World Fair (1998)

The idea of ​​holding a world exhibition appeared in 1989 in two Portuguese - Antonio Ferreira Mega Taurino and Vasco Graça Mora ^[1] , the organizers of the upcoming celebration of the 500th anniversary of Vasco da Gama’s arrival in India in 1498 .

As soon as state support was received, Ferreira submitted an application to the Bureau of International Exhibitions ( fr. Bureau international des expositions ), which in 1992 declared Lisbon the winner. Lisbon’s competitor in Portugal was the Canadian city ​​of Toronto . Subsequently, Parque Expo was established with the aim of developing a self-sufficient project that could cover the costs through the sale of tickets, land and advertising.

The first commissioner of EXPO 98 was Antonio Cardoso Cunha ^[2] (general director of Parque Expo), who was replaced in 1997 by the representative of the then ruling socialist party, José de Melu Torresch Camposch ^[3] .

The area for EXPO 98 was 5 km, covering 50 hectares in the eastern part of Lisbon on the banks of the River Tejo .

To cope with the expected flow of visitors, a program has been developed that includes:

• new vasco da gama bridge (longest in europe)
• new line of the Lisbon metro with 7 stations (5 were ready to open)
• The new main multimodal terminal, trains, subways, buses and taxis, named Gare do Oriente, architect Santiago Calatrava Valls

The cost of a one-day ticket for adults was 5 thousand escudos (34 US dollars at the exchange rate at that time), for three days (not in a row) - 12.5 thousand escudos. Those wishing to purchase a three-month ticket, and it is this exhibition that lasted so long, this pleasure cost 50 thousand escudos.

The novelty of the exhibition was the development of the Swiss watch company “ Swatch ”, which produced a special wristwatch with a built-in chip, after magnetization it served as an entrance ticket on the turnstiles.

The logo of the exhibition was an image that reproduces the sun and the sea in its blue waves (the author was the advertising director of the exhibition Augusto Tavare Dias) The mascot of the exhibition was the work of the artist Antonio Modeshtu and the sculptor Arthur Moreira, who chose the image of student Jose Luis Coelho from 309 works sent in the framework of the corresponding competition, named Gil ( port Gil ) in honor of the 15th century Portuguese navigator Gilles Eanesch . The peculiarity of the “Gilles” is its wave-twisted hair.

During the exhibition there were two types of pavilions: thematic and regional.

Thematic Pavilions:

• Pavilion of the Future ( port. Pavilhão do Futuro )
• Virtual reality pavilion ( port. Pavilhão da Realidade Virtual )
• Pavilion of Utopia ( port. Pavilhão da Utopia )
• Portugal Pavilion ( port. Pavilhão de Portugal )
• Knowledge Pavilion ( port. Pavilhão do Conhecimento dos Mares )
• Pavilion of the Oceans ( port. Pavilhão dos Oceanos )
• Pavilion of territories ( port. Pavilhão do Território )
• Water Pavilion ( port. Pavilhão da Água )
• Navigation Exhibition ( port. Exibição Náutica )

Examples of regional pavilions:

• Azores Pavilion ( port. Pavilhão dos Açores )
• Guinea-Bissau Pavilion ( port. Pavilhão da Guiné-Bissau )
• Macau Pavilion ( port. Pavilhão de Macau )
• Pavilion of Madeira ( port. Pavilhão da Madeira )

On the night of October 1, 1998 the exhibition was closed. This last night was extraordinary in the history of the city. At about 20 o'clock, for security reasons, the turnstiles were dismantled, because the number of people who wanted to come exceeded any expectations. The reason for this was, first of all, the largest in the history of the city fireworks .

The Vasco da Gama Bridge and the main tower in the northern part of the exhibition area were closed from October 1 to October 15, 1998. Reopened as part of the Park of Nations. The Oceanarium, the Pavilion of the Future and the Pavilion of Knowledge continued to receive visitors until the last day of 1998. In February 1999, the park began to change, in particular:

• The main entrance, in front of the Gare do Oriente transport hub, was transformed into the Vasco da Gama commercial center.
• The international zone in the northern part became the venue for the International Fair of Lisbon ( port. Feira Internacional de Lisboa )
• The Utopia Pavilion was renamed Atlantic - today it is the venue for significant cultural, sporting and musical events.
• Vasco da Gama tower was closed for visitors
• Pavilion of virtual reality was closed and dismantled
• Knowledge Pavilion was transformed into a science museum.
• Pavilion of the future is now a casino
• Most of the adjacent territory was sold - today it is residential buildings and offices.

Today’s so-called Expo Zone is a modern area of ​​the city with a population of about 28 thousand inhabitants.

• 1998 Lisbon
• ExpoMuseum / Expo '98, Lisbon, Portugal