In Focus

Nicholas J. Cull
Professor of Public Diplomacy, USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism

Some of the greatest successes in the history of national projection overseas have been accomplished by Expo pavilions: Finland’s presence at the Expo 1900 Paris was a spectacular ‘coming out party’ for the nation that predated the country’s independence from the Russian Empire by seventeen years. Weimar Germany’s pavilion at Expo 1929 Barcelona introduced the world to Bauhaus and created an enduring iconic modernist space and design.

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The Republic of Korea has hosted two Specialised Expos, officially known as International Recognised Exhibitions. These Expos have the power not only to create a strong impetus for local development, ...
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Throughout their entire 160-year plus history, World Expos have been catalysts for change, showcasing ground-breaking innovations that still impact the world today and sparking discussions that have ...
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The organisation of large events, including World Expos, can significantly affect the urban landscape of the host city and region. The intensity of the changes depends on a number of factors, ...
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  In 2022, the Netherlands will host its seventh Horticultural Expo (‘Floriade’) in the city of Almere, in the Amsterdam Metropolitan Area, under the theme “Growing Green Cities”. With ...
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Opening on 30 April 1939, New York’s World Expo 1939 promoted “Building the World of Tomorrow” in a period marked by the Great Depression and spectre of upcoming war. While many futuristic ...
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Much journalistic and even social scientific writing on mega-events like Expos and Olympics is concerned with definitively characterising particular cases in relation to sectoral (e.g. economic) ...
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In 1851, the date of the first World Expo, electricity was not yet used for lighting or as a power source, the internal combustion engine did not exist, neither the radio nor the telephone had been ...
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The XXII Triennale di Milano, themed “Broken Nature: Design Takes on Human Survival” will open to the public on 1 March 2019. In an interview with the BIE, the President of the Triennale di ...
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10 days after Member States of the Bureau International des Expositions (BIE) voted for Japan to organise World Expo 2025 in Osaka, In Focus looks at the lasting impact of mega-events. In this ...
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