The brain behind the enormous EXPO2020 Dubai gates is a British-Pakistani architect named Asif Khan
Asif Khan – Brilliantly merged the ancient Mashrabiya design with an ultra-futuristic concept for Expo2020 dubai.
He has designed the award-winning UK pavilion at Astana Expo 2017 and the Hyundai pavilion at the Pyeong Chang 2018 Winter Olympics.
His notable projects include the ‘Mega Faces’ pavilion at the Sochi 2014 Winter Olympics, which won the Cannes Lion Grand Prix for Innovation; the Coca-Cola Beatbox at London 2012 Olympics, a finalist entry in the international competition for the new Guggenheim Museum Helsinki from 1700 anonymous designs; and a Summer pavilion for the Serpentine Gallery in summer 2016.
Khan is basking in the glory of a mission accomplished, which has become a talking point of the 182-day event, whose theme, ‘Connecting Minds, Creating the Future’, is inextricably linked to his creation.
“It was a challenging task to bring this extraordinary spectacle to life,” he said.
Khan’s team worked with several experts for the Expo2020 dubai gate project.
“We pushed to the absolute limit of structural engineering and science. We approached F1 car engineers, as they deal with carbon fibre, to make it happen. But that did not suffice.
“We then had to work with engineers from the aeronautical industry that deals with carbon fiber components and work with light-weight solar power planes,” he said.
They went the extra mile to ensure that the entry portals would convey the Expo’s vision of history meeting the future.
Besides the Expo2020 dubai gates, other major installations at the venue came from Asif Khan Studios in London.
Khan had been tasked with designing the entire 6km of the Expo’s public realm.
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