Tentoonstelling van Oostenrijk tijdens de World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago in 1893 1893

Charles Dudley Arnold made this photograph of the Austrian exhibition at the World’s Columbian Exposition in Chicago in 1893. World’s fairs served as a demonstration of economic and cultural strength. Here we see the Austrian pavilion, an advertisement for the country’s manufacturing prowess. The building itself borrows from classical architecture, a visual code for the long history and traditions of the Austrian empire. Austria in the 1890s was a society in transition. Although it was still ruled by an aristocratic elite, new social classes and political movements were beginning to demand a voice. World’s fairs offered these groups an opportunity to participate in the construction of national identity. To learn more about this image, consult the official records of the World’s Columbian Exposition and explore the history of Austrian manufacturing in the late 19th century. The photograph reminds us that even seemingly neutral images can participate in complex social and political dynamics.