www.chinaview.cn 2009-05-09 21:20:19

BEIJING, May 9 -- The Italy Pavillion, called The City of Man, breaks ground officially in Shanghai Expo on Friday.

Located in C zone of the Expo and along with Huangpu river, the Italy Pavillion covers an area of 3,600 square meters. The pavillion is consisted of 20 functional parts that can be assembled individually, representing 20 Italian regions.

Visitors walking in the pavillion will feel like being in an area combined the styles of Shanghai lane and Italian plaza.

According to the pavillion designer Giampaolo Imbrighi, the design was inspired by a traditional Shanghai game. In the game, children drop a batch of 20-30 sticks on a table and try to move one stick at a time without moving the others until all the sticks are cleared.

Imbrighi said the shape of the pavilion is as changeable as the game, which is called "Shanghai" in Italy.

Soundbite: Riccardo Sessa, Ambassador of Italy Embassy "How to ensure better conditions of life. And the same time, the most modern concept of globalization. How cities can combine with the needs of keeping, for example, cultural heritage and the modern development can serve the man."

Apart from the uniqueness and novelty in design, Italy Pavillion also uses many innovative materials such as transparent concrete to create ecoclimate.

Xinhua News Agency correspondents reporting from Shanghai.  (Source: XHTV)