Lentorama 2023: It Happened on Holy Saturday

Day 17: Paris Expos-ed

The Exposition Universelle, also known as the 1900 Paris Exposition, opened on Saturday, April 14. This world's fair (France's fifth) looked to celebrate the century that had just ended and spur scientific and industrial development for the century to come. To that end, the fair unveiled a number of innovations, from a moving sidewalk to electrified buses to a 360 foot high Ferris wheel (things running on electricity were big at this fair).

The fair also attracted other events during its run, most notably the 1900 Olympic Games. The fair also played a large role in the dissemination of Art Nouveau, which heavily influenced the fair's advertising and design. While most of what was built for the fair was destroyed or repurposed, one way you can see this influence today is in two surviving Metro entrances designed by Hector Guimard (at Port Dauphine and Abbesses stations). The fair also gave us the Gare d'Orsay train station, which is now the Musee d'Orsay

The fair would close in mid-November, and France waited a whole 37 years before hosting another fair.