curved mirrored walls multiply one tree into infinite grove pavilion

Infinite Grove pavilion reflects a single tree into infinity

One tree becomes an endless forest in Infinite Grove, a traveling pavilion by Chang Hao Studio in Shanghai. Two curved mirrored–steel walls reflect a single tree back and forth, creating a forest with no visible edge. First presented in spring at the 2026 Shanghai International Flower Festival, the pavilion has since moved across the city, pairing the same structure with different trees for each season.

all images ©Chang Hao Studio

One tree, multiplied, shapes a forest within two walls

Infinite Grove is a pop-up pavilion built by Chang Hao Studio around a single tree. Two curved mirrored-steel walls multiply it through reflection, while a circular entrance reveals only part of the interior. Frosted panels diffuse daylight into a soft haze, making it difficult to distinguish the real tree from its reflections.

Inside, the tree appears above while its repeated reflections surround the visitor, incorporating their own figure into the mirrored landscape. The experience unfolds through three stages: a partial view through the circular opening, the first glimpse of the reflected forest, and the realization that the entire scene originates from a single tree.

Infinite Grove multiplies a single tree into a forest of reflections

The traveling pavilion forms A garden for the city

Infinite Grove was selected by Xiaohongshu (RED) Design Week for the 2026 Shanghai International Flower Festival, held from April 18th to May 10th, 2026. The expanded festival brought gardens beyond traditional exhibition grounds and into shopping districts, parks, and streets across two main venues and ten sub-venues throughout Shanghai.

The pavilion was installed at the Huangpu main venue in Xintiandi among more than forty themed gardens. The festival received approximately 29.5 million visits. Within the dense urban setting, Infinite Grove uses a compact footprint to create an interior that appears much larger than its physical dimensions.

two curved mirrored-steel walls create the pavilion’s endless landscape

A Chinese garden of framed views and borrowed scenery

The design draws on two principles of the classical Chinese garden: framed views (kuangjing) and borrowed scenery (jiejing). These are used as spatial strategies rather than historical references. Traditional gardens often use a small doorway or window to frame a landscape beyond its apparent scale. Infinite Grove applies the same approach through its circular entrance, withholding the full view until the visitor enters.

Here, the borrowed scenery is the tree itself. Reflections extend it beyond the limits of the site, turning a pavilion only a few steps across into a forest-like interior.

the real tree becomes difficult to distinguish from its reflections

Curved mirrored steel, frosted panels, and a living tree

The pavilion uses a compact material palette of curved mirrored steel, frosted panels, and a single living tree. The mirrored walls create the repeated landscape, while the frosted panels filter daylight and soften the interior.

The structure is prefabricated in a factory and requires no foundations. On site, it is simply positioned in place, limiting its impact on the ground. The completed pavilion can be transported on a single truck, allowing the entire structure to move between locations.

a circular opening frames a partial view of the interior

Chang Hao Studio composes A pavilion that travels

Infinite Grove is designed as a mobile installation, with its central tree changing according to the season and setting. At the flower festival in spring, a flowering azalea stood at the center, its blossoms multiplying across the mirrored walls to create a forest of color.

For its second site in summer, the azalea was replaced by an olive tree. Its silver-green foliage and twisting trunk gave the reflected landscape a lighter character. The structure remained unchanged, while the different tree produced a new spatial and visual environment.

The pavilion continues to travel through Shanghai as a mobile installation, with each new tree reshaping the forest created inside the two mirrored walls.