During the day, the American tulipwood installation promises to be fun and playful. The labyrinthine spaces lead visitors through a series of stairs, corridors and open spaces, inviting them to explore the potential of wood in architecture. In the evenings, with subtle lighting, the pavilion becomes a quiet and contemplative space, allowing visitors to reflect on the beauty of its natural material.

For AHEC, the structure underlines the potential for tulipwood CLT in the construction industry and its legacy could also add to the development of a larger scale engineered hardwood manufacturing sector in the U.S. itself.

“The main ambition of this project is to publicly debate how environmental challenges can be addressed through innovative, affordable construction,” says Andrew Waugh, co-founder of Waugh Thistleton Architects, a studio that has been at the forefront of engineered timber construction for decades. “We are at a crisis point in terms of CO₂ emissions and we believe that building in a versatile, sustainable material, such as tulipwood, is an important way of addressing this issue.”