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Within Expo Osaka, the Future of Life Pavilion stands as a laboratory of architectural and technological innovation, becoming a key reference for the use of advanced materials and cutting-edge design systems. Solutions such as i-Mesh represent a paradigm shift: more than mere construction elements, they operate as intelligent, lightweight, and sustainable systems capable of redefining the relationship between form, function, and environment.
The use of advanced materials and evolved design approaches contributes to shaping an environment where experimentation translates into real-world application, offering new perspectives on the role of architecture in building the future.
The project explores multiple temporal scales, connecting innovation, sustainability, and imagination. Interaction with robots and androids becomes an integral part of the experience, bringing visitors closer to scenarios that, until recently, belonged to theoretical speculation.
Water serves as the generative principle of the Future of Life Pavilion at Expo 2025 Osaka. In Jiro Endo’s project, this element becomes structure, material, and design device, defining an advanced example of parametric architecture and contemporary design.
The architecture takes shape as an aquatic landscape where surfaces, materials, and flows establish a continuous dialogue between nature and technology. The building is conceived as a “water membrane”, a dynamic skin enveloping the volume, where flowing water continuously transforms and redefines the boundary between organic and inorganic elements.
"I wanted to create a moving water boundary… a boundary that is not fixed, but transformed into a natural one. I wondered whether, by using i-Mesh, I could make a pattern emerge in the movement of water, within the water itself."
Jiro Endo
The Future of Life Pavilion is grounded in a vision that integrates architecture, robotics, and technological innovation. The project is curated by roboticist Hiroshi Ishiguro, a leading figure at Ishimoto Architectural & Engineering Firm, Inc., together with Jiro Endo, who is responsible for the architectural concept and exhibition design.
The project’s identity reflects a multidisciplinary approach in which computational design and experimental processes play a central role. Jiro Endo’s background, spanning architecture, visual arts, and lighting design, contributes to defining a hybrid and contemporary language.
The process was developed through co-creation sessions involving researchers, developers, scientists, and creatives.
The theme of the Future of Life is explored in relation to transformations in smart cities, mobility, and healthcare, outlining scenarios where technology and humanity are increasingly interconnected.
The project is rooted in a reflection that spans science, technology, and philosophy, encapsulated in the vision of Hiroshi Ishiguro, who suggests that humanity originates from inorganic forms and is now exploring new evolutions through technology:
"Human beings originated from inorganic forms that became organic. Now we seek to use the power of technology to evolve into new inorganic forms."
Hiroshi Ishiguro
Water acts as a connective element between different states of matter, while the concept of threshold defines a space of transformation.
In this perspective, Osaka, historically a city of water, becomes the ideal context for developing a narrative that intertwines nature and innovative materials.
The façade represents the technological core of the project and a key example of textile façade and performative architecture.
Constructed with carbon fiber panels and clad with i-Mesh, the textile façade behaves as an active surface capable of interacting with the environment while meeting both aesthetic and functional requirements.
The textile pattern, developed through computational design logics, is not merely a surface layer but a lightweight, high-performance structure that guides the flow of water and enhances its perceptual qualities. Water passes through the mesh, activating a continuous cycle that defines the building’s visual identity, transforming an inert element into a dynamic system.
When the flow slows or stops, an additional layer of visual complexity emerges. The overlap of two i-Mesh layers at ground level generates a moiré effect, an optical phenomenon in which regular patterns produce new dynamic visual textures.
As a result, the surface appears to change depending on light and viewing angle, introducing a sense of movement even in static conditions.
The Pavilion’s architecture is conceived as an interactive system that connects space, material, and visitor, and can be interpreted as an interactive art installation. Here, architecture, technology, and material behavior combine to create an immersive and dynamic experience through responsive systems that react to the presence and movement of visitors.
The two-layer steel structure provides a solid framework, while the fluid component introduces a mutable and adaptive dimension.
This integration between built elements and natural dynamics results in an interactive architectural installation, where the behavior of the façade and water directly contributes to the spatial experience.
The visitor journey connects different environments, from the entrance area to the Future Theater and the Android Theater, creating a continuous narrative.
The project invites reflection on the relationship between humans, robots, and androids, raising concrete questions about the future of identity and interaction. The experience engages visitors in a dimension where the boundaries between natural and artificial become increasingly blurred.
Learn more:
Encounters with the future will make how humanity lives freer
Future of life pavilion reimagines human existence through robotics & AI
Future of Life: Amplification of Lives
