In order to showcase the skills and talents of Luxembourg’s creative scene, a call for entries and proposals was issued by the management boards of the economic interest group “Luxembourg@Expo2025Osaka” in collaboration with Kultur | lx. The designers selected will have the opportunity to take part in a programme that will run throughout the exhibition in various spaces, combining one-off events with more permanent elements. “The World Expo 2025 in Osaka offers a unique opportunity to showcase Luxembourg creativity on the international stage. Through a rich and diversified programme, the Luxembourg pavilion will showcase the talent of our artists and designers, while creating a dialogue between our traditions and those of Japan. This presence illustrates the vitality and commitment of our cultural scene to an open and lasting exchange,” declared culture minister (DP).
Permanent elements
We already knew that the using the principle of circularity, thanks to extensive work on standardisation, modularity and demountability.
The pavilion’s scenography will be accompanied by a musical composition by Claude Zeimes (b. 1983), who was selected following a call for entries in partnership with the Fédération luxembourgeoise des auteurs et compositeurs (FLAC). His creation will form the sound identity of the pavilion, in keeping with the Doki Doki motto.
The design team will include Julie Conrad, Christophe de la Fontaine, Frank Michels and Georges Zigrand, who were selected following a call for entries to design the furniture for the pavilion’s VIP areas.
In more detail, there is the “Spectrum” table and “Panorama” chairs designed by Geckeler Michels. These will be produced by Karimoku New Standard less than 200km from Osaka using Japanese oak. VIPs will be able to sit in , developed with Norbert Brakonier, which feature a customisable wooden frame, or in the “El Santo” armchair produced by Dante Goods and Bads and designed by Christophe de la Fontaine. This armchair is made from a single piece of upcycled leather. But for the pavilion, an “Osaka edition” version is planned, with a locally sourced tatami-like covering. The coffee tables will be “Oh!” tables by Georges Zigrand, whose bases will be made from three, locally-sourced natural stones.
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Temporary events
In addition to these permanent features, there is also a temporary programme of events.
To mark the opening of the pavilion on 14 April, a concert will bring together the Pueri Cantores boys choir from the Conservatoire de Luxembourg and the choir from Kyoto’s Ritsumeikan school. The press release states that 90 young singers will perform a repertoire combining tradition and modernity and carrying “a message of union, peace and mutual understanding, in keeping with Expo 2025 Osaka’s sub-theme ‘Connecting Lives.’”
An exhibition dedicated to the creations of the designers selected to furnish the VIP area will run from 28 April to 5 May.
From 6 to 20 May, the “Fallen Trees” exhibition, initiated by Pitt Brandenburger, will celebrate the beauty and importance of trees and shrubs. Some of his work was .
Pitt Brandenburger activating one of his pieces from the “Fallen Trees” exhibition. Photo: Guy Wolff/Archives
The Luxembourg day will be held on 30 May, and will feature the concert and performance “Echoes of Tomorrow,” where the talents of Francesco Tristano, Maika Fujii, Jill Crovisier and Pascal Schumacher will intermingle.
In addition, artist Aïda Schweitzer will be immersing herself in the heart of Japanese textile traditions and presenting her research project “Fils croisé,” a metaphor for the connections, encounters and interactions between cultures, ideas and people.
Finally, photographers Daniel Reuter and Chikara Umihara took a cross-cultural look at Osaka and the surrounding area. The exhibition to be presented at the pavilion between 24 September and 12 October is the fruit of a residency carried out in autumn 2024.
The entire programme has been made possible by a budget of €600,000 co-financed by the economic interest group Luxembourg@Expo2025Osaka, Kultur | lx, the culture ministry and other partners such as the Chamber of Crafts. However, we are entitled to wonder whether the Pueri Cantores choir’s trip to Japan is a wise use of public money, given the travel and accommodation costs that this programme will entail.
This article was originally published in .