of Top Frequency words
Nuclear
China’s nuclear industry was argued that had stuck to independent innovations,
effectively guaranteeing a sound national defense. Additionally, peaceful applications of
nuclear power were developed for national security and social development. Nuclear power
was successfully used for events like the Beijing Olympics and Shanghai Expo.
Tickets
Free three day tickets have been sent to Shanghai residents. Despite the public fervor
toward the extravagant fair, half a million complimentary Expo tickets were not used. The
writer suggested Shanghai residents to use these tickets as soon as possible.

41

Technology
Some indicated that after waiting for hours to have a look at the cutting-edge technology
in the British Pavilion, the inside was very disappointing. The UK pavilion declared that the
next wave of technology would be linked to nature, bio-diversity and mankind's relationship
with nature. The vegetation and the display of a futuristic city were intended to reflect the
new technology.
The remainder of the articles reported on the new science and technology used in several
pavilions. Many cutting-edge products attracted visitors, like the new patented ceramic
technology used for ceramic stamps, LED (light emitting diode) technology, energy-saving
technology and environmental friendly technology.
Theme
Several articles reported news related the word “theme”.
Many discussions about the theme of the Expo occurred. Participations were asked to
talk about their opinions (examples) about the Expo theme “Better Life, Better City”. For
example, three theme forums were held in different cities to talk about issues related to the
Shanghai Expo.
Most pavilion designs, sculptures, performances and activities were closely tied to the
Expo theme: “Better Life, Better City”. For example, David Martin, deputy director of the
UK Pavilion believed that the UK Pavilion was one of the pavilions that most closely
followed the theme of “Better City, Better Life” because of its environmentally friendly topic.
In another example, an Italian-American sculptor created sculptures to represent the
Shanghai-Chicago friendship. Given that the theme of the Shanghai Expo is city-related,

42

these sculptures might naturally spark an imaginative thought that these "high rises" were
symbolizing different cities from around the world, sitting together in dialogue for mutual
and multilateral cooperation.
There were all kinds of souvenirs centered around the Expo theme which sold very well.
One of these was a series of patterned ceramic stamps based on 11 World Expo-themed
stamps released by China since 2007. The sale of these stamps and other souvenirs by the
Shanghai Gold Company, which owns 25 shops in Shanghai, pulled in over 30 million yuan
($2.1 million) in 4 days, an increase of 20 percent from last year, and nearly a quarter of the
sales were from Expo-themed gold bars, which began selling in early April.
The World Expo helped to boost the concept of ecology and environmental protection
and stimulated scientific research and technology development. Under the Shanghai World
Expo's theme of "Better City, Better Life," advanced technology and low-carbon ideas were
displayed in every aspect of the Expo, including the site selection, fireworks during the
opening ceremony and the equipment, technology and materials for the pavilions.
Additionally, pavilions had their individual themes. For instance, The United Nations
Population Fund (UNFPA) holds World Population Day each year on July 11 in order to draw
attention to various issues surrounding population, women and children. This year's theme
was "Everyone Counts.” The U.S. pavilion showcased the theme "Rising to the Challenge".
The Uzbek pavilion had the theme "Uzbekistan, the crossroad of civilizations," referring to
Tashkent, the capital of the country. The Japanese Pavilion presented the theme "Better Life
from Japan".

43

Wordle Analysis of People’s Daily- Red

Figure 12: Wordle analysis of People’s Daily- red (Author, 2010)
Table 7：Deleted Words and Replaced Words in People’s Daily-Red for Wordle Analysis
Delete
the
of
and
a
is
to
in
that
The
it
with
I
at
they
from
we
an
It
for
are

Delete
like
really
has
be
was
into
its
can
want
one
he
by
all
as
which
on
where
whole
up
really

Replace
Pavilions-Pavilion
UK-Britain
French-France

44

Table 8：Top Frequency Words in Wordle Analysis of People’s Daily-Red
Word
Pavilion
Expo
visitors
Britain
France
City
technology
people
think
Martin
Better
square
Shanghai
national
visit
Cathedral
something
different
certainly
nature
World
feeling

Freq
20
8
7
6
6
6
5
5
4
4
4
4
4
4
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3

Britain, Cathedral and Nature
It was reported that the British Pavilion, which was called the “Seed Cathedral”, drew
visitors because of its appealing outside appearance. However, the inside disappointed some
visitors who wanted to see cutting-edge technologies. The UK believes the next wave of
technology will be linked to nature, bio-diversity and mankind's relationship with nature. The
vegetation inside the pavilion and the display of a futuristic city is intended to reflect the new
technology.
France

45

One article described features of the French Pavilion. It was stated that, “Overcome with
the spirit and ambience of France, visitors well thought they were truly in the nation of art
and romance.” (Zhenyu 2010) It said that the most stunning feature of the pavilion was the
romantic French-style roof garden where people can sit beside a pool of countless red roses
with a dramatic white wedding.
Martin
David Martin, deputy director of the UK Pavilion at the Expo, explained the concept of
the British Pavilion.
National
It was reported that visitors were attracted to National Pavilions because of their
appealing appearance and hundreds of sparkling performances held within.

46

Wordle Analysis of People’s Daily- Orange

Figure 13: Wordle analysis of People’s Daily- orange (Author, 2010)

Table 9：Deleted Words and Replaced Words in People’s Daily-Orange for Wordle Analysis
Delete
the
and
of
to
in
a
at
The
will
on
during

Delete
for
is
from
be
by
are
have
as
with
A
about

Delete
Day
most
has
which
day
was
that
its
their
two
Better

Replace
Chinese-China
Pavilions-Pavilion

47

Table 10：Top Frequency Words in Wordle Analysis of People’s Daily-Orange
Word
Expo
Shanghai
World
Pavilion
China
2010
pavilion
visit
visitors
National
performances
technology
countries
theme
Park
east
U.S
world
cultural
May
activities
performance
mark
cities
tickets

Freq
100
59
45
37
29
20
16
12
11
11
9
9
8
8
8
7
7
7
7
7
7
6
6
6
6

Performance and Activities
It was reported that as of June 25, the 2010 World Expo in Shanghai had already
presented a total of 6,500 performances since opening day. That breaks down to 116
performances per day on average, with 348 performance programs being repeatedly staged.
Thirty-nine countries from five continents, six international organizations and 14 cities held
national pavilion days, honor day activities and special activities. Eleven China provinces and
municipalities each held week-long activities. Carefully selected by the organizers, all the

48

performances highlight the most unique cultural features of every country and region,
educating visitors about cultural diversity. These performances included film screenings,
dance performances and theater.
Technology
Tourists complained that they waited for a long time to have a look at the cutting-edge
technology in the British Pavilion, only to be disappointed once they were inside. The UK
believes the next wave of technology will be linked to nature, bio-diversity and mankind's
relationship with nature. The vegetation and futuristic city display were meant to reflect the
new technology.
In other articles, new science and technology were reported to attract visitors in a
number of pavilions.
Theme
A lot of the Shanghai World Expo's theme-related discussions were held in various cities
in China. Participants were asked to voice their own opinions on the Expo theme “Better Life,
Better City” forum to discuss how scientific innovations aid city life.
Other performances and celebrations held in Pavilions sometimes had their own themes,
however, they all related to the overall Expo theme.
Park
A lot of sparkling performances were reported to be held in Expo Park. There were
average of 116 performances per day in May and June.
Tickets
It was reported that free three day tickets were sent to Shanghai residents. Despite the

49

public fervor toward the extravagant fair, half a million complimentary Expo tickets were not
used. The writer suggested the Shanghai residents to use the tickets as soon as possible.
Culture
World Expo served as a giant exhibition of cultures from around the world. Tourists can
learn about different cultures from different perspectives, such as dining at specialty
restaurants or attending performances presented by various nations. For example, "Tibet
Week" was held at the Expo to celebrate Tibetan culture.
Mark
It was reported that ceremonies and activities were used to mark special days or to
highlight numerous countries’ brands. For example, a Spanish conductor led a band during a
concert held on May 9, 2010 to mark European Day.
Cities
Articles reported that people focused on cities because the theme of the Shanghai Expo
is “Better life, Better City”. For instance, the Spanish Pavilion highlights “national origins,
cities and children”.

50

Wordle Analysis for People’s Daily- Blue

Figure 14: Wordle analysis of People’s Daily- blue (Author, 2010)

Table 11：Deleted Words and Replaced Words in People’s Daily-Blue for Wordle Analysis
Delete
the
of
to
in
a
and
for
is
has

Delete
about
have
at
on
from
all
as
up
with

Replace
Pavilions-Pavilion
visitors-visitor
tranported-transportation
visited-visit

51

Table 12：Top Frequency Words in Wordle Analysis of People’s Daily-Blue
Word
Expo
tourist
million
visitor
Shanghai
World
tickets
number
transportation
percent
pavilion
visit
total
time
accounting
rise
May
July
people
free
holiday

Freq
29
20
19
15
12
11
9
8
8
8
14
12
6
6
5
5
5
5
5
4
4

Million
Many articles reported news related to the word—million.
Millions of visitors toured the Expo. More than 20 million people have visited the
World Expo in Shanghai since its official opening on May 1. The dramatic rise in tourists
arriving in Shanghai during the May Day holiday caused earnings for the local retail and
tourism industries to skyrocket. Nearly 4.2 million people visited Shanghai during the
five-day holiday, according to the Shanghai Municipal Tourism Bureau. Nearly half way
through the six-month event, around 33.6 million visitors, most of them from the Chinese
mainland, have visited the Expo since its opening on May 1. In July alone, more than 12

52

million people passed through the Expo's turnstiles, including 1.8 million of them holding
complimentary tickets. In June, less than 100,000 complimentary tickets were unused,
according to Expo organizers, while another 2 million new tickets will be issued under the
scheme for August. Because of the Expo, tourists also visited the city of Shanghai. Over
73,000 people poured onto Chong-ming Island in Shanghai on May 2, hitting a record high
for the number of tourists in a single day.
Public transportation in Shanghai serviced millions of people. As of June 8, Expo-related
public transportation has carried a total of 22.6 million tourists, with a daily average of
579,000 tourists. Five Expo-related rail lines and 12 Expo-related stations transported about
6.7 million tourists, accounting for 30 percent of all transportation. The ground transportation
system carried about 2.9 million tourists, accounting for 13 percent of the total. In addition,
special taxis for the Expo also carried approximately 2.5 million tourists, accounting for 11
percent, water buses carried about 299,000 tourists, accounting for 1 percent and tourist buses
transportation serviced about 10.2 million tourists, accounting for 45 percent of total
transportation.
Tourists who have attended special performances number about 8.5 million, and one of
every two tourists to the World Expo watched such a performance.
Millions of free tickets were sent to Chinese residents. Despite these efforts, and
apparent public enthusiasm for the event, half a million tickets went unused. A total of 2.3
million three day tickets were distributed free to the public, which were meant to thank the
residents of Shanghai who put up with years of inconvenience while Expo-related
infrastructure was under construction.

53

Millions of people viewed the Expo website. Over 50 million citizens have visit
www.expo2010.cn, with the total number of visitors entering the Web site exceeding 1 billion,
according to statistics from the Tencent Web site, which is in charge of the creation of the
official Expo Web site. Additionally, the number of visitors to the Tencent Expo Web site
through mobile phones reached 324 million.
Free
It was reported that millions of free three day tickets were sent to Shanghai residents as a
thank you for the patience they displayed in the face of many inconveniences the construction
of the Expo brought to their lives. Despite the public's relentless fervor toward the
extravagant fair, half a million complimentary Expo tickets remained unused.
Time
It was suggested that September was the best time to visit the Shanghai Expo. One of the
reasons given is that less time was being spent waiting in lines because of fewer visitors.
Tourists were still having to wait in line in front of some pavilions, but the time spent queuing
up was much shorter. In the past, visitors had to wait a long time in front of the most popular
pavilions such as the Sudan Pavilion, Indian Pavilion, and certain domestic pavilions. More
often than not, there are little to no lines and people can start visiting these pavilions
immediately upon arrival.
Holiday
The attendance of Shanghai Expo obviously improved during the holidays, especially on
long National Holidays.

54

Wordle Analysis of Standard- HongKong

Figure 15: Wordle analysis of Standard- HongKong (Author, 2010)

Table 13：Deleted Words and Replaced Words in Standard-HongKong for Wordle Analysis
Delete
the
to
a
and
of
in
at
for
The
from
is
said
on
with
are
will

Delete
be
by
were
that
as
have
was
day
I
0
about
they
one
up
than
their

Delete
two
1
its
before
after
all
more
some
has
an
should
yesterday
not
who
also
would

Delete
most
which
They
see
there
just
A
10
can
but
or
when
while
way
he
it

55

Group
Hong Kong

Replace
Chinese-China
HK-Hong Kong

Table 14：Top Frequency Words in Wordle Analysis of Standard-HongKong
Word
Expo
pavilion
Shanghai
Hong~Kong
visitors
World
China
2010
tickets
people
visit
mainland
million
way
May
show
volunteer
HONG~KONG
lawmakers
June

Freq
54
45
42
38
29
24
22
20
20
18
13
12
11
10
10
10
9
9
8
8

Tickets
Visitors grabbed scarce tickets for the China Pavilion from volunteers as soon as the
China pavilion opened, with all tickets being gone in only a few minutes. On another day,
thousands of visitors scrambled for tickets to a Korean show.
More than 160,000 tickets were snapped up on the first day of sales for the animated
version of the painting--“Qingming Shang He”, created in the 12th century by Zhang Zeduan,
with online sales only starting today.
Mainland
It was reported that Pan-democrat legislators who joined a trip to the World Expo in
Shanghai had again expressed a wish to travel to the mainland freely.
56

Wrapping up a three-day visit, Legislative Council president Jasper Tsang Yok-sing said
he hoped the entire legislature would have more chances to visit the mainland in the future.
Show
Hong Kong officials were reported to indicate that the video show in Hong Kong
Pavilion was merely something the Tourism Board would show as a general introduction to
Hong Kong and the pavilion would be much more meaningful if it shows how Hong Kong
people pursue freedom and democracy."
Volunteer
Some complained that a mainland volunteer struck and damaged an ATV camera while
trying to stop reporters from filming crowds at the Shanghai World Expo. Someone believed
that some behaviors of volunteers were unacceptable, and they should receive better training
to respect the rights of journalists. Although there was a slight improvement in the crowd
situation, visitors at one point still tried to grab reserved tickets from volunteers.
Lawmaker
It was reported that eight democratic lawmakers joined the tour, with four Democratic
Party members being issued one-off permits for the three-day trip, which began on May 8th.
The lawmakers visited the Urban Best Practices Area, Enterprise Pavilion in Puxi, the
European Union, Belgium, US and British pavilions. They thought the content was
superficial.

Overall Themes of Blog and Three Newspapers

Comments from blogs focused on the designs of pavilions and tourists’ experiences of

57

Expo. Several popular pavilions were discussed, including their locations, layouts,
appearances, design ideas, and construction details. Most of these critics related with design
concepts. For example, tourists analyzed the relationship between the location and size of
pavilion, and the intent behind the design; the consistency between the green designs of India
Pavilions and the theme of Shanghai Expo was praised.
The New York Times highlighted the security of Shanghai Expo. It reported an
ethnic rioting in China one year before the Shanghai Expo, and emphasized the importance of
security of Shanghai Expo. For the Expo’s safety, surveillance cameras were installed in
cities by the Chinese government to maintain public security. The government believed that
cameras installed on street corners, at airports, and other transportation stations could deter
street crime and ethnic rioting.
As the main official newspaper of China, the hosting country of the Shanghai Expo,
People’s Daily was more concerned about the day by day experience of the Expo. It reported
huge amounts of information about details of each pavilion and activity, and the everyday’s
situation of Expo site.
Standard-HongKong paid attentions to the relationship between Hong Kong and the
mainland, as well as the attitude of volunteers. It reported news about some Hong Kong
government officials’ trips to Shanghai Expo and their opinions of the relationship between
Hong Kong and the mainland. Complaints of some volunteers’ rude behaviors were reported.
Someone believed that some behaviors of volunteers were unacceptable, and they should
receive better training to respect the rights of journalists.

58

CHAPTER 5: DISCUSSION

Conclusion and Implications in Green Design and Expo Planning

Site Usage

Some complained that there was a river splitting the Expo site and it was inconvenient to
cross the river to view the rest of the Expo pavilions (Figure 16). They questioned why the
Shanghai Expo could not build on an integrated field without rivers or other barriers.
However, the Expo is not just holding an exhibition in any field which happens to have the
best views and convenient transportation. The site was picked very carefully with great
thought. It was a complex choice of site, which considered various factors like site
revitalization, city brand, economic promotion and environmental improvement.

Figure 16: The Huangpu River (Author, 2010)
59

The site is chosen between the Nanpu Bridge and Lupu Bridge, with the pavilions and
parks located along the Huangpu River. (Bureau of the Shanghai World Expo Coordination
2011) The plan will bring Shanghai city a series of benefits. First, the Expo construction can
combine with urban renewal activities; so this plan will shorten the time and cut the budget
needed to achieve the ultimate goal of urban renewal. In the beginning, the Expo site is
occupied with many polluting industrial factories and old communities. The soil and water is
heavily polluted by the waste water and emissions from these factories and the environment
is severely damaged. Residents of the area live in dilapidated houses without private
bathrooms and other necessary facilities. As a district which is not far away from downtown
Shanghai, this unsightly view undermined the desired image of the “clean and green”
international city. The district is eager for a chance to be rebuilt, and fortunately, the Expo
provides the opportunity. Another added benefit of the Expo is it would effectively improve
the environmental quality of this area. Being polluted by the factories, parts of the Expo site
were defined as a brownfield. Due to the Expo, the waste was cleared and the heavily
polluted soil was replaced. Measures were put in place to protect the original wetland and
new wetlands and parks were built. As a result of the water being purified, water quality in
the Huangpu River was improved. A large number of trees and shrubs were planted to build a
green area. After the Expo, this district will turn out to be an important step in efforts to bring
sustainable green environments to the city of Shanghai. It is also estimated that these areas
will have an economic impact over time. Shanghai is a high density city and buildable land is
very precious, especially areas like the Expo site which is near downtown. The Expo
provided a perfect opportunity for the Shanghai government to clear the old factories and

60

communities in the district, resulting in a gain of buildable area after the Expo. Because of
the high quality environment, convenient transportation and awesome facilities, the district
could become a shining economic area for commercial and residential usage.

The site along the Huangpu River in this area was a perfect choice. The transportation
difficulties which cropped up during the Expo were not due to the site, but rather a shortage
of vehicles to go across the river. Because millions of tourists went to the Expo every day, the
ferries and buses were not enough to transport so many people across the river. Visitors had
no choice but to wait in long lines at the bus stations and piers. As a result, those visitors
blamed the presence of the river for their inconvenience. One possible solution was to
increase the amount of ferries and buses to accommodate the massive attendance.
Additionally, some creative activities could be held along the river so people can be
entertained and enjoy the river views while waiting to cross the river.

Architecture

Many pavilions were well known because of their innovative and wonderful architecture.
Some were widely discussed in newspapers and blogs, such as the Republic of Korea
Pavilion, China Pavilion, UK pavilion, French Pavilion and the Denmark Pavilion, to name
but a few. The Republic of Korea Pavilion and China Pavilion will be analyzed in this section
while the others will be discussed in other sections.

Among more than two hundred pavilions, The Republic of Korea Pavilion stood out
visually (Figure 17). The building was constructed of millions of signs consisting of two

61

types: han-geul Pixels (the Korean alphabet) and Art Pixels (Figure 18). Han-geul pixels,
which had 4 different sizes, were attached to white panels to form letters in relief. They
constituted mainly the peripheral surfaces of the exterior walls. Most non-peripheral surfaces
were composed of Art Pixels, a collection of bright colorful aluminum panels. (Arch Daily
2010) The signs resulted in a stunning porous external surface, where lights and shadows
mixed. Some letters were shining in the sunshine while others hid in the shadows. With the
daily passing of time, the light and shadows alternated and changed, giving the letters on the
wall a sense of movement. At night, the walls reflected magnificent colors due to sequential
lighting (Figure 19).

Figure 17: Republic of Korea Pavilion (Author, 2010)

62

Figure 18: Han-geul Pixels (the Korean alphabet) and Art Pixels (Author, 2010)

Figure 19: The walls reflected magnificent colors at night (designboom 2010)

Not only was the application of light and shadow used on materials, but also walls and
space. Hollows were made in the wall to form a pattern which was similar to the pattern of

63

the South Korean national flag. (Figure 20) Depending on the placement of these hollows, the
wall was divided into dark and bright areas forming a pattern.

Figure 20: South Korean national flag pattern (designboom 2010)

Pillars and girders were widely used in the Republic of Korea Pavilion to produce a
semi-open space inside. Lights passed through the roof and the wall, projecting the shadows
on the inner walls and the floor, making the painting of traditional words vivid and
mysterious (Figure 21 and Figure 22). The effect is that everyone views the interior in their
own unique way. Through the placement of signs and clever application of light and shadow,
they magically transformed a stationary building into a lively, mutative Korean cultural
museum.

64

Figure 21: Light pass through the roof (designboom 2010)

Figure 22: Shadows were projected on the wall and the floor (designboom 2010)
65

The China pavilion was the brightest star at the Shanghai Expo and it was also one of
the most impressive buildings. The China pavilion appeared as a crown, which consisted of 7
layers of girders and 4 giant pillars (Figure 23). The girders were painted 7 different shades
of red: the taller the girder was, the lighter the red was. This was done to offset visual
variations due to height variation and the influence of shadow. The aim was to produce a
single uniform color appearance in the seven layers of girders when observed from a distance.
(Shanghai Daily 2010) Girder and pillars were chosen as they are the most common
traditional structural elements in Chinese architecture. Red was chosen because it is viewed
as a lucky color in China. The —dougong, a traditional wooden structure was used in the
pavilion, to fix layer upon layer between the top of a column and a crossbeam (Figure 24).
(Shanghai Daily 2010) This style was widely used in many well-known Chinese traditional
structures, like the Forbidden City and the Summer Palace. By replicating traditional
structural techniques used in these landmark structures, the China Pavilion reached back
through history and forged a kinship with them. The traditional structural elements made the
China Pavilion instantly and easily recognizable among the hundreds of other pavilions by
both domestic and most foreign tourists.

The China pavilion was complimented by the smaller regional pavilions. The taller
national pavilion was located in the center with the lower regional pavilions surrounding it.
One reason for the height difference was to illustrate the difference in political standing and
cultural perspectives between regions and nation. All the regional pavilions, including Hong
Kong and Macao pavilions were in the shadow of the national pavilion, just like the baby in
mom’s arms (Figure 24). The national government’s absolute control was reflected in the
66

relationship between the locations and sizes of these pavilions. Another reason for the shape
of the structure was that its high core and low edge created a strong sense of spatial extension.
Creating such a sense of space was essential in such a land- scarce Expo.

Figure 23: China pavilion (Author 2010)

Figure 24: Dougong style (Author 2010)
67

Figure 25: Hong Kong and Macao pavilions were in the shadow of the National pavilion
(Author 2010)

Landscape

Landscape was another critical factor which influenced the beauty of the Pavilions.
Some pavilions drew more attention than others because of their well designed outside
landscape or inside gardens. The UK pavilion was successful because of its amazing outside
landscape. The pavilion was surrounded by an open space. The outside of the space was like
a grouping of mountains, and the inside was like an open plain. The height gradually
decreased from the outside to the inside and it helped to draw people’s attention to the middle
of the space, where the UK pavilion was placed. Because of the height difference, people
could sit on the slope and enjoy the overall view of the UK pavilion, appreciating its
thousands of rods gently swaying in the breeze like a huge dandelion. Tourists who were

68

enduring the long queue outside of the entrance could thoroughly relax themselves in the
space, talking with friends, watching performances, wandering around the pavilion or laying
down to view the sky (Figure 26). The open space also prevented people from getting too
close too soon to the Pavilion and spoiling the mystery of entering the building. Visitors had
to go across the space to go inside the pavilion. This allowed time for curiosity and
anticipation to build. This outside open space successfully highlighted the importance of the
central pavilion, while providing a place for recreation and cleverly attracted people’s
curiosity at the same time.

Figure 26: People relaxed themselves in the open space (Author 2010)

The Luxembourg pavilion was considered fascinating due to its lush garden. It was
covered and surrounded with a living green wall, evoking the image of a forest. Grapes were
planted outside of the wall and small gardens were placed between the wall and the pavilion
(Figure 27 and Figure 28). The theme of the Luxembourg pavilion was “Small is beauty”.
69

Indeed, the Luxembourg pavilion only occupied a small piece of place on the Expo site, so it
was a challenge to build this pavilion and have it hold its own against the many larger
pavilions. The designer understood that the pavilion would be ignored if it was just a boring
construction. There needed some natural, vivid and appealing elements incorporated into the
design. The small gardens and living wall which were added turned out to be the soul of the
pavilion. Tourists viewing the pavilion from a distance thought it looked like it stood in the
midst of a forest. Upon approaching the building they were surprised to find that they were
surrounded by clear water, fragrant flowers and lush vegetation (Figure 29). The bright color
of the plants gave a sharp contrast with the rusting steel wall and provided a scenic open
space in the crowded Expo, which enhanced the tourists’ impression of the green castle in the
hot summer.

Figure 27: Grapes were planted outside of the wall (Author 2010)

70

Figure 28: The green wall (Author 2010)

Figure 29: A small garden placed between the wall and the pavilion (Author 2010)

71

Green Features of Pavilions

“Green, Ecology and Low-Carbon” were the permanent themes of the Shanghai Expo.
In light of this theme, there were plenty of pavilions designed with all kinds of green features.
Eco-friendly design ideas incorporating vegetation and bio-materials were used to build a
majority of these pavilions. The benefits of the ecological designs were obvious. The green
appearance and beautiful surroundings provided tourists an excellent view and a wonderful
place with shade where they could eat, talk and relax. Tourists are able to stimulate many
different senses with sweet smelling flowers, lovely birdsong, tasty gourmet food or the
beautiful scenery of a garden. The green designs can also efficiently reduce the cost of the
pavilions with low-cost construction and maintenance. Because eco-friendly materials like
bamboo and thatch are always easily obtainable and cheaper than regular construction
materials, the construction budget is reduced. The use of vegetation can provide many
benefits, such as cooling the temperature, increasing the humidity, producing fresh air,
collecting storm water and sheltering the roof from direct sunshine. All those functions can
save energy that can be used for cooling and air exchange, and also extend the life of
pavilions at the same time. The green designs also helped maintain the coherency between all
of the pavilions’ separate themes, while keeping with the Shanghai Expo theme: “Better Life,
Better City”. The ecological design of pavilions helped communicate the philosophy of the
Shanghai Expo, which was to keep the balance between humans and the environment in order
to create a better life. The green designs that dominated the Expo can be an influence on
future designers. Green architecture can become a new style of design and a new way of life.

72

In the coming future, green design would become a fashion and an inevitable trend which
hopefully will be adopted for all or most new construction projects.

The French Pavilion became known for its ecological environment through its use of a
green roof, green wall and French garden. The theme of France’s pavilion was “The Sensual
City”. The pavilion showcased the sights, smells, tastes, sounds and feel of France. Visitors
could enjoy the French gardens, smell fragrances of flowers and French perfume, sample
French cuisine amid the aquatic environment and enjoy the cool of the fountain in the garden.
(Bureau of the Shanghai World Expo Coordination 2010) The French pavilion successfully
appealed to tourists and became one of the hottest pavilions in the Shanghai Expo.

The most appealing features of the French pavilion were the green wall and the roof
garden. Upon entering the pavilion, visitors were greeted by a large fountain with an
appealing water display. Looking around, tourists would surprisingly find that they were
seemingly standing in a forestry floor and roof which were covered by fountains and
vegetation while the walls forming the plaza were decorated by geometric pillars with plants.
The green pillars were composed of several species of vibrant plants and a watering system
that continuously feeds the vegetation. Through the glass walls of the second and the third
floor, visitors can view the details of the green walls. Escalators transport people to a
geometric boxwood garden, where one can enjoy French style gourmet food among fragrant
blooms and impressive views.

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Figure 30: The French style green roof (Author 2010)

Figure 31: Pillars with plants decorate the walls (Author 2010)

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Figure 32: Details of green pillars can be observed clearly through glass walls on the
second and third floors (Author 2010)

It can be easily said that the success of the French Pavilion was built on the basis of the
living structure. The fascinating natural environment provided an ideal place and all the
necessary elements to fulfill the theme of “The Sensual City”. Without the green features,
“The Sensual City” could never have been made to seem real.

The Indonesian Pavilion was another pavilion which benefited greatly from the use of
living structures. Visitors were impressed by the vision of the pavilion as a bamboo
kingdom— floors, ceilings, walls, architecture and decorations were all made of bamboo
(Figure 33, Figure 34). It made the entire pavilion natural, light and graceful. Tropical trees
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stood on the roof of the pavilion and living plants grew on bamboo flowerpots (Figure 35).
Wandering inside of the Indonesian Pavilion, one is surrounded with natural elements
without artificial traces. Additionally, the natural materials not only saved on construction
and maintenance fees, but also efficiently avoided the waste resources and energy.

Figure 33: The bamboo structure (Author 2010)

Figure 34: The bamboo floor (Author 2010)
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Figure 35: Living plants grew on bamboo containers (Author 2010)

Theme

Theme was one of the most frequently occurring words in the blogs and newspapers.
Most commonly discussed was whether the theme had been successfully interpreted and
illustrated through the use of appropriate materials and design. Tourists preferred to visit the
pavilions that achieved this. There were several pavilions that were described as being in a
mess, incoherent, disappointing or boring. People asked questions like: “What is the pavilion
talking about?” or “What is the connection between the appearance of the architecture and the
inside display?” One of the biggest reasons was that those pavilions did not have a strong
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theme and tried to display too many examples of culture, history and technology all at once.
Others did have a clear theme, but failed to closely follow the original theme or did not
explain the theme coherently. As one person said, visiting a pavilion was like reading a book.
Tourists were more likely to read an interesting and coherent story rather than one made up of
fragmented pieces. In one example, a Singaporean architect critiqued the Singapore Pavilion
in his blog. He complained that the building said nothing about Singapore and he did not
understand what was the music box for? He also said that its shape looked without
imagination or relevance to his country and the garden looked too much like an afterthought
and as not well integrated into overall design. It was let down for him as designer who
wanted his country to be celebrated and respected

Obviously, the music box concept was creative and drew people’s attention, however,
even a Singaporean could not fathom the relationship between a music box and Singapore
(Figure 36). Despite the attractiveness of the music box-like architecture, tourists couldn’t
figure it out either. The unique elements that make up traditional and modern culture in
Singapore were not obvious. Singaporeans felt they were denied the opportunity to feel
national pride in their pavilion, and foreigners lost the chance to get to know Singapore. The
outer garden and the theme of Singapore Pavilion were also disconnected. The garden neither
interpreted the music theme nor related well with other parts of the pavilion.

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Figure 36: The music box- like appearance of Singapore Pavilion (Author 2010)

Another example is the USA Pavilion whose theme is "Rise to the Challenge." It used
three short movies to tell a story. One example of these mini-movies is titled "The Garden".
In this clip a girl wants to turn a vacant city lot into a green garden. With the help of
neighbors, the girl finally realizes her dream. The idea of the movies was to showcase the
American spirit—challenging difficulties, seeking opportunities, cooperation between people
and the pursuit of freedom. The movies clearly showed viewers how creative, friendly and
optimistic Americans were. The idea was great, however, the movies were the only thing in
the pavilion that clearly related to the theme. This prompted a lot of critics to complain that
the USA pavilion was just a big cinema that offered some international food (Figure 37).
Most visitors expected to see cutting-edge technology or displays that were distinctly
American. They left feeling disappointed that they only found a movie theater decorated with
huge boards covered in brands of sponsoring companies. The pavilion designers felt
obligated to display the advertising because the pavilion was built using funding from private
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companies. Viewers felt the deficiencies of the pavilion were due to a lack of cultural content
and insufficient support of its own theme. It was believed that if more elements, such as the
appearance of the pavilion, the shows and the displays could better compliment and relate to
the movies in order to express the theme, the USA pavilion would receive a better evaluation.

Figure 37: The USA Pavilion looked like a cinema (Author 2010)

Although some pavilions disappointed tourists, a few pavilions have been widely praised.
One example was the Indian Pavilion, whose theme was “City of Harmony”. Its design
concept was green, eco-friendly and harmonious. The Indian Pavilion from the overall plan to
the details was designed closely around its theme. It boasted the biggest bamboo dome and
used many environmentally friendly materials like solar panels, windmills, plants, a water
cascade and earthen tiles (Figure 38 and Figure 39). The eco-friendly theme could easily be
found in its green walls and green roof (Figure 40 and Figure 41). When tourists entered the
pavilion, they were amazed by its eco-friendly materials, like the brick floor and the bamboo

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construction (Figure 42). Most tourists liked the Indian Pavilion and considered it as the
“greenest” and most eco-friendly pavilion at the expo.

Figure 38: The bamboo dome (Author 2010)

Figure 39: The wind mill (Author 2010)

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Figure 40: The green wall (Author 2010)

Figure 41: The green roof (Author 2010)
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Figure 42: The brick floor (Author 2010)

The UK pavilion also did a good job of expressing its theme. The overall theme of the
UK pavilion was “Building on the Past, Shaping Our Future”. It used the relationship
between the environment and urban development as its topic. It adopted different methods to
illustrate the theme from the layout to the inner display. The UK pavilion was constructed
using thousands of slim and transparent rods containing seeds on a folded paper-like
playground (Figure 43). The scene was reminiscent of a gift in a folded paper or a dandelion
in an open field. In the pavilion, visitors found a rich variety of plants. There was a mix of
living plants and imaginary future plants pictured in different UK “cities” while huge green
maps of the cities were displayed on the walls (Figure 44 and Figure 45). The pavilion
presented the concept that there was no space between human being and environment by

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erasing the boundaries of buildings and streets. The UK pavilion was able to successfully
illustrate the concept of a harmonious green future for the millions of tourists.

Figure 43: The UK pavilion was built on a folded paper-like playground (Author 2010)

Figure 44: Showcase of a mix of living plants (Author 2010)
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Figure 45: Huge maps of English cities on the wall (Author 2010)

Pavilion Highlights

Almost every pavilion had a few highlights which were emphasized on its official
website in order to encourage potential visitors to come out and see it. Not surprisingly,
tourists talked a lot about the pavilion highlights before and after visiting the Shanghai Expo.
Compared with some pavilion’s characteristics which faded quickly, the deep impressions
and memories made by these highlights would linger for a long time after tourists had
finished their trip to the Expo. People never tired of talking about the pavilion highlights in
their blogs and would often still discuss their experiences two or three months or even longer
after their visit. The highlights were always the icons of the pavilions. In a few cases, when
one mentioned a pavilion, the first thing that came into her/his mind was the highlight. The
iconic feature was what visitors remembered and associated with a particular pavilion.
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Tourists seemed to remember nothing when asked about other pavilions who did not feature
bold or iconic architectural highlights.

The “Little Mermaid” statue from Copenhagen was the greatest treasure of the Denmark
Pavilion. To a great extent, it was the appeal of the Little Mermaid that drew people to the
Denmark Pavilion. It was the first time the “Little Mermaid” statue, a Danish national icon,
had left her hometown. Built in 1913, the statue was used to honor the famous fairytale
character created by Hans Christian Anderson, and since that time, the Little Mermaid has
been sitting on the edge of Copenhagen's harbor. (Bureau of the Shanghai World Expo
Coordination 2010) To create a similar setting like that of Copenhagen’s harbor, a man-made
lake with white sands and blue water was built in the Denmark Pavilion (Figure 46).

Figure 46: “Little Mermaid” statue sitting on the side of a lake (Author 2010)

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Walking around inside the Denmark pavilion, tourists can enjoy the view of the “Little
Mermaid” from many different angles. The beautiful view of the statue, the mysterious
legend of the mermaid, and the rarity of the Danish National icon leaving its home country,
created a shining symbol which drew millions of people’s to view the pavilion. With the
passage of time, visitors might forget the appearance of the pavilion or the inside contents,
but will probably never forget the “Little Mermaid” statue.

Another successful example was the electronically animated giant baby displayed in the
Spanish Pavilion (Figure 47). The baby who was named Miguelín, was 6.5 meters tall and
could "breathe and blink". (Hu 2010) The baby was assembled in the USA under the
supervision of Alec Gillis and Tom Woodruff Jr. at the Amalgamated Dynamis Inc. studios.
This studio is responsible for such cinematic monsters as Alien vs Predator and Starship
Troopers. (Hu 2010)

The giant baby closely resembled a real boy. People were shocked when the baby slowly
moved his head and smiled at them. Tourists could hardly believe that such a realistic
appearance and movements of the skin, eyes, and facial expression could belong to a
man-made doll. The baby was so amazing that no one could forget it. Whenever the giant
baby was mentioned, people could easily relate it back to the Spanish pavilion. The baby was
an excellent vehicle to illustrate and communicate the message carried by the theme of the
Spanish pavilion which was: “From the City of Our Parents to the City of Our Children”.
(Bureau of the Shanghai World Expo Coordination 2010) The message was to protect and
develop the city from generation to generation.

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Figure 47: The giant baby in the Spanish Pavilion (Bureau of the Shanghai World Expo
Coordination 2010)

Every pavilion wanted to be special and memorable and transcend all others. The two
cases discussed above seem to illustrate that the easiest way to do this was to incorporate an
iconic symbol or highlight into pavilion designs.

Lines

Waiting in long lines to visit a pavilion is a big problem at the Shanghai Expo. Every
day, hundreds of thousands of people rush into the Expo from different gates. Visitors have to
wait hours to see one popular pavilion (Figure 48 and Figure 49). Consider one of the most
popular pavilions —the Saudi Arabian Pavilion as an example, people stand in line 8 hours or
more under the sunshine on a dry, hot day to have an inside look. Most people waiting in
lines had nothing to occupy them, except complaining and abusing one another. In the wordle
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images, words like time and lines can easily be found. It indicates that newspapers and blogs
talk a lot about them.

Figure 48: Visitors waiting in line outside of the UK pavilion (Author 2010)

Figure 49: The tourists waited under the sunshine (Author 2010)
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Lines seem inevitable when so many people crowd into the Expo in one day. What the
designers have to consider is how to shorten the lines and how to use the waiting time more
effectively.

One of the methods to shorten the waiting lines is limiting the visiting time by
efficiently funneling or directing the tourists to tour the pavilion in an effective way. Most
tourists visiting a pavilion for the first time, are unfamiliar with it. They can wander around
aimlessly, not knowing where the highlights are or what they should look at first. Friendly
trained guides can help visitors have a high-quality tour of the pavilion in the shortest time.
Another method is booking entry times for tourists and distributing tickets. This would allow
them to arrange their free time and use it for viewing other pavilions or shopping.

How to manage the hours spent in queue is another question. A designer gave his
opinions in his blog about how to engage tourist while they waited. He said that simple
interactive moments would keep visitors involved and active. Visitors spend most of their
time waiting in lines or strolling and looking around. If the pavilions offered the visitor a
chance to touch, jump, wave, throw, clap and participate in fun activities while waiting, it
would really stand out. The experience of a pavilion should begin when the tourist decides to
wait in line, rather than upon entry to the pavilion; sometimes after waiting for several hours.
For example, brilliant displays and activities were held outside of the New Zealand Pavilion
(Figure 50), and the Shanghai Corporate Joint Pavilion used the queue as a place to show the
tourists pictures and tell stories about the pavilion. Providing the tourist a comfortable shelter,
the officials of these pavilions can use video and other formed media to introduce the

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countries from different perspectives. Sadly, most national pavilions lost this precious chance
to advertise their countries and pavilions.

Figure 50: Wonderful performance outside of the New Zealand Pavilion (Hudong 2010)

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Summary

Site Usage

Even a brownfield could be a good choice of place to host a great event while the site
construction is integrated with environmental improvement, site revitalization, city branding,
and economical development. Additionally, it is either a challenge or a good opportunity for
site planners that a river splitting the site, determining whether they view the river as a part of
plan.

Architecture

The appropriate application of light and shadow could influence the appearance and the
space of architecture, and magically transform a stationary building into a lively, mutative
artwork. Additionally, architectures which successfully reflect the culture from their plans,
appearances, structures, colors, details, and decorations will receive a strong sense of
recognition. Last but not least, architectures can reflect the political standing and cultural
perspectives through their locations and sizes.

Landscape

The combination of landscape and the architecture either emphasizes characters of
architecture or leads a strong contrast. It strengthens the overall sense of architecture and
landscape, offsetting the flaws of architecture and site, and extending the space at the same
time.

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Green Feature of Pavilions

The use of vegetation can provide many benefits, such as cooling the temperature,
increasing the humidity, producing fresh air, collecting storm water and sheltering the roof
from direct sunshine. The green designs can also efficiently reduce the cost of the pavilions
with low-cost construction and maintenance. Additionally, the green designs help maintain
the coherency between all of the pavilions’ separate themes, while keeping with the
Shanghai Expo theme: “Better Life, Better City”. The ecological design of pavilions is
helpful to communicate the philosophy of the Shanghai Expo, which was to keep the
balance between humans and the environment in order to create a better life.

Theme

A strong theme of pavilion is contributed to a coherence of layout, structure, outside
appearance, and interior display. It helps to give the visitors a coherent experience of visit
with strong visual, soul and cultural impacts.

Pavilion Highlights

The deep impressions and memories made by these highlights would linger for a long
time after tourists had finished their trip to the Expo. Visitors will have a long memory of
highlights which closely related with their particular pavilions. So designers could build
some particular highlights in the pavilions to strengthen tourists’ memories.

Lines

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Designers of great events should shorten the lines in the greatest extent through effective
plan and design methods. Otherwise, they have to consider the lines as a part of the design if
long lines are inevitable. Actually, each pavilion could use the waiting time in lines as an
opportunity to present shows and videos, showing tourist their national advanced
technologies and particular cultures.

Limitation

The purpose of this article is to explore the perceptions of mega-events relating to green
design and planning, and to generate design hypothesis for mega events. The theory of the
article is formulated through the author’s personal field experience and analysis of data about
Shanghai Expo. Although mega events produce many similar perceptions in people, there are
still large differences between these events due to their distinctive cultures, histories and
backgrounds. A single study of Shanghai Expo is insufficient to support green design and
planning principles which can be applied to other Expos. Additionally, mega events can focus
on many subjects, such as the Olympics, Expos and the Super Bowls. Because of these
variances, the results of this article may not be appropriate for all mega events.

To improve the principles of green design and planning for mega events, researchers
need to collect more data from different expos and do more research about other kinds of
mega events. In this way, an advanced theory about the perceptions of mega-events relating
to green design can be looked forward to in the near future.

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APPENDIX

APPENDIX A: Sample-- Raw Blogs

languagep7
05/12/2010 07:50 AM
LET's Have SOME HONESTY ABOUT THE EXPO.
The Shanghai expo is a total mess. I went there and felt very disappointed at the lack of
logical "thought through" planning. The site is split through the middle by a huge wide river
which requires visitors to go and wait for a ferry to cross and see the rest of the site. The size
of Shanghai or China and they locate an international event in a location that separates the
site with a wide polluted river that makes it very difficult to access different parts of the expo,
was this idea thought up by an idiot? They insisted that the Chinese exhibit building be taller
and bigger than those representing other countries, they insisted other countries are around
the China pavilion as if China is "the center of everything" and they introduced restrictions so
no other countries building can be higher or bigger than their own. Then they produce a
building which looks like it is upside down, messy and unattractive? The whole site is
crawling with police and undercover operatives and one has the feeling of constantly being
watched. Everything is confused and done in the most difficult way possible. Buy a meal and
you must buy a ticket for several hundred RMB, calculate what you spend and then go and
request some change back? WHY NOT JUST LET PEOPLE PAY FOR THE MEAL WHEN
THEY BUY IT? Why does it have to be difficult? The metro system is a nightmare, people
don’t know how to wait in line to board a train, they casually push in front of others that wait,

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when the train arrives they move forward as a mob, block the exiting passengers and force
their way into the train. Visiting the expo felt like a detailed lesson in disorganization, lack of
logical planning, a bird’s eye view of people that lack patience and respect for those around
them etc.
ONE LAST QUESTION? Who paid to build the exhibit buildings from other countries
and what happens after, do these buildings become the property of the communist
government?(languagep7 2010)

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APPENDIX B: Sample-- News from New York Times

Shanghai Expo 2010 Turns Spotlight on Nations
By JULIE MAKINEN
Published: May 30, 2010
HONG KONG — Two years ago, athletes from more than 190 countries came together
in Beijing, vying for international acclaim on basketball courts and balance beams at the
Summer Olympics. Now, a rematch of sorts is occurring in Shanghai — but this time, the
competitors carrying their national flags are the architects and designers of hundreds of
pavilions at a 184-day marathon of image and commerce, Expo 2010.
The ultimate winners of this contest will be decided not by referees with stopwatches or
judges with scorecards but by the 70 million people — mostly Chinese — who are expected
to attend the modern world’s fair before it ends Oct. 31. The impressions they take away are
likely to shape such decisions as where they will go on vacation, where they will study
abroad, what countries their companies will do business with and even what kinds of food
they will eat.
“While the Beijing Olympics gave China the chance to host the world and show the
world what China is, at Expo, the Chinese people are the guests and the various nations are
playing host, showing China what the world is,” said Urso Chappell, who runs
Expomuseum .com, a Web site documenting the history of such events, starting with the
1851 Great Exhibition in London.
“It’s a great opportunity for countries to dispel old myths or create new ones,” he added.
“I doubt the average Chinese person ever thinks much about Luxembourg, for instance, but
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they have a really playful pavilion, and that’s going to certainly leave a lasting impression on
those who see it.”
With a theme of “Better City, Better Life,” the Shanghai Expo is loosely organized
around the idea of sustainable development. There are “urban best practices” pavilions
showcasing cities like Vancouver, British Columbia, and Hamburg and corporate pavilions
from companies like Coca-Cola and Cisco. But the main attractions are the national pavilions,
which range from modest to imposing, simple to lavish, representational to abstract.
Some, like Britain’s, are the product of national competitions, significant government
outlays and years of planning. Others, like that of the United States, were cobbled together at
the last minute and funded by the private sector. Macao’s is shaped like a rabbit. The United
Arab Emirates’ entry resembles a sand dune. Japan’s has been nicknamed “purple silkworm
island.”
By far the most buzzed-about pavilion among both architects and the public is Britain’s
“Seed Cathedral,” designed by Thomas Heatherwick. The structure is a six-story cube pierced
by about 60,000 thin, transparent rods that extend from it like porcupine quills and sway in
the breeze. During the day, the rods — each 7.5 meters, or 25 feet, long — act like fiber-optic
filaments, drawing natural light into the building. At night, they project light from inside the
structure outward, making it glow like a spiky marshmallow. Locals have dubbed it “the
dandelion.”
Each rod, moreover, contains seeds of different plants collected in the Millennium Seed
Bank Project, an international conservation effort of the Royal Botanic Gardens.

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Before beating out architects including Zaha Hadid, John McAslan and Marks Barfield
in the pavilion design competition, Mr. Heatherwick was perhaps best known for art
installations.
The British government is touting his project as “a striking, visual demonstration of the
U.K. as a creative and innovative nation.” Or, as Sir Andrew Cahn, director of U.K. Trade
and Investment, which promotes Britain abroad, has said, it is an effort to show the Chinese
that Britain is about more than “cobblestones and fog.”
At earlier world’s fairs, the key draws were often exotic products from distant lands and
gee-whiz inventions like the Ferris wheel and the alternating current system of electricity. In
today’s world of globalized trade and rapid communications, some architects say, there is a
higher premium on the form of the Expo pavilions.
“All pavilions face a content problem,” said Yung Ho Chang, the architect of the
Shanghai Corporate Pavilion, known as the Dream Cube. “These days, what can you put in a
pavilion that will be a real experience, that people can’t find on the Internet? That’s why
people are putting so much energy into the architecture, and the ideas.”
Michael Speaks, dean of the University of Kentucky College of Design, said the Expo
offered the chance to see exciting projects from several young firms, particularly the
pavilions from South Korea, Austria and Denmark.
“There’s a real difference between countries trying to represent what they’ve already
done and countries trying to prototype what might be possible,” Mr. Speaks said. “Some
choose to make a big square box and show movies about what happens at home. The most
successful pavilions are about prototyping new ideas.”

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Austria’s entry, designed by the Vienna-based architecture firms SPAN and Zeytinoglu,
is a curved structure clad in 10 million porcelain tiles that allude to the long tradition of
chinaware exported from China to Europe.
“It’s a coming to fruition of a digital design aesthetic, and a way of fabricating, that’s
been emerging in the last six to seven years,” Mr. Speaks said, noting that Vienna had been in
the vanguard of the trend. “It’s become easier and easier to create digital files and make a
machine directly output those things. The result of that is much more formally organic shapes
not using off-the-shelf materials or components.”
South Korea’s entry is by the seven-year-old firm Mass Studies, founded by Minsuk
Cho, who studied in Seoul and at Columbia University in New York.
The design assembles the letters from the Korean alphabet into a cube-like structure,
thus using signs to create the space. The exterior appears pixilated, with black-and-white
alphabet squares alternating with colored ones created by a Korean artist, Ik-Joong Kang, that
will be sold off piece by piece when the Expo is over to raise money for charity.
Inside, the exhibition is oriented around an abstract map of a Korean city that expresses
the convergence of mountains, water and a dense metropolitan area.
The structure, Mr. Speaks said, is an updating of a discussion launched in the 1970s by
the seminal book “Learning From Las Vegas,” co-written by the architect Robert Venturi,
which looked at how the signs and images adorning buildings can be more important than the
buildings themselves.
“What they’ve done here is reverse that or make an argument of that,” Mr. Speaks said.
“Here we have images as form — they’re not representing something, they are the form. And

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that’s just one of the things going on with this building. It’s more evidence that Seoul is
emerging as a design capital.”
Previous world’s fairs have left their architectural marks on their host cities. The Eiffel
Tower, the Space Needle in Seattle and the Palace of Fine Arts in San Francisco all began as
attractions at such events before becoming landmarks.
If the Expo were being held anywhere but China, it might not be a very big deal, Mr.
Speaks said. But given the state of the global economy, and China’s rising economic might,
“every architectural firm, from small to big, wants to be in the game in China,” he said. “This
is a way that architects and countries can announce to China what their capabilities are.”
(Makinen 2010)

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APPENDIX C: Sample-- News from People’s Daily

UK aims to inspire with different pavilion: deputy director
08:47, May 10, 2010
A two-hour queue out in the sun is not pleasant, but long lines of visitors think it is a
price worth paying to get a closer look at the "Seed Cathedral" at the UK Pavilion in the
Shanghai Expo.
"In a crowded landscape, only the incredible will leave an impression," said David
Martin, deputy director of the UK Pavilion at the Expo.
To present visitors a modern and dynamic Britain instead of an old-fashioned one, the
designers came up with a striking, futuristic design which they hoped would challenge
stereotypes about Britain.
Nicknamed "The Dandelion," the pavilion is dotted with 60,000 transparent rods that
cover the entire structure and stick out like the seeds on a common weed.
The rods, each 7.5-meters long, act like a fiber optic cable, drawing light into the
building during the day and glowing softly at night.
Each of the slender spikes contains seeds from China's Kunming Institute of Botany.
Together they represent the work done by scientists at the Royal Botanic Gardens in London
to create a seed bank to store all the world's plant species.
However, the bold attempt has disappointed the visitors who expected to feast their eyes
on a kaleidoscope of cutting-edge technology and national treasures.

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The 189 participating countries all endeavored to present the best they could offer, like
the Czech Republic's lucky bronze plaque, New Zealand's 1.8-tonne pounamu (jade) boulder,
Turkey's 8,500-year-old sculpture, and Mexico's Mayan pillars.
"I have queued for more than two hours only to find nothing but seeds, plants and open
space. I thought there would be some exhibits reflecting British technology and the country's
long history," said Shen Peng, a 50-year-old man from Shanghai.
Martin was not surprised.
"I guess our pavilion might be a little different from others, maybe a bit beyond people's
expectations. But, we have done that on purpose, because we want to show something
different and something special.
"We are proud of our legacy and where we come from, but we want people to change a
little bit, think a little bit and say 'Gosh! I thought the UK wasn't like this'," he said
Rather than produce a museum-like atmosphere, the UK Pavilion wanted to create a
special feeling and an open park atmosphere for people.
"And that's really the difference and what we are trying to do," he said. ' In the wide
open space around the "Seed Cathedral," people can stay as long as they want, seeing their
children rolling down the hill, watching performances of distinctly British style, or even
enjoy the lunch they brought in.
"It is that feeling we really want to have. I think the UK Pavilion is one of the pavilions
that most closely follow the theme of 'Better City, Better Life'," Martin added.
It is the open urban park that is knitted into the whole message.
"That's very much about welcoming nature into cities," he said.

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"We've really embraced the theme because the UK during the industrial revolution in the
1800s had a massive build-up of cities, and we had to look at the planning and structures to
make city livable for people."
Martin said the UK was taking that part of their history and showing it as something
from the past.
"And this is probably a good idea for any other city or country that urbanizes rapidly,
which China is."
As for the visitors' disappointment about the absence of high-tech exhibits, Martin said
the UK believes the next wave of technology will be linked to nature, bio-diversity and
mankind's relationship with nature.
"I think the 'Seed Cathedral' represents where science and technology is going and we
are looking far into the future," he said.
Outside the "Cathedral" is the "Living City" where a multitude of live and imaginary
plants smack of science fiction.
Among the oddest is a purple-colored cabbage-shaped plant with dots of metal
embedded in its leaves. Another is in the form of a group of white threads hanging from the
ceiling and said to be able to identify anybody that has touched it.
"I want people to come and say 'Wow! This is really different!' and for them to think the
UK is a creative and innovative place which also knows how to plan a city," Martin said.
(People's Daily 2010)

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APPENDIX D: Sample--News from Standard- Hong Kong

Lawmakers take party line on HK pavilion
Diana Lee
Monday, May 10, 2010
Lawmakers left the China pavilion on the second day of their tour of the Shanghai World
Expo yesterday with a strong impression of its high-tech features.
However, the HK$145 million Hong Kong pavilion received mixed reviews from the 42
lawmakers.
Legislative Council president Jasper Tsang Yok-sing praised the Hong Kong pavilion
for showing the city's unique features in such a limited space and believed it should be
preserved after the Expo is over.
But pan-democrats were more critical.
The pavilion drew a "mere pass" from Democratic Party's Lee Wing-tat.
"The video show is merely something the Tourism Board would show as a general
introduction to Hong Kong," he said. Cheung Man-kwong said: "I think the pavilion would
be much more meaningful if it shows how Hong Kong people pursue freedom and
democracy."
The lawmakers gave the China pavilion their thumbs-up, especially a display featuring
the famous "Riverside scene at Qingming Festival."
They also visited other pavilions, including Japan, Saudi Arabia and Africa.

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Independent Regina Ip Lau Suk-yee spent 2,000 yuan for several sets of Expo
commemorative plates that she plans to include as prizes in a lucky draw at her think-tank
Savantas.
The five Democratic Party members - four of whom do not have home- return permits also seized the chance to visit the Oriental Pearl Tower.
The delegation later attended a dinner hosted by Shanghai National People's Congress
Standing Committee before boarding a boat for a tour of the city's Huangpu River.
The Expo visit ends today.
Commitee vice-chairman Hu Wei said that closer cooperation between the two cities
would be a win-win situation.
Meanwhile, organizers of the six- month Expo are worried they will fail to draw the
predicted 70 million visitors, with the turnout falling far short of the daily average of 380,000
they need. (Lee 2010)

106

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