Netherlands - Expo Brussels 1935
The Dutch section, on the outskirts of the Rose Garden, covered 6,000 square metres, of which 2,500 were for the pavilion, the work of architect Dirk Roosenburg. Built to a very modern design, the pavilion had straight, metal-framed walls covered with a new material, i.e. compressed wood-fibre panels, painted in a marbled pattern. The two main façades were decorated with large frescoes; one, by the painter Hermann Rosse of the Technical University of Delft, depicted the activities of the eleven United Provinces, represented by young men waving flags and standing out from a schematic map where the activities of Dutch industries were evoked. The portico of the Avenue du Foot-Ball was decorated by Mr. Charles Eyck of Utrecht; a twelve-armed goddess symbolised the Orient and the Dutch colonial empire from ITnsulinde to Guyana; in the colonial section, a highly decorative panel by Joep Nicolas de Roermond represented Holland and its colonies.
A light tower topped the whole section; in the evening, lamps drew the three colours of the Dutch pavilion on its ridge. In the shadow of the pavilion, a picturesque farmhouse, the "Juliana Hoeve", was used for agricultural demonstrations, presentation and tasting of the products of the dairy industry in a rustic setting.
Holland was also represented in the Palace of Ancient Art, with works by Rembrandt, Vermeer, Frans Hais, Maes, Hobbema, Ruysdael...; in the Modern Art Salon, with original paintings and in the architecture section, with plans and photographs of buildings worthy of the universal reputation of the young Dutch school of architecture. Finally, in the vicinity of the General Commissariat, there was a pavilion showing visitors the wonders of the fauna and flora of the Indian Sea, while a Javanese restaurant introduced its guests to the thousand and one ways of preparing and serving rice.
The Dutch Pavilion was arranged in a very artistic and practical way. The layout consisted of a large room 66 metres wide, a pentagonal room, the Salon d'Honneur, and several other small rooms.
From the Avenue du Gros Tilleul, a 6-metre wide staircase led to a terrace; four doors gave access to the Pavilion, which made it possible to regulate traffic in the event of an influx. A staircase led up to the industry gallery, leaving the steps to the left leading to the balcony of the main hall and to the Pavilion office, which was open to the public; the Commissioner General's offices were above. Further up was the entrance to the Tower, in which a radio installation with a loudspeaker played a concert of chimes every morning.
For natural lighting, the architect decided in favour of saw-tooth windows facing north, which left the entire wall free.
In the first three rooms, the Department of Economic Affairs participated, with extensive information on industrial Holland; the Department of Waterways, with plans and models of the main waterways; and the major works, including the draining of the Zuyderzee. Amsterdam, Rotterdam and Dordrecht took part in a joint presentation; a model was made of the Schiphol terminal.
Several artists worked together to illuminate these documents, which were complemented by a world map in relief showing, by means of light bulbs, the communications between the Netherlands, its colonies and the rest of the world by ship, aircraft, radio telegraphy and radiotelephony. A glass telephone booth topped by a globe made it possible to communicate with Java, Borneo and Batavia at the same rates as in the mainland. Further on, the coal industry, the Royal Dutch salt industry and the Royal Dutch blast furnaces were represented collectively. In the same hall, there were the stands of the Harbour Society and the North Sea beaches.
The central hall was devoted to agricultural Holland and its products: dairy, horses, strawboard, sugar, starch, fruit and vegetable growing, livestock, vegetables, flowers and fruit - each province was represented in its characteristic aspects.
Room III was devoted to Overseas Holland: a model of the archipelago, pictorial
Archipelago, pictorial statistics on relations between Belgium and the Dutch Indies, the latter's production, size, population, administration, air transport. The long room, adjacent to this one, contained the shipments of the main factories and plants of the Netherlands, in particular diesel engines, shipbuilding and artificial silk.
Finally, the Salon d'Honneur, decorated with beautiful stained glass windows, displayed the products of the art industries: bookbindings, gold and silverware, glassware, earthenware; the busts of eight Dutchmen, who won the Nobel Prize, formed a sort of Pantheon.
This section was eminently instructive; it was often adorned with exhibitions of flowers, tulips, roses, etc., one of which was organised in the hall of the Museum. - This section was eminently instructive; it was often adorned with exhibitions of flowers, tulips, roses, etc., one of which was organised in honour of Her Majesty Queen Wilhelmina.
© Le Livre d'Or de l'Exposition Universelle de Bruxelles 1935