Danish Pavilion at the 2010 World Expo, Shanghai

The Danish Pavilion at the World Expo in Shanghai is a class act. Bypassing propagandistic advertising, the Danes have combined art and architecture with an icon (Copenhagen's Little Mermaid) creating a spiral shape for visitors to explore while taking in photographs, films and Jeppe Hein's social bench and fountain. As well as animating the architectural space Hein's intervention functions as a barrier between the pedestrians and cyclists who use the cycling lanes that take them from the ground through two curves and up to a level of 12 metres and down again.

Images: from the Bjarke Ingels Group website, Danish Pavilion architects