BRC Imagination Arts, Trahan Architects, ES Global and Alchemy have completed the USA Pavilion at Expo 2025 Osaka in Japan.
The USA Pavilion at Expo 2025 is a cultural ambassador for the United States, showcasing American architecture, exhibition design, culture, and innovation. It offers visitors an immersive experience, highlighting iconic views of the country alongside exhibitions that celebrate the United States.
Expo 2025 Osaka opens on 13 April and will run until 13 October. The event is anticipated to attract millions of visitors during its six-month run. This marks Trahan Architects’ first project constructed outside the US, while BRC Imagination Arts has designed the USA Pavilion for a World Expo for the fifth time, with this being the second instance in Japan.
A gateway for visitors
The USA Pavilion is centrally located in Expo 2025’s Grand Ring, between the Forest of Tranquility and East Gate Entrance Plaza, acting as a visual gateway for visitors.
The pavilion is open, grand, and minimalistic, drawing inspiration from both natural and urban canyons. Two triangular structures form a central plaza and act as broad wings, featuring LED screens that display iconic and dynamic images of American landmarks and landscapes.
Drawing inspiration from traditional Japanese footbridges, the plaza arches gently, creating a sense of balance and fostering a distinctive experience for visitors. As it stretches from west to east, the plaza tapers to a point, enhancing the tranquillity offered by the architecture. At the pavilion’s rear, the two wings meet in the serenity garden, letting in natural light.
Central to the USA Pavilion is a ‘floating’ translucent cube, brightly lit and hanging above visitors. This design serves as a threshold, drawing inspiration from Japanese torii gates, and seamlessly connects the pavilion’s active public plaza with its serene private courtyard.
The USA Pavilion demonstrates a robust and effective design and construction method by utilising a custom steel system, a modular timber facade, and repurposed equipment from ES Global to enhance cost efficiency. It serves as a leading example of innovation and creative design in construction.
Showcasing innovation & creativity
The 2,880-square-meter pavilion’s interior exhibition program, crafted by BRC Imagination Arts, captivates Expo visitors through various experiential typologies. The USA Pavilion invites guests from around the world to “Imagine What We Can Create Together.”
Spark, the pavilion’s mascot, embodies imagination and creativity, guiding visitors through immersive realms highlighting American opportunity, entrepreneurship, culture, and innovation.
Showcasing pioneering advancements in agriculture, nanotechnology, advanced materials, and aerospace, the USA Pavilion emphasises America’s global leadership and dedication to empowering lives.
Visitors to the USA Pavilion engage all their senses and experience how to learn, innovate, explore, and imagine together. An upbeat song, presented in English and Japanese, combined with stunning visual storytelling, inspires visitors as it leads them to the final exhibit, a space-themed “Launch” that delivers the compelling message: “Join Us!”
See also: 20 of the best country pavilions at Expo 2025 Osaka
Celebrating the US on the world stage
Trey Trahan, founder of Trahan Architects, says: “The USA Pavilion is a beacon for the country, celebrating the best of American ideas on the world stage. In designing the Pavilion, we sought to create a bold, memorable building that was emblematic of the United States’ history of architectural innovation.
“Our design is centered around public space and visitor experience—architecture that is at once minimalist and monumental, inspired by its Japanese context.”
Ben Price, founder at Alchemy, adds: “The USA Pavilion is a standout Pavilion at Expo 2025 Osaka. We are proud to have assembled an incredibly talented, multidisciplinary, integrated design-build team to deliver this Pavilion to welcome the world. From the outset, we strived to create something exceptional.
“The result has exceeded our expectations, showcasing what can be when a client and project team work seamlessly toward a common goal.”
Christian Lachel, chief creative officer at BRC Imagination Arts, says: “The USA Pavilion inspires visitors from around the world to ‘Imagine What We Can Create Together.’ The pavilion exhibition underscores America’s deep history of creativity, innovation, entrepreneurship, and its commitment to working together to address how we can empower lives and inspire future generations.
“Our ability to imagine is one of the most powerful tools we have.”
Olly Watts, joint CEO of ES Global, says: “The strength of the USA Pavilion lies in its clear demonstration of ingenuity—combining innovative venue design with cost-effective delivery on the global stage. By drawing on modular construction methods and repurposing existing equipment beyond Expo 2025, we’ve created a pavilion that reflects both architectural ambition and smart execution.”
Designed for the United States of America Department of State, the USA Pavilion was designed by Trahan Architects and realised in collaboration with ES Global, Alchemy, and BRC Imagination Arts.
BRC Imagination Arts is an award-winning design and production company specialising in the creation of innovative brand and cultural experiences. Founded in 1981, BRC has been at the forefront of the experience design industry for over 40 years. Today, the company provides clients with comprehensive solutions, delivering transformative and impactful experiences that connect brands with their audiences.
