Thursday, April 21, 2022
5:30 pm - 6:30 pm
with Dr. Arthur Molella, Director Emeritus of the Smithsonian’s Lemelson Center for the Study of Invention and Innovation
Free and open to the public | Suggested donation for Not-Yet-Members
Location: Zoom | Register to receive link
Lecture Description
Progress in art and in technology have been central themes of world’s fairs ever since the first international exposition was held in London in 1851 at the height of the first industrial revolution. In 19th and 20th century fairs, these twin themes were reinforced with the second industrial revolution, the rise of modernism and the machine aesthetic. World’s fairs both mirrored and shaped society’s cultural values. But, what was the meaning of “progress”? What did Michelangelo’s Pietà have to do with an IBM computer at the 1964 New York World’s Fair? And how was the relationship between art and technology portrayed at various world’s fairs? Comparing selected fairs from the 19th and 20th centuries, this lecture explores such questions and their broader cultural implications.
About Dr. Arthur Molella
Dr. Arthur Molella is Director Emeritus of the Smithsonian’s Lemelson Center for the Study of Invention and Innovation, and currently adjunct professor in Johns Hopkins University MA in Museum Studies. He has written and lectured extensively on the history of invention and on the relationships between science, technology, and culture in the 20th century. His publications include World’s Fairs on the Eve of War: Science, Technology, and Modernity, 1937-1941 [U. Pitt. Press, 2015] and World’s Fairs in the Cold War: Science, Technology, and the Culture of Progress [Pittsburgh, 2019]. He was awarded the 2020 Leonardo da Vinci Medal of the Society for the History of Technology.
with Dr. Arthur Molella, Director Emeritus of the Smithsonian’s Lemelson Center for the Study of Invention and Innovation
Free and open to the public | Suggested donation for Not-Yet-Members
Location: Zoom | Register to receive link
Lecture Description
Progress in art and in technology have been central themes of world’s fairs ever since the first international exposition was held in London in 1851 at the height of the first industrial revolution. In 19th and 20th century fairs, these twin themes were reinforced with the second industrial revolution, the rise of modernism and the machine aesthetic. World’s fairs both mirrored and shaped society’s cultural values. But, what was the meaning of “progress”? What did Michelangelo’s Pietà have to do with an IBM computer at the 1964 New York World’s Fair? And how was the relationship between art and technology portrayed at various world’s fairs? Comparing selected fairs from the 19th and 20th centuries, this lecture explores such questions and their broader cultural implications.
About Dr. Arthur Molella
Dr. Arthur Molella is Director Emeritus of the Smithsonian’s Lemelson Center for the Study of Invention and Innovation, and currently adjunct professor in Johns Hopkins University MA in Museum Studies. He has written and lectured extensively on the history of invention and on the relationships between science, technology, and culture in the 20th century. His publications include World’s Fairs on the Eve of War: Science, Technology, and Modernity, 1937-1941 [U. Pitt. Press, 2015] and World’s Fairs in the Cold War: Science, Technology, and the Culture of Progress [Pittsburgh, 2019]. He was awarded the 2020 Leonardo da Vinci Medal of the Society for the History of Technology.