Children lead the way

The Russia Pavilion explains that better urban living can be created from children's dreams, Yu Ran reports.

The Russia Pavilion has created a fairytale atmosphere as a way to show visitors a fantastic and ideal world as seen through the eyes of a child. In this way, it hopes to demonstrate that it is the vision of children that can create a better urban life in the future.

Inspired by the book, The Adventures of Dunno and His Friends, by Russian author Nikolay Nosov, the Russia Pavilion creates an idealistic city, resembling mythical places in a fairytale, to enlighten visitors to the impressions of a child's paradise.

The ethereal Russia Pavilion uses its exterior to exemplify its theme. Twelve white gilded towers resemble historical images of Russian architecture, while the perforations on the higher parts are created based on the traditional ethnic clothing in Russia.

In the evening, with the special lighting illuminating the pavilion, an even more stunning and fantastical effect is created.

The pavilion creates the theme: "Colorful Neighborhoods for a Better City", which illustrates what the best cities of the future should look like. Paintings were selected from 300 pieces done by children and provided by 50 art schools all over Russia.

Based on these works of art, architects designed scale models of urban neighborhoods and urban environments.

"Every picture represents not only a building, but also an entire ensemble of buildings, a neighborhood that has gone up and shaped most unusually and quaintly," said Vladimir Strashko, commissioner-general of the Russia Pavilion.

Walking from the first floor to the second floor, the main exhibition area, the City of Talents presents the notion that the best city is the one where children are happy. Therefore, children will shape the appearance and substance of cities of the future. The path moves through sections highlighting progress in different areas of Russia's development. Visitors travel along the path as if in a fairytale with giant colorful pieces of food and plants accompanying them through the walking tour.

"I love all the interior exhibits such as the cascade, the colorful houses, and giant flowers and strawberries, which remind me of my favorite Hayao Miyazaki's cartoons," said 7-year-old Nishimura Mion from Japan.

New architectural formats and elements of future cities should come from a child's perspective, which will provide a rational and comfortable style. The pavilion expresses the concept from Russia that children represent the future of the country and their dreams are essential to help Russia create a better country.

"A better city for children is what we need in future cities. We have to think what needs to be done now so that children's dreams come true in the future," said Strashko.

(China Daily 08/27/2010)