Idea for September 2024: Expo 58

The world’s fair held in Brussels over the summer of 1958. A time of cold war, but also hot excitement about atomic power, and about technological progress generally. And the fair had a big idea: Bilan du monde, pour un monde plus humain, or Evaluation of the world for a more humane world,

I encountered it twice last week, as I travelled across Europe.

First, on the train from Brussels to Berlin, glimpsing the fair’s most famous building, the Atomium. Still going strong almost 70 years on, and still a great symbol of Brussels and Belgium. It’s 100 metres tall, and designed to be an iron crystal magnified 185 billion times. And you glimpse it unexpectedly from all over the city.

And then in Prague. The Czechoslovakian pavilion from Expo 58 was moved to Letna park, and is now an art gallery. On a blisteringly hot Thursday afternoon, this was a place of refreshing shade, and a freshly-squeezed orange juice, with wonderful views of the city. And it’s a breathtakingly beautiful building, designed by architects František Cubr, Josef Hrubý and Zdeněk Pokorný, which was awarded best pavilion of the show.

Expo 58 is also a novel by Jonathan Coe, which I now need to read…