Brussels Expo '58

Between Utopia and Reality Expo 58, also known as the Brussels World’s Fair, was held from April 17th to October 19th 1958. It was the first major World Expo registered under the Bureau International des Expositions after World War II. Notable exhibitions include The Philips Electronics Company, who turned to the office of Le Corbusier for the final commission of the pavilion. Le Corbusier replied by saying that, “I will not make a pavilion for you but an Electronic Poem and a vessel containing the poem; light, color image, rhythm and sound joined together in an organic synthesis”. For the composer of the Poème électronique, Le Corbusier commissioned Edgard Varese, the father of electronic music, choosing him over other well known composers of the time. Le Corbusier gave minimal input into the details of how the interior of the pavilion would work, instead giving only a vague concept of what the experience should accomplish. The basic guidelines given to both his assistant Iann