House of Switzerland

With its prime location in the Rodrigo de Freitas Lagoon — an area that is greatly influenced by Copacabana's and Ipanema's "vibes" — House of Switzerland aims to be a location where sports and cultural and social exchange of both countries take place during the 2016 Olympics & Paralympics in Rio de Janeiro.

As an 800m2 roof, this festive landmark presents Switzerland as a welcoming open space, not only dedicated to the direct promotion of Switzerland during the event, but also as a shelter for broader exchange between Brazil and Switzerland.

The construction of the Pavilion is used as the first step of a shared adventure. Wood is one of the biggest recourses exported by Brazil, in its raw state or as semi elaborated standard products. But the timber industry and wood working technologies are not as developed as the resources of the country may suggest. On the other hand, Brazil's wood production is one of the biggest themes of discussion about the sustainability of the Amazon Forest and the impact that its exploitation has on the natural and economical resources.

The pavilion is therefore planned as a research and educational project. Experienced swiss carpenters share their knowledge and skills with local workers and students, who will then prefabricate and build the roof structure. The construction methodology is pragmatic and easy to adapt, so that the learned technics can be easily adapted in future projects. The goal is to transfer enough know-how to the local construction team that they can rebuild the structure. Hoping to create synergies that would last beyond the pavilion's existing time.