Expo 58
Completed in 1958 as part of the Czechoslovak pavilion for the Brussels World's Fair, the pavilion was brought to Prague and reconstructed right above the valley of the Vltava river in the city’s center.
The building was built in 1958 as part of the Czechoslovak pavilion at World’s Expo 58 in Brussels. Also known as the 1958 Brussels World’s Fair, Expo 58 was held from 17 April to 19 October 1958 and included over 106 pavilions representing over 42 different nations. During this time, the fair attracted over 42 million visitors and became incredibly important to Czech architecture. The Czechoslovak pavilion itself had become a unique synthesis of Czechoslovak arts and design. Through its participation, Czechoslovakia introduced its advanced cultural and technical maturity to the rest of the world.
The pavilion design competition was held two years earlier, in the summer of 1956. Architects Frantisek Cubr, Josef Hruby, and Zdenek Pokorny were all shortlisted and won. Their project stood out from the competition for its perfect purity of form and groundbreaking technological and construction solutions. Dividing the building into concrete and glass parts, the architects achieved the pavilion’s natural connection with the surrounding exterior. The entrance piazza was an organic part of the entire spatial composition and allowed for the blurring of the borders between the interior and exterior of the semi-circular building.
The pavilion’s exhibition program was developed by Jindrich Santar, who collaborated with a number of artists, including Jiri Trnka, Antonin Kybal, Stanislav Libensky, and Jan Kotik. Their works revolved around the central idea of the ‘human being’, while Adolf Hoffmeister’s motto ‘one day in Czechoslovakia’ underpinned the various themes the exhibition tackled. These included ‘Work-Culture-Rest’, split into twelve individual sub-exhibitions featuring a number of monumental works of art crafted from a variety of materials, including bronze, mosaic, marble, glass, and ceramics. Other features of the pavilion that attracted much attention included the restaurant, Laterna magika, Karel Zeman’s sci-fi film Invention for Destruction, and the exhibition's concept as such.
The Czechoslovak pavilion became a sensation during Expo 58. The world recognized its inventive architecture, progressive construction, and rich exhibition program. The pavilion was awarded the main Golden Star award, as well as thirteen other awards.
