The Netherlands

Official name

The Netherlands

National Day

04.19.2005 (Tue)

Participant WEB site:

Dutch participation at Expo 2005

Theme / Exhibition

The Netherlands, with only limited land, has all along explored wise ways for sustainable development. With a long history of intervening in nature and fighting against floods to guarantee a safe and high-quality living environment, the Netherlands is notable for its extensive use of geographical circumstances to develop economic potential.

To a large extent, water defines what the Netherlands looks like today. Therefore, the Netherlands has chosen "Land of Water" as the central theme for EXPO 2005.
The Netherlands Pavilion has an impressive exterior fa溝de - a "Delft Blue" tile structure (with blue images on white tiles) and gigantic tulips casually hanging out from the side of the pavilion.
"Delft" tiles, typical of the Netherlands' traditional crafts, are also found inside the pavilion. The surrounding walls are covered with "Delft Blue" ceramic tiles presenting a typical view of the Netherlands - a panorama of Amsterdam-style facades, which is the largest hand-painted tile tableau in the world.
The atrium has a huge pond at the center, which functions as a complete side-to-side media surface. Visitors are invited to gather around the pond to enjoy an audiovisual presentation about "Holland: Land of Water" for about seven minutes. This presentation will depict the importance of a balance between man and nature from the unique viewpoint of the Netherlands, which has constantly grappled with challenges on the boundary between land and water. As such, it throws light on a quintessential balance between man and nature, and between land and water through the Netherlands' involvement with water.

Goods

Representative products of the Netherlands are displayed in showcases placed outside the pavilion, right next to the entrance. All of them are special products of high quality, custom-made for EXPO 2005 and clearly recognizable as 100% Dutch. There is not any shop in the pavilion, but visitors can order those products via the i-mode mobile phone Internet system and the Website of the pavilion (www.holland-expo2005.com).