Diana Farah

DUBAI: As the UAE gears up to launch the Dubai Expo 2020, the Japan Pavilion has been working hard to ensure its exhibition is perfectly aligned with its theme ‘Where Ideas Meet.’

The pavilion’s Commissioner General NAKAMURA Tomiyasu said on Sunday that the theme is to “encourage to visitors to speak about how they would contribute to solve global issues.”

Adding that he hoped the Japan Pavilion would be the place where ideas from around the world will meet “to create a brighter future on a global perspective.”

Speaking to Arab News Japan, Nakamura said COVID-19 had posed many challenges, along with a one-year delay of the Dubai Expo.

“After the one-year postponement, it was an issue keeping our staff motivated. We have 200 Japanese staff, all of them coming from Japan,” he said. “However, we made sure to keep everyone motivated by communicating with them constantly and making sure to cheer for each other.”

Initially, the Japan Pavilion’s original design included a four-story building, but later on had to be cut in half.

The exhibition is made up of six scenes closely following the theme and the tour of it all takes about 60 minutes. Once visitors enter the pavilion, they are handed Sony smartphones and earphones that will guide them through Japan’s wing.

According to the pavilion’s Secretary General YABUNAKA Aiko, what makes the Japan Pavilion special is that the technology used “collects information on the location of the visitors and creates personalized sound effects.”

The first scene of the exhibition is inspired by one’s initial encounter with Japan. “In this scene, visitors will enjoy the experience of three-dimensional videos presented against a magical backdrop created by using Panasonic’s ‘Silky Fine Mist’ suspended in the air.”

The second scene focuses on how culture has evolved from the history of Japan’s encounters with others. Third is an exhibit that features how Japanese innovation has drawn inspiration from both nature and traditional culture.

Products from daily life were used in other contexts, creating intricate and elaborate miniature scenes, created by Japanese artist TANAKA Tatsuya.

Scene four uses mirrors to create a space of infinite reflection as visitors are projected inside the screen. The fifth scene allows visitors to encounter fascinating ideas. A climactic experience will be created using data collected from the smartphones handed at the beginning of the pavilion’s tour.

Real-time generated graphic art will be created accordingly to each person’s interest, creating a unique character for each and every visitor.

Finally, the sixth scene offers a preview sneak peek of Osaka’s 2025 Expo, with its theme being ‘Designing Future Society for Our Lives.’

Yabunuka said visitors would be able to leave a message about what they have experienced and ideas they have through the smartphones they were handed at the pavilion’s entrance. “The feedback of the visitors will be used to develop ideas for the next expo.”

The Japan Pavilion will also be available virtually so that visitors from all over the world get a chance to experience it.