1930's Fair Culture

The 1930’s were a time when social changes were happening at a much faster pace than in recent years passed. The fair culture of America was also changing. It was sort of evolving into what was to become an unrecognizable creation, both in the physical sense and the ideological sense. The fairs of the 1930’s however, while being the first time in history where we see large additions of amusement without purpose, as in today’s massive regional amusement parks. The old splendor of educational dioramas and panoramas of lands in the four corners of the earth was quickly disappearing. The 1939-1940 World’s Fair, held in Flushing Meadows, was undoubtedly the flagship fair, escorting out the traditions of the past and harmonizing the remaining
He is one of the most important individuals in the changing nature of World’s Fairs because he was instrumental in bringing techniques from the world of live performance into the fairs. This was one of the first steps of turning the fair experience into a kind of Broadway show with no stage or seats. One in which the visitors became less and less interested in being amazed by new inventions, but would rather see some sort of live performance or be thrilled by the look and sheer size of the thing. As one of the pioneering fairs in this sense, the board used very progressive techniques that would be used again in the next generation of fairs as well as in the present age of amusement parks. They used flat windowless walls, cheap building materials, a wide spectrum of bright colors as well as dramatic lighting in a way that was to reappear time and time again, most notably at the 1939 New York World’s Fair. The progress in lighting schemes, especially those used in fountains and on buildings, was another adoption supported by a positive response in Barcelona’s and Seville’s fair in 1929. General Electric and Westinghouse Corporation were collectively responsible for the lighting at the fair. They used colored lighting, as well as indirect lighting effectively to inspire awe among the curious visitors. Going a step beyond the Spanish fairs, the lighting designers used gas-filled tube lighting for the first time. In one ingenious example of cost efficiency, plans for a waterfall were scrapped and replaced with a significantly less expensive waterfall made of green and blue tube lighting that stood fifty-five feet