The Exchange Pavilion is in the Plaza de Panama in Balboa Park. It’s a curving yellow wall held by a white metal structure that you can’t easily miss.
It is designed to mimic the San Diego-Tijuana border wall. But in this one, there’s a gap at the bottom that lets people in.
“The pavilion is a wall that’s been fused together to become this community space for people to come join,” said Carlos Hernandez with Heleo Architecture and Design. “It opened our eyes to this collaborative effort that exists in our region and how strong we are together.”
The pavilion is part of the World Design Capital, a recognition and celebration of the power of design in a community. Past capitals have included Mexico City and Seoul, South Korea. San Diego-Tijuana was the first joint application in the program’s history.
San Diego Councilmember Raul Campillo was an early supporter of World Design Capital 2024. He said the inclusion of two cities this year is emblematic of life in the region.
“I think the idea that we’re a binational region that operates as one organism rather than two separate cities in two separate countries is going to be achieved here because the programming that comes here is going to highlight American artists and Mexican artists,” Campillo said. “It’s gonna highlight American scientists and Mexican scientists, and I think a lot of people don’t realize that the educational institutions on both sides of the border exchange a lot of ideas. A lot of technology. A lot of jobs.”
The pavilion is made to look like the real border wall, but is transformed into a place for lectures and learning. It has an electronic ticker that shows poems, not stock prices.
The pavilion’s official grand opening takes place this weekend. A list of events linked to World Design Capital, 2024 can be found on its website.
