The cluster of corporate pavilions at the Expo could be mistaken for a light show.

In an Expo where pavilions use iconic forms to represent their countries—Israel’s shell, Romania’s apple, Switzerland’s ski lift—it makes some sense that the United States Pavilion takes the form of a shopping mall.

The Netherlands Pavilion offers a unique interpretation of Expo 2010’s motto “Better city, Better life.”

Most pavilions present their country’s cultural history and progressive urban ideas in an effort to convey a clear sense of national values and identity.

With the Spain Pavilion, architect Benedetta Tagliabue of EMBT created drama in architectural form.

As an exercise in form-making and spectacle, the colorful, multidimensional South Korea Pavilion  succeeds at grabbing attention.

Inspired by the large cavities cut into bedrock by receding glaciers during the last Ice Age, Teemu Kurkela and his colleagues at JKMM Architects carved a tall open space at the center of their Finland Pavilion and gave the building an almost geological character.

Using cultural clichés in architecture rarely results in good design.

Like Luxembourg, Russia, and Canada, Germany presents visitors with an origami-like pavilion that says more about its time than its place.