1929 Barcelona International Exposition

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1929
Sevilla

The 1929 Barcelona International Exposition (also 1929 Barcelona Universal Exposition, or Expo 1929, officially in

Sevilla
.

The previous 1888 Barcelona Universal Exposition had led to a great advance in the city's economic, architectural and technological growth and development, including the reconstruction of the Parc de la Ciutadella, the city's main public park. A new exposition was proposed to highlight the city's further technological progress and increase awareness abroad of modern Catalan industry. This new exhibition required the urban planning of Montjuïc and its adjacent areas and the renovation of public spaces, principally Plaça d'Espanya.

The exposition called for a great deal of urban development within the city,

Teatre Grec,[2] Poble Espanyol, and the Estadi Olímpic.[2]

Origin

The idea of a new exhibition began to take shape in 1905, promoted by the architect

Besòs River
, but instead, in 1913, planners selected Montjuïc as the site. While originally planned for 1917, the exposition was delayed due to World War I.

Puig i Cadafalch's project was supported by the Fomento del Trabajo Nacional, especially Francesc d'Assis, one of its leaders, who took charge of negotiations with the various agencies involved in the project. Thus, in 1913 the organization created a joint committee for organizing the event, consisting of representatives of the National Labor Development and the City Council, be appointed commissioners of the organization Josep Puig i Cadafalch, Francesc Cambo and Joan Pitch i Pon.

In 1915, the committee presented a first draft by Puig i Cadafalch, which was divided into three specific projects, each commissioned to a team of architects. Puig i Cadafalch and Guillem Busquets reserved the area at the base of the mountain, Lluis Domenech i Montaner and Manuel Vega i March planned the area atop the mountain—designated the International Section, and Enric Sagnier and August Font i Carreras Miramar developed a Maritime Section.

Promotional "Cinderella stamp" for the Barcelona International Exposition, 1929

The principal difficulty of the project was the amount of land required. The exposition would need at least 110 hectares, and the Barcelona City Council had only 26 by 1914. Thus, using an 1879 law, they resorted to land-expropriation. In 1917, development work began at Montjuïc, with assistant engineer Marià Rubio i Bellver. Landscaping was done by Jean-Claude Nicolas Forestier, who was assisted by Maria Rubio i Tudurí Nicolau. Their design was distinctly Mediterranean, with classical influences, combining the gardens with the construction of pergolas and terraces. Likewise, a funicular was built to allow access to the top of the mountain, as well as an aerial tram, which connected the mountain with the Port of Barcelona. However, the aerial tram did not open until 1931, after the fair was closed.

Construction, while somewhat delayed, was completed in 1923, but the introduction that year of the dictatorship of Primo de Rivera delayed the actual exposition, which finally occurred in 1929, coinciding with the Ibero-American Exhibition in Seville. Also, the delay made obsolete the goal of promoting electrical industry, so that in 1925 the event was renamed the International Exhibition in Barcelona. The change of objective led to the reorganization of the exhibition, so that it was devoted to three aspects: industry, the sports, and art. In this new period, the organization fell into the hands of Pere Domènech i Roura, the Marquis de Foronda, and Director of Works.

Further development of the event allowed for a great stylistic diversity in the buildings of various architects, some loyal to the Noucentisme prevailing at the time, others reflecting recurring historicist and eclectic trends that persisted since the late 19th century, with particular influence from the Spanish

rationalism
.

The exposition was opened by

King Alfonso XIII on 19 May 1929. Led by Mayor Darius Rumeu y Freixa, baron de Viver, and Manuel de Álvarez-Cuevas y Olivella, President of the Organizing Committee. It was attended by some 200,000 people in the general public and by many Catalan political, economic, and cultural figures, including the Prime Minister (and dictator) Miguel Primo de Rivera
.

In terms of cost, the exhibition lost money, with a deficit of 180 million pesetas. Its success was relative; during the event the stock market crashed in New York, on 29 October 1929, which reduced the number of participants in the event. At the social level, it was great success as it allowed for a large influx of people and achievements for the city of Barcelona, especially in the fields of architecture and urbanism.

The Avenue of the Americas from Plaça d'Espanya

Exposition Center

The Exposition Center, el recinte de l'Exposició, was built to designs by Puig i Cadafalch with two different types of buildings: palaces, the sections devoted to the official competition; and flags, representing countries, institutions and companies. The exposition's main axis began at the Plaça d'Espanya, where four large hotels were built, through the Avenue of Americas (now the Avinguda de la Reina Maria Cristina), which housed the grand buildings of the Exposition, to the foot of the mountain, the site of the "Magic Fountain", the Palaces Alfonso XIII and Victoria Eugenia, and a monumental staircase.

The Avenue of the Americas was decorated with numerous fountains, as well as glass columns—illuminated by electricity—designed by Charles Buïgas, which caused a great sensation. On both sides of the avenue were the main buildings of the Exposition: Palace of Costumes; the Palace of Communications and Transport; and the Palace of Metallurgy, Electricity and Locomotion. Today, these buildings are used as exposition spaces in the Barcelona Trade Fair. Along the avenue was Mechanics Square (now the Plaça de l'Univers), at the center of which stood the "Tower of Light", and the sculpture El Treball, by Josep Llimona.

Plaça d'Espanya

The Plaça d'Espanya was included in

St. Mark's Campanile
in Venice.

At the center of the square another monumental fountain was built, designed by Josep Maria Jujol. Its ornate decoration is an allegory of Spain, surrounded by water. Three niches with sculptures symbolize the three principal rivers of the

Ausias March and Miguel de Cervantes
).

The Magic Fountain

The Magic Fountain in 2014

The famous

Montjuic,[3] and amazed the public with its light and water displays. Today, it is still an emblem of the Catalan capital, and musical lightshows are often performed there during the annual festival of La Mercè, as well as during every weekend. It enchants the public with a backdrop of the Museu Nacional d'Art de Catalunya. Originally, four columns were built in this location by Puig i Cadafalch to represent the Catalan flag
, but these were removed by Spanish dictator Primo de Rivera's orders.

Official Sections

International Section

Participating countries
 Austria  Belgium  Czechoslovakia  Denmark
 Finland  France Germany  Hungary
Italy  Japan  Netherlands  Norway
 Portugal  Romania Spain  Sweden
 Switzerland  United Kingdom United States Yugoslavia

As the Ibero-American Exposition of 1929 was taking place simultaneously in Seville, no Spanish American countries participated. From the remaining countries, the official participants were Austria, Belgium, Czechoslovakia, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Norway, Romania, Sweden, Switzerland and the State of Slovenes, Croats and Serbs (later Yugoslavia); most of these countries had their own pavilions, except for Austria, Czechoslovakia, Finland and Switzerland. Apart from these countries, Japan, the Netherlands, Portugal, the United Kingdom and the United States participated in an unofficial capacity. Each country had a week dedicated to it throughout the course of the event, with a highlight of the German week being the flight of the Graf Zeppelin airship over Barcelona, on 16 May 1929.

A 1986 reconstruction of the German Pavilion.
  • international style of architecture due to its purity of form, its spatial concept and its intelligent use of structures and materials, which turned this pavilion into the quintessential piece of 20th-century architecture. In 1928 Mies was contracted to build the official German pavilion together with the Electricity Supply pavilion and several exhibits in the Official Section's buildings, with the collaboration of interior designer Lilly Reich. Rectangular in shape, it is elevated on a travertine-covered podium; the covering was supported on cross-shaped columns and load-bearing walls, with side walls of different materials (plaster-covered bricks, steel covered by green marble and Moroccan onyx). Its decoration was reduced to two ponds and a sculpture, La Mañana, by Georg Kolbe. Demolished after the Exhibition, it was reconstructed between 1985 and 1987 in its original location by Cristian Cirici, Ignasi de Solà-Morales and Fernando Ramos, following Mies van der Rohe's plans.[12]
  • Belgian Pavilion: designed by the architect Verhelle,[13] this was next to the Spanish Pavilion. Rectangular in shape, it was inspired by the Hof von Busleyden in Mechelen, built when Margaret of Austria established the court there,[14] notable for a watchtower twice the height of the building.
  • Danish Pavilion: designed by Tyge Hvass, this was a dihedron of reddish wood with a gabled roof, evoking a typical Danish mountain house. The façade showed an embossed Danish flag, anchor, wheat sheaf and cog wheel, typical elements of the Danish economy.
  • French Pavilion: designed by Georges Wybo, in a classical style with art deco elements, this was located next to the Alfonso XIII centre. It was a single-volume building in the shape of a cube, with its roof formed by superimposed stepped rectangular sections, like a ziggurat, with a sculpture at the front in the shape of a woman and the initials R. F. (République Française).
  • Hungarian Pavilion: designed by Dénes György and Nikolaus Menyhért, this was made up of two rectangular sections, with a tower over it in the shape of a prism. An example of expressionist architecture, the geometrical synthesis of its structure evoked the architecture of the Pre-Columbian era.[15]
  • Italian Pavilion: designed by Piero Portaluppi, this was located between the Spanish and Swedish pavilions. It had a surface area of 4,500 m2, in the shape of a U, a renaissance classical style and a monumental atmosphere. The façade had some columns with the eagle of the Roman Empire, a frieze with the country's name and a fronton finished off with a statue of Minerva.
  • Norwegian Pavilion: designed by Ole Lind Schistad, this was wooden like the Danish pavilion, with a similar likeness to mountain buildings, with shuttered windows and a sloped roof.
  • Serbian, Croatian and Slovene Pavilion: representing the country which would later be known as Yugoslavia, this was designed by the architect Dragiša Brašovan and located next to the Palau Nacional. Avant-garde in conception, it was a star-shaped building with the façade made from wooden strips arranged in horizontal black and white stripes.
  • Romanian Pavilion: designed by Duiliu Marcu, this was a rectangular building with a tower to one side and a gabled roof, panelled with wood and stucco. The façade had a series of arches ending in a pergola, with architectural elements characteristic of Transylvania.
  • Swedish Pavilion: designed by Peder Clason, as with the other
    conical wooden tower, topped with three superimposed horizontal discs; it was named "Funkis", Swedish abbreviation for functionalism at the beginning of the 20th century. Both the building and the tower were dismantled after the Exhibition and reconstructed in Berga, where the pavilion served as a school up until the Spanish Civil War
    when the building was demolished at the beginning of the 1960s. There is currently a project to rebuild the tower next to the Olympic Museum, near its original location.
  • Belgian Pavilion.
    Belgian Pavilion.
  • Italian Pavilion.
    Italian Pavilion.
  • Swedish Pavilion.
    Swedish Pavilion.
  • Serbian, Croat and Slovene Pavilion.
    Serbian, Croat and Slovene Pavilion.

Private pavilions

Pavilion of the Barcelona Bank Savings and Pensions.
Pavilion of the Compañía General de Tabacos de Filipinas.
  • Pavilion of the Barcelona Bank Savings and Pensions: located on Paseo de Santa Madrona, this was designed by Josep Maria Ribas i Casas and Manuel Maria Mayol. Eclectic in style, it presents structural solutions based on various different styles: the central section was inspired by Spanish palacial architecture of the 18th century, while the lateral parts are based on civil architecture of northern Italy and the loggias are reminiscent of 19th century tastes in Mediterranean villas. Because of its raised location, terraces with illuminated fountains were located at its entrance. Since 1982 it has been the headquarters of the Cartographic Institute of Catalonia.[citation needed]
  • Pavilion of the Compañía General de Tabacos de Filipinas: located on Paseo de Santa Madrona, it was designed by Antoni Darder and constructed in 1928. The building is U-shaped, surrounded by gardens, and has a tower to one side and an octagonal dome over its central section. Darder followed the "art deco" style which was popular in the 1920s, with an intelligent distribution of internal space and a playful use of exterior volume. In 1932 it became the Forestier Municipal Kindergarten.[11]
  • German Electricity Supply Pavilion (Electric Supplies Co.): designed by Ludwig Mies van der Rohe and Lilly Reich, it was located in Plaza de la Luz, between the Communications and Transport Centre and the Centre for Textile Arts. The company Electric Supplies Co. was in charge of supplying electricity for the entire Exhibition grounds. A rectangular single-volume building, similar to an industrial ship, it went almost unnoticed during the event, being one of Mies' least well-regarded works and one of the last in which he used brick walls, passing on to using glass from then on.[16]
  • Can Jorba: the commercial company Jorba was presented in Can ("house of" in Catalan) Jorba, a small structure in the shape of the Eiffel Tower with the initials of the sponsoring brand built in: the J at the top and the A at the base of the tower.
  • Pavilion of the Hydrographic Confederation of Ebro: designed by Regino Borobio, this was one of the few Spanish buildings in an avant-garde style, being a building in the shape of a horizontal box with a tall signal tower.[17]
  • Pavilion of the Hispano-Suiza Company: designed by Eusebi Bona, it was located in the viewpoint opposite the Palau Nacional.
  • Artists' Gathering Pavilion: designed by Jaume Mestres i Fossas, its objective was to present the works of various Catalan artists who were not represented in the official section, for which reason it coexisted in private form. The building, in an art deco style, was octagonal with a stepped dome, while the interior distribution of space and decoration were rationalist in style, one of the few national examples of avant-garde type. Participating artists included Pablo Gargallo, Josep Granyer, Josep Llorens i Artigas, Lluís Mercadé, Josep de Togores, Josep Obiols, Miquel Soldevila, Jaume Mercadé, etc., displaying paintings, sculpture, ceramics, furniture, jewellery, enamel, woven rugs and other works of art, most of which fell within the sphere of art deco.[18]

Other buildings

Teatre Grec

Teatre Grec
.

The landscaping of Montjuic mountain left works like the

Teatre Grec, an open-air theatre inspired by ancient Greek theatres (particularly the Epidaurus), designed by Ramon Reventós. Located in the site of an old quarry, it has a 460 m2 semicircular area, with a diameter of 70 m and a 2,000 person capacity.[19] It is currently the site of a summer festival in Barcelona, the Festival Grec
.

The theatre is situated within Laribal Gardens, designed by Forestier and Rubió, where the famous "Cat Fountain" is located at the entrance to a building by Puig i Cadafalch which has been convertred into a restaurant (1925). There are many sculptures in the gardens, with works by Josep Viladomat, Enric Casanovas, Josep Clarà, Pablo Gargallo, Antoni Alsina, Joan Rebull, Josep Dunyach, etc. In the Miramar zone the Montjuic swimming pool was built, as well as a restaurant which in 1959 became the first RTVE studio in Barcelona.[20]

Estadi Olímpic

Olympic Stadium.

At the top of the hill, next to the International Section, the

Joan Margarit and Carles Buxadé for the 1992 Summer Olympics.[21]

Poble Espanyol

Ávila
.

One work which had great public success was the

Ávila). With a surface area of 20,000 m2, it contains 600 buildings, of which 200 can be visited. Among the monuments reproduced some of the most notable are the Mudéjar belltower of Utebo (Zaragoza), the palaces of the marquis of Peñaflor (Seville) and of Ovando Solís (Cáceres), the cloister of Sant Benet de Bages and the Roman belltower of Taradell.[22]

Impact

Palau Reial de Pedralbes
.

Just as in 1888, the 1929 Exhibition had a great impact on the city of Barcelona at an urban level, not only in Montjuic district, since improvement and refurbishment works were carried out throughout the city: Tetuán, Urquinaona and Letamendi squares were landscaped; the Marina bridge was built; the

Plaça de Catalunya was urbanised; and the Avinguda Diagonal was extended to the west and the Gran Via de les Corts Catalanes to the southwest. Various public works were also carried out: street paving and sewer systems were improved, public bathrooms were installed and gas lighting was replaced with electricity. The tradition of ongoing fairs, the Fira de Barcelona
, was established.

At the same time, several buildings were remodelled, such as the City Hall, where

Palau Reial de Pedralbes
was also built as a residence for the royal family, designed by Eusebi Bona and Francesc Nebot. During this period the first skyscraper in Barcelona was also constructed: the Telefónica building on the corner of Fontanella and Portal del Ángel, designed by Francesc Nebot.

Finally, they improved the city's communications, with construction during the 1920s of the

Barcelona El Prat Airport, the removal of level crossings within the city, the improvement of links with the city's peripheral neighbourhoods, the Sarrià train being moved underground (Ferrocarrils de la Generalitat de Catalunya), the electrification of public trams and the extension of metro line 3 to Sants, connecting the Plaza de España with the Exhibition district. The construction of all these public works lead to a great demand for workers, causing a large increase in immigration to the city from all parts of Spain. At the same time, the increase in population lead to the construction of various workers' districts with "cheap housing", such as the Aunós Group in Montjuic and the Milans del Bosch and Baró de Viver Groups in Besós.[23]

See also

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to 1929 Barcelona Universal Exposition.
  1. ^ a b c "Barcelone 1929" (PDF) (in French). Archived (PDF) from the original on 27 September 2007. Retrieved 27 September 2009.
  2. ^ a b c d e f Francesc-Xavier Mingorance i Ricart. "La Exposición Internacional de Barcelona de 1929" (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 2 October 2009. Retrieved 27 September 2009.
  3. ^ "Visiting Barcelona on a Budget". secrethotels.eu. Archived from the original on 3 November 2013. Retrieved 7 November 2013.
  4. ^ M. Carmen Grandas, L'Exposició Internacional de Barcelona de 1929, pp. 110–112.
  5. ^ M. Carmen Grandas, L'Exposició Internacional de Barcelona de 1929, pp. 120–122.
  6. ^ M. Carmen Grandas, L'Exposició Internacional de Barcelona de 1929, pp. 112–115.
  7. ^ M. Carmen Grandas, L'Exposició Internacional de Barcelona de 1929, pp. 132–135.
  8. ^ M. Carmen Grandas, L'Exposició Internacional de Barcelona de 1929, pp. 135–143.
  9. ^ M. Carmen Grandas, L'Exposició Internacional de Barcelona de 1929, pp. 149–152.
  10. ^ M. Carmen Grandas, L'Exposició Internacional de Barcelona de 1929, pp. 154–155.
  11. ^ a b Josep Maria Huertas. "Cronología de Montjuïc". Archived from the original on 9 December 2008. Retrieved 25 October 2008.
  12. ^ M. Carmen Grandas, L'Exposició Internacional de Barcelona de 1929, pp. 125–131.
  13. ^ The bibliography consulted does not state the first name of this architect, but it could well be Arthur Verhelle, who also created the Belgian Pavilion of the 1922 Exhibition in Rio de Janeiro. "Rue Blanche 33". Retrieved 7 December 2008.
  14. ^ Buenaventura Bassegoda. "Pabellones extranjeros en la Exposición". Retrieved 7 December 2008.
  15. ^ M. Carmen Grandas, L'Exposició Internacional de Barcelona de 1929, p. 185.
  16. ^ M. Carmen Grandas, L'Exposició Internacional de Barcelona de 1929, pp. 115–116.
  17. ^ Ángel Urrutia, Arquitectura española del siglo XX, p. 194.
  18. ^ Josep L. Roig, Historia de Barcelona, p. 202.
  19. ^ M. Carmen Grandas, L'Exposició Internacional de Barcelona de 1929, pp. 156–157.
  20. ^ Josep L. Roig, Historia de Barcelona, p. 198.
  21. ^ M. Carmen Grandas, L'Exposició Internacional de Barcelona de 1929, pp. 175–179.
  22. ^ Josep L. Roig, Historia de Barcelona, p. 195.
  23. ^ M. Carmen Grandas, L'Exposició Internacional de Barcelona de 1929, p. 48-54.

Bibliography

External links
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