From the first Great Exhibition of 1851, international exhibitions have been an opportunity for countries to display their latest innovations in manufacturing and technology. They have also provided a world stage on which nations could project carefully crafted images of themselves, involving displays of contemporary culture and art.
Inevitably, international exhibitions reflect the circumstances in which they are held. We might think of them as time capsules: in looking back at them, we can see something of the world at that particular time, aspects of the economic, political and cultural context in which the exhibitions took place. In this article, we look back at four international exhibitions and explore the unique circumstances of each, as well the common themes which run through all exhibitions.
The Great Exhibition of the Works of Industry of all Nations, London 1851
The Great Exhibition of 1851 was, for its time, an event of unprecedented scale. It brought together a huge array of manufactured goods under one massive glass roof: steam locomotives, textiles, porcelain, musical instruments and sculptures were amongst the many products on display. The exhibition hall in Hyde Park, unofficially named Crystal Palace, was the largest structure in the country at the time (figure 1). Its standardised cast iron and glass components had been prefabricated in
