Poland Pavilion Osaka 2025

identity spiral

Name: Poland National Pavilion at  Expo 2025 Osaka
Subtitle: identity spiral
Type: Cultural & Exhibition Building
Client: PAIH (Polish Investment and Trade Agency) / Republic of Poland

The spiral represents the story of so many Poles who built their lives and careers abroad — from Chopin to Curie-Sklodowska — yet never lost their identity or their bond with their homeland and culture. Its arms extend outwards, reaching into the world, but always return to the same centre. It carries knowledge and culture abroad, and brings them back in return — an invisible bond that connects every Polish citizen with their culture.

Located on a corner plot highly exposed to external views, the Poland Pavilion is conceived from a spiral plan composed of overlapping curved walls of varying heights. This open and dynamic form responds to the need to present a recognisable image from multiple angles, while at the same time drawing visitors inward through extensions of the walls that reach into the surroundings and invite exploration.
The geometry of the spiral is not merely a formal gesture but a spatial tool that organises the exhibition sequence and encourages a gradual experience of discovery.
Visitors pass through a series of spaces that unfold naturally, maintaining constant visual contact with the exterior through openings that bring daylight into the route, until the journey culminates in a concert hall located at the heart of the building — a warm and introspective ellipse.
This hall, inspired by Baltic amber — a symbolic material of Poland — is enclosed by a curtain of golden chains evoking the branches of willows, in reference to the landscapes that inspired Chopin. The curtain unifies the space, conceals the access points, and creates an intimate atmosphere, delicately enhanced by light.
The pavilion is built entirely in local Japanese pine, both in its structure and cladding, taking advantage of the exceptional savoir-faire of Japanese carpenters. It pays tribute to traditional craftsmanship, reinterpreted through contemporary tools. The result is a vibrant façade that changes its appearance throughout the day, capturing shadows in ever-shifting patterns. Inside, wood provides warmth, sensory comfort, and even a distinctive scent.
The building follows a modular logic based on the repetition of only two types of wooden modules. This strategy ensures both flexibility to adapt to the project’s complex geometry and precision to meet extremely tight construction deadlines.
Under the motto Heritage that drives the future, the pavilion establishes a dialogue between national identity and local context, between artisanal tradition and forms open to the future.
The Polish National Pavilion at Expo 2025 Osaka has welcomed over one million visitors during the six-month event.
It has been awarded the Bronze Medal for Best Pavilion in its category by the Experiential Design Authority ([link]) and its exhibition received the Gold Medal from the BIE ([link]).

Area: 1137 m²
Budget: 18M €
Address: 1 Chome Yumeshimanaka, Konohana Ward, Osaka, 554-0044, Japan
Partners: Local architect: komy Studio (Masafumi Yukimoto, Mihoko Samejima)
Structure: Jun Sato Structural Engineers (Jun Sato, Yuta Shimoda)
MEP: Masukawa Architectural Equipment Design (Tomoaki Masukawa), Denro (Toshiro Saito)
Lighting: Amber (Kentaro Tanaka)
Landscape: Atelier Fuuchi (Junko Anazawa)

Contractor: Joint venture of Finasi SPI JV Turnkey Projects Contracting – FZCO; Nagashima Co.
Ltd.; JSC Corporation.
Exhibition designers: KAFTI, GDYBY, Wiesław Bartkowski
Status: Completed 2025
Photography: Fernando Guerra / FG+SG

The genesis of the project arose from a fascination with the geometry of the spiral. A shape that has inspired humanity for centuries, it appears in nature at all scales: from protein molecules to the structure of galaxies.In what way does this geometry represent Polishness for us and its inherent spirit of innovation? The borders of Poland’s territory do not hinder innovative ideas from spreading far and wide, influencing distant regions, and allowing knowledge gained abroad to return to the gravitational centre of our nation. These invisible but significant forces for the country’s development are expressed in the dynamic form of spiral walls, with the concert hall at its core.

Formally, situated on a prominent corner plot highly exposed to external views, the Polish Pavilion is conceived from a spiral layout, formed by overlapping curved walls of varying heights. This open and dynamic shape addresses the need to offer a recognisable image from multiple angles, simultaneously drawing visitors in through wall extensions projecting towards their surroundings, inviting exploratio

The spiral geometry is more than merely a formal gesture; it serves as a spatial tool structuring the exhibition sequence and fostering a progressive experience of discovery. Visitors move naturally through different spaces without losing visual contact with the exterior, thanks to windows illuminating sections of the journey, culminating in a concert hall located at the building’s heart—a warm, introspective ellipse.
The spiral geometry is more than merely a formal gesture; it serves as a spatial tool structuring the exhibition sequence and fostering a progressive experience of discovery. Visitors move naturally through different spaces without losing visual contact with the exterior, thanks to windows illuminating sections of the journey, culminating in a concert hall located at the building’s heart—a warm, introspective ellipse.

This hall, inspired by Baltic amber—a symbolic material of Poland—is enclosed by a curtain of golden chains evoking willow branches, referencing the landscapes that inspired Chopin. This curtain unifies the space, conceals entrances, and creates an intimate atmosphere subtly accentuated by lighting.

The pavilion exclusively utilises locally sourced Japanese pine wood for both its structure and cladding, capitalising on the exceptional savoir-faire of Japanese carpenters. It references traditional techniques reinterpreted through contemporary methods, resulting in a vibrant façade that shifts appearance throughout the day due to the interplay of shadows. Inside, the timber provides warmth, sensory comfort, and even an aromatic presence.

The construction employs a modular logic based exclusively on two types of wooden modules. This strategy ensures flexibility to adapt to the project’s geometry while maintaining rigorous construction standards to meet extremely tight deadlines.