Navigation, Aeronautics and Automotive - Expo Brussels 1935

One of the most interesting pavilions was the shipping pavilion, whose silhouette was designed by the architect Zappa and inspired by the ships.

The most important Italian shipping companies were represented as a whole. Next to the entrance there was a large metal board with a modern Italian ship in the background. Next, a frescoed panel summarised, in a few eloquent figures, the great stature taken by the Italian merchant navy during these thirteen years.

On the left, the wall, decorated with photomontages, highlighted the advantages of the "Southern Way" and the luxury of the magnificent ships of the main group of Italian shipowners: "Italia-Cosulich-Lloyd Triestino-Adria". Opposite the entrance, the wall of the pavilion was covered by a complete picture of the lines that link Italy to all the continents.

At the base was a series of small, stylised models of the most modern Italian ships. Further on, three panels showed "Tirena, Libera, Triestino, Adriatica", which have special services for the Mediterranean and Africa, with cruises for tourists. An original reminder was a long illuminated glass wall, which depicted the meeting of the ship "Rex" with the "Comte di Savoia" in the Strait of Gibraltar, with a huge flock of seagulls chasing them in the foreground. Next to this glass wall, comfortable deckchairs made one think of restful journeys, and the large photomontages showed the amenities and distractions that await the passengers of these great transatlantic ships.

A pavilion with the lines of a sloping plane united under its wings the car and the plane. At the top, under the flags, were figures: the world record for altitude: 14,433 metres; for speed: 709 km. 202 per hour; the distance record: 4,131 kilometres (the latter, beaten by France, went to Italy with Stoppani's plane).

The interior of the Aeronautics and Automobile Pavilion was divided in two; in the smaller hall, cars with magnificent bodies represented the most recent types of Italian automobile construction. In the next large hall, the red car with which Angelo broke his world record at the impressive speed of 709 kilometres per hour, was in the centre. Around it, engines and model aircraft. The walls soberly decorated with great effect, recalled the accomplished stages. This harmonious ensemble had been the object of assiduous care on the part of Colonel Coutry of the Italian Ministry of Aviation.

© Le Livre d'Or de l'Exposition Universelle de Bruxelles 1935