Weird World of Seville 92’s Future Predictions
Two decades ago more than 40 million people flocked to
see some amazing structures on the outskirts of the Spanish city of Seville. Even
though, the amazing structures are still there today, no one visits them.
Created by some of the world's leading architects, the
buildings were commissioned for the Universal Exposition of Seville (or Expo
92, as it became known) to celebrate the modern age and offer blueprints for
the future.
They were supposed to be temporary, scheduled for
demolition in the months that followed the Expo. That didn't happen.
Today many of the buildings still stand as beautiful
and sometimes bizarre snapshots of a golden era of recent architectural and
political history. Currently incorporated into a science and education park,
they're also an accolade for hope in a country struggling to get back on its
feet after near economic collapse. For some Seville residents, they represent
expensive relics of an event that left the city saddled with debts for many
years.
Yet the crowds of tourists that travel to Seville to sightsee
its traditional attractions -- the bull ring, the ancient cathedral and the
Real Alcazar palace -- rarely venture across the broad canal that separates the
city from the Expo site, on the Isla de la Cartuja.
That's a shame, because not only is the site an Instagram paradise of
sometimes post-apocalyptic science fiction landscapes -- almost completely
deserted on evenings and weekends -- it's filled with stories.
"Where else in the world can you find so many different examples of
valuable architecture from this period?" Angel Aramburu, president of the Asociacion Legado Expo Sevilla, asked. He leads a
group dedicated to promote, and preserve the remaining buildings. The group conducts
occasional tours to the site, filling visitors in on the fascinating gossip and
intrigue behind the various structures.
Aramburu, who was only 12 when the Expo was staged between April and
October in 1992, dreams of starting a tour company to bring in more people to
see the buildings he loves. His youthful experiences infected him with a
burning enthusiasm for the place, and its treasures.
"I lived close to the Expo when I was a child,” he said. “I saw many
things for the first time, upon the opening. Can you imagine what it was like?
Before then I never met anyone from China, Japan or any African country. So,
many things became a shock and a surprise, and when you get to experience
something like that, you don't want anything else in the world."
Tower of Europe
The Avenue of Europe is a long and broad plaza
populated by orange trees and strange cone-like structures that once cooled
visitors in the height of Seville's summer using an ultra-fine mist.
In the center stands the Tower of Europe, a
multicolored obelisk decked out in the flags of the 12 nations that a year
after the Expo ended would come together to form the European Union.
It's a proud symbol of an era of optimism about
cooperation in Europe -- a continent that 23 years later is struggling to
fulfill its original ideals of unity.
France Pavilion
At one end of the avenue, the once mighty Pavilion of Spain has been
occupied by Isla Magica, a popular theme park. But opposite to that monument, there is another
poignant one to better times. The French pavilion featured a giant canopy
covering a huge wall of mirrored glass that in 1992 would've reflected the
Spanish structure.
"In 1992, Spain had so much going for it," Aramburu recalled.
"Madrid was named as the cultural capital of Europe. We hosted the Olympic
Games and the World Expo. Every country in Europe wanted what Spain had in '92, which is why
France chose to build something that reflected Spain's pavilion. It's hard to imagine that now, when you look at the economic troubles Spain is facing."
Hungary Pavilion
Aramburu's favorite building on the site is a strange, bulbous structure
that's part church, part owl, part political insult and part whale.
Designed by Budapest-born naturalist architect Imre Makovecz, and considered one of his masterpieces, the Hungarian pavilion catches the
eye against neighboring structures of concrete, glass and metal.
The wooden building, which contains a tree with its roots embedded in
glass, features shamanic symbols as well as spires that represent all major
religions. One side is a dark facade with a giant animal mask that, according to Aramburu, was a deliberate snub to the Vatican, which had a neighboring pavilion. The
other side is white, a friendly gesture to Austria and to the West to which
post-Communist Hungary was now looking.
The bizarre structure, now listed as a protected building, is currently for
sale with an asking price of $1.1 million. The Expo group hopes a tenant can be
found soon to ensure its preservation.
Chile Pavilion
Another wooden building that's on the market for a new
owner, the Chilean pavilion also tells the history of a political past. In 1992, Chile had only just emerged from years of
dictatorship, and wanted to prove itself as a modern and trustworthy democracy,
capable of anything.
And so for the Expo, it conjured a bold
piece of theater -- sawing up an entire iceberg plucked from its freezing
southern oceans, being carried to hot Seville, and reassembling it inside a cool
pavilion.
Kuwait Pavilion
In 1992, Kuwait was another country needing to project its identity on the
world stage, having two years earlier been invaded by Iraqi troops under Saddam
Hussein.
The result is a spectacular wooden structure whose cantilevered roof was
once capable of unfurling like the interlaced fingers of clasped hands. The
roof no longer moves, though.
Mexico Pavilion
The brutally modernistic Mexican pavilion is intended
to reflect the structural style of an Aztec pyramid, but also features a visual
pun in the shape of a giant X.
Aramburu commented that the X is intended to convey
the country's position as a "crossroads of cultures," but also remind
people that despite its silent pronunciation in Spanish, the word Mexico
contains the letter X.
A model of an Aztec city was built on the roof --
glimpses of it can be seen from street level.
Cartuja Monastery
Seville's role as Expo host capitalized on a nice
historical symmetry, since 1992 was the 500th anniversary of Christopher
Columbus's voyage to "discover" the New World. Prior to his departure, Columbus received a blessing
at a monastery on Cartuja. His remains were supposedly buried there at a later
date.
In intervening centuries the monastery was used as a
ceramics factory, and afterwards abandoned and allowed to fall into disrepair.
Expo 92 gave the city an excuse to restore the
building to its old glory. The grounds were
used to welcome world leaders to the Expo and showcase modern artworks from
participating nations. Today it hosts the Andalusia Contemporary Art Center, a modern art building
with a surrealistic exterior.
