Kuwait - Expo Osaka 1970
The Kuwait Pavilion was a two-storey structure topped by the golden dome of the Islam Mosque. The pavilion, reminiscent of Mohammedan architecture, symbolised the religious tradition and customs of that country. The mosque at the top of the pavilion was symbolic of religious worship and the strong unifying influence of Islam, the religion of Mohamed.
But the Kuwait pavilion had another aspect, the modern aspect. This was expressed in the outer windows of the building, which symbolised the development of Kuwait as a modern nation. Kuwait was moving towards the modernisation of its industries, with its oil industry serving as the country's primary driving force. Kuwait is a small country and is largely desert, but it has huge oil reserves, estimated at 60,000 million barrels. Its oil wealth has given the country one of the highest per capita incomes in the world and has allowed the Government to establish a welfare state model. This aspect of the country was illustrated by exhibitions and films in the pavilion. A special effort was made to present the economy and industrial development in the country, including the development of oil refineries, petrochemical centres, chemical fertilizer plants and other various factories and facilities. Exhibits were placed in all the different areas of the pavilion including the ground floor rooms which presented the country's historical past and its evolution towards modern industrial development.
In the pond in front of the building was a replica of the famous sailing ships that were used for trade in the past, transporting supplies from abroad to Kuwait, and also transporting goods to foreign markets. The pond and the sailboat symbolised the geographical features of the country, which is located on the northwestern shore of the Arabian Gulf, bordered by Iraq to the north and Saudi Arabia to the south.