The Austrian firm Delugan Meissl has transformed an old industrial facility in disuse, located in Shanghai’s Pudong district, into a greenhouse with curving glass pavilions reaching a height of 35 meters. This unique space, the Expo Cultural Park Greenhouse, has a gross surface area of 41,000 square meters and fuses nature and technology in an environment that is notable because of its organic design and sustainable approach.

Under the geometric steel structure of the industrial construction, the greenhouse is composed of an entrance building and three pavilions set in different climates, all of them organically curving. The first one recreates the aridity of a desert; the second, the humidity and biodiversity of the tropical rainforest; and the third, a flower garden that doubles as a venue for traveling exhibitions. Visitors follow the winding pathsways between pavilions and go up to a terrace for overviews of the surroundings.

Given that greenhouses generally consume large amounts of energy, the project aimed for energy efficiency. Hence the single glazing, based on simulative calculations that demonstrated that double glass is less efficient in energy terms, the reduction of heat loss being canceled out by the impact of the artificial lighting required by the plants. In addition, the roof windows can be adjusted to maximize natural ventilation and passive cooling, in accordance with the needs of the vegetation. Photovoltaic panels complete the sustainable strategy, ensuring that the greenhouse is supplied with clean energy.

The contrast between the existing gridded structure and the greenhouse’s organic shapes symbolizes the interaction between the site’s industrial legacy and nature, triggering thoughts on the evolution of urban space and its relationship with the environment.