Expo92.es: Web para una exposición universal

Impressions of Expo '92

The New York Times | Jueves, 01 de Enero de 1970, 00:00:00

THANKS to earlier visits to the Expo '92 construction site, I had overcome my initial sense of incredulity at the futuristic city rising up beside the medieval towers and palaces of Seville. I had even stopped questioning the purpose of holding a world's fair because, well, there it was in all its glory. Some $2 billion had already been spent on it, 110 countries were participating and, on April 20, it opened on schedule, ready for what is hoped will be 18 million visitors through Oct. 12.

Yet, even then, I was unsure what to expect. Expo '92 is the central event of Spain's celebration of the quincentenary of Christopher Columbus's voyage to the New World and, in a nod to this, its theme is "The Age of Discoveries." But, beyond that, it was a mystery to me how so many countries would show off their contributions to humanity, what strategies they would devise to woo the public into their pavilions, what -- beyond curiosity -- would prompt anyone to pay $38 a day to visit the 540-acre site. I soon discovered, however, that a world's fair is a bit like being given a vast menu of international dishes from which to choose, with the key word being "choose." Even after three full leg-aching days of popping in and out of pavilions, of being amazed by the variety of architecture, of seeing ultra modern movies and video shows, of admiring works by artists from Leonardo da Vinci to Salvador Dali, of watching snippets of open-air concerts and street parades, I was still unable to taste everything. On the other hand, I did not come away hungry. Expo '92 -- "the last and largest world's fair of the 20th century," its organizers keep reminding us -- covers about half the island of Cartuja, which sits between two branches of the Guadalquivir River. It is reachable by foot from old Seville (with a cable car cutting the distance) or by car from elsewhere (with easy access from a huge parking lot). Despite looking like a jungle of strange shapes from afar, Expo has a feeling of space from riverside gardens, an artificial lake and quiet lawns near a restored 14th-century monastery. Even the zone of the pavilions is broken up by broad shaded avenues, with a novel system of sprayed mist -- plus lots of fountains -- helping to combat the heat of Andalusia. THE pavilions themselves come in all shapes, sizes and pretensions. Spain built several around specific themes -- the 15th century, Navigation, Discoveries (half destroyed by fire in January), Nature and the Future; Spain's 17 regions have their own pavilions ringing the artificial Lago Espana; Spain also constructed special pavilions for African, Latin American and Caribbean countries that might otherwise not have made it to Expo; larger, wealthier or prouder countries -- as well as some multinational corporations and international organizations -- have their own buildings. Then there is the less-than-impressive United States pavilion -- but more on that later. Most national pavilions have souvenir shops as well as often pricey restaurants offering local cuisine. There are also dozens of fast-food spots, stands selling beer, sodas and juices and a veritable army of wandering ice cream vendors. Similarly, many pavilions have indoor and outdoor stages or theaters for assorted performers, while Expo itself has built a huge open-air auditorium, a tentlike palenque, or enclosure, and numerous other stages for preprogrammed cultural events from classical concerts to Caribbean salsa. The pavilions are open from 10 A.M. to 10 P.M. daily, and, although there are often lines outside the most popular exhibits or shows, only at weekends and on Spanish holidays does the fair begin to feel crowded. In any case, to keep those infamous Sevillano partygoers busy, the site stays open, and the entertainment goes on, until 4 A.M. So that's the big picture, but what next? It is unlikely that everything will be of interest; it is impossible that everything can be seen. Along with a hat and good walking shoes, an Expo guide book and a map are therefore essential. Some visitors may be drawn by individual countries or regions, others will prefer theme pavilions; some will seek out great works of art, others will choose examples of high tech; some will look out for the live shows, others will be unable to resist the gimmick exhibits. The answer, then, is to read the menu carefully before ordering the day. World's fairs are traditionally showcases for architecture, and a good dozen countries have risen to the occasion. The accolades for modern style have gone to the exhibits of Britain (with water cascading down a glass front 80 feet high and 220 feet wide), Germany (with its front patio shaded by an enormous painter's palette), France (with much of its exhibit beneath a stunning mirrored courtyard) and Canada (with two walkways to its top floor suspended from thick wire). Switzerland's pavilion is particularly unusual: a large tower made of paper beside a broad wooden staircase, with the main exhibits tucked under the stairs. New Zealand has attached a huge rock face to the front of its pavilion to suggest what Captain Cook first saw. Four countries have done wonders with wood. Japan's 80-foot high pavilion -- billed as the world's largest wooden building -- resembles a temple, with an escalator leading to a platform-cum-bridge; Chile brought its own pine to build a cathedral of a pavilion in a vague S-shape; Hungary has shown off its craftsmen with a Transylvanian-style 15th-century oak church, equipped with seven belfries, and Finland has built a simple rectangular pavilion of wood. Morocco's pavilion is a Moorish palace fit for, well, King Hassan. The Russian pavilion, originally planned for the Soviet Union, has a sloping roof with revolving multicolored cubes that constantly change its pattern, while Mexico makes its mark with plant-covered outside walls and a long arm that ends in two dramatic X's. The contents of pavilions are, of course, a different matter and one that depends on taste and interest. Many try to tell their story -- and the story is all too often "come visit" or "buy our products" -- with state-of-the-art video shows, but the electronic battering is such that only a few stand out. "Momentum" -- a movie shot in Imax at 48 frames per second and projected on a huge screen -- shows the best of outdoor Canada and is already a big hit. "Echoes of the Sun" is a 3-D movie offered by the Fujitsu pavilion, with spectators wearing liquid crystal glasses for what is essentially a display of technological excellence; this too is pulling in the crowds. I did not see the much-praised film in the Discoveries pavilion that sums up five centuries of discoveries in 15 minutes, but Puerto Rico's megascreen version of itself was enjoyable. ONE thing that struck me, though, was the way visitors gravitated toward simpler experiences. For example, many came just to stare at Chile's piece of Antarctic iceberg or to stand inside Monaco's walk-through aquarium or to touch a section of the Berlin Wall in the German pavilion or to look at Hungary's tree, with its roots visible beneath a glass floor. In Saudi Arabia's large pavilion, which ranged from pre-Islamic art to the latest extension to the Holy Mosque at Mecca, crowds were fascinated by a Bedouin desert tent. Even in the Russian pavilion, people ignored endless models of spacecraft and gathered around a bell-ringing performance in front of a model of a Russian Orthodox church. And when the Expo parade went by each evening with its oom-pah-pah bands and clowns and fanciful characters, everyone stopped to watch and laugh. World's fairs are of course a good way of "visiting" far-off countries without getting on a plane. The Plaza of Africa, for instance, shows wooden carvings, textiles, art, music and the way of life of more than a dozen sub-Saharan countries. Similarly, the Plaza of the Americas is a noisy Latin marketplace: Panamanian salsa, Brazilian samba and Argentine tango compete; Costa Rica, Honduras and Panama have re-created minitropical jungles in their spaces; Peru, Bolivia and Ecuador have brought priceless collections of pre-Columbian art. The most impressive evocation of a nation's culture is to be found in the Japanese pavilion. Instead of showing off its technological prowess, Japan has chosen to display its human face, starting with the full-size color photographs of ordinary Japanese that are lined up in front of the pavilion. Inside the fine wooden structure, everything from a "nostalgic image" of the Japanese countryside in the traditional origami folded-paper style to a reproduction of a section of the 16th-century Azuchi Castle is remarkable for its careful detail. Science is present, but only as dominated by art in the form of optical fiber mobiles. Even Expo organizers have recognized the Japanese pavilion as the jewel of the fair. For European art, though, nothing can beat the Treasures section of the Spanish pavilion, which brings together a selection of great Spanish paintings of the last 500 years. It may be more interesting for visitors who have never been to the Prado Museum in Madrid, but even so it is impressive: three works by El Greco, two each by Rivera, Murillo and Zurbaran, three by Velazquez, four by Goya plus works by Picasso, Miro and Dali. Ten more Goyas can be seen in Aragon's pavilion. The Vatican's pavilion, which celebrates the quincentenary of the evangelization of the Americas, is also a must for art lovers. It, too, has works by El Greco, Goya, Zurbaran and Murillo, as well as Caravaggio, along with religious art from Old and New Worlds and a good collection of pre-Columbian pieces from Mezo-America. In reality, many other pavilions have also brought art -- Italy is showing some of Leonardo da Vinci's flying machines, the Netherlands is displaying a Rembrandt, a Mondrian and a Van Gogh. I was particularly impressed by the Pavilion of the Arts, a space that will house a succession of exhibitions of contemporary art from different countries. Until May 11, the Netherlands, Denmark, Trinidad and Tobago and Mozambique are occupying it (the Dutch artists' use of television screens is particularly witty); Israel and Czechoslovakia follow through June 2 and so on. I suspect many interesting surprises lie ahead. Visitors who remember the reason for Expo '92 can climb over reproductions of the Nina, Pinta and Santa Maria, the tiny caravels that carried Columbus and his crews west in 1492. They are berthed on the Guadalquivir River beside the Navigation Pavilion, which tells the story of man and the seas from the Vikings until today, with special emphasis on the great explorers of the 15th, 16th and 17th centuries. I found this to be an excellent pavilion. Nearby, in the Carthusian Monastery of Santa Maria de las Cuevas, where Columbus lived while planning his trip, there are also exhibitions of art, culture and science in the 15th century. The Nature Pavilion in turn re-creates the tropical jungles that Spain found in the Americas. Starting with Spain, countries participating in Expo like to make the point that it is not meant to be a trade fair, but many pavilions resemble just that. Many poorer countries display their exports, while several richer countries, although more subtly, show off their technological strengths. For them, it is a question of finding the right knickknack to grab the public's attention. Italy's huge pavilion is dedicated to science through the ages, but it includes many machines that visitors can play with, an approach that Canada has also adopted. Britain has in turn devised a show that combines multiscreen images and an actor on stage; in reality, it is just a sales pitch for British engineering, yet it is so effective that it always wins an ovation. SO what happened to the United States pavilion? An ambitious building was planned but, after Congress cut back funding and the American private sector failed to make up the difference, a far more modest project resulted. The only interesting architectural touch is provided by three large "shade sails" carrying the American colors; otherwise, the pavilion comprises two much-used geodisic domes, a metal-covered utility building, a "typical" house built by the American Plywood Association, an ice cream stand, three cars and two somewhat-garish Peter Max murals. A wall of water also runs along one side, but it looks cheap beside Britain's effort. The main exhibit is dedicated to the Bill of Rights, with Connecticut's version of the original placed on a stage surrounded by pillars and flowers as if waiting to be worshiped. In the other geodesic dome, there is an audience-friendly film about love and happiness called "World Song" sponsored by General Motors. Elsewhere, there are numerous corporate exhibits and the inevitable hamburger and hot dog stand. Nonetheless, the American pavilion has been drawing good crowds because it has programmed almost continuous sports and musical events in the large patio between the two domes. And on May 17, the United States national day at the world's fair, it will take its shows all over the Expo site. Indeed, if the American pavilion turns out to be less than the widely-predicted disaster, it is because many -- perhaps most -- visitors to Expo are more interested in entertainment than education. American basketball players, Maori dancers and scantily-dressed samba girls from Brazil represent tough competition for the likes of El Greco or even Columbus. In fact, almost as important for Expo's success will be the city's "apres-pavilion" night life. There will be regular opera, concerts, theater and ballet at Expo and in Seville but, more importantly, popular music and dance are already echoing across the fair deep into the night. VISITOR'S TIPS FOR THE WORLD'S FAIR Tickets A one-day ticket good from 9 A.M. until 4 A.M. the next day costs 4,000 pesetas (about $38), 1,500 pesetas ($14.25) for children from 5 to 14 and adults over 65; children under 5 are admitted free. Prices are halved on 10 specially designated family days. An evening ticket good from 8 P.M. to 4 A.M. is 1,000 pesetas ($9.50). A three-day pass (the days need not be consecutive) good from 9 A.M. until 4 A.M. costs 10,000 pesetas ($95). Tickets can be bought at the entrance gates, at the Seville Airport and the Santa Justa Train Station, and at sponsoring banks. Cash (pesetas) and credit cards only; no traveler's checks or foreign currency. Weather The weather will be hot in Seville from now until Expo closes on Oct. 12 (and fierce in July and August), so take a hat and sun cream. Most pavilions are air-conditioned. There are also many shaded areas, cooled by sprayed mist, that provide pleasant rest areas. Nonetheless, beware of dehydration because Andalusia is very dry as well as hot. Getting Around You can see a lot in one day, but if you can stretch your visit over three days, all the better. In either case, read an Expo guide, study a map of the "city" and plan a route to avoid unnecessary zigzagging around. A free bus service runs around the edge of the site or you can take the cable car ($3) or monorail ($4) across the area. You can also hire an electric car ($35 a day), but considerable walking is unavoidable, so wear comfortable shoes. Up-to-date information about events can be obtained in English, Spanish and French from small computer screens at 33 special booths. Before joining a long line outside a pavilion, find out if it is giving out tickets for, say, a movie showing at a particular hour. You can then wait in the shade or come back later. Prices By American standards, prices are high, even for snacks (for example, a slice of pizza and a beer will cost $8.50). Before settling in for a restaurant meal in a national pavilion, also check the prices because they vary considerably (a very light lunch for three in the Mexican restaurant cost $130, while dinner for three with wine in the Hungarian restaurant was only $70). Some commercial establishments do not take credit cards.

ALAN RIDING