scholarly journals “The World of Tomorrow” or “The World of Yesterday”? The Image of an Independent Nation at the 1939 New York World’s Fair

2019 ◽  
Vol 25 (2) ◽  
pp. 67-82
Author(s):  
Apolonia Filonik
Keyword(s):  
New York ◽  
World War Ii ◽  
World's Fairs ◽  
World's Fair ◽  
World War ◽  
New York World's Fair ◽  
The World ◽  
World Expo ◽  
World’S Fairs ◽  
First Time

Poland’s presence at World’s Fairs between the World Wars is a spe­cial issue in that, after a long absence on the map of Europe, the coun­try had the opportunity to show its industrial and cultural achieve­ments in the international arena as an independent exhibitor for the first time. Thus, this event always had a very important political di­mension. Its symbol was the Polish pavilion presented in Paris in 1925, but no less important was the pavilion at the New York World’s Fair in 1939. Although it was a success at the world expo, it was overshadowed by the tragic consequences of the outbreak of World War II almost from the beginning. From today’s perspective, it is worth looking at this object, to evaluate its foundation and ultimate significance, as well as to reflect on the difficult concept of national art, in addition to trac­ing the fate of the pavilion.

Performing Japan in the ‘World of Tomorrow’

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
William Peterson
Keyword(s):  
New York ◽  
Performing Arts ◽  
World's Fair ◽  
World War ◽  
Love Affair ◽  
New York World's Fair ◽  
The World ◽  
Trade Relationship ◽  
The Temple ◽  
Tea Ceremony

As Asia and Europe raced toward another catastrophic world war, the Japanese government engaged Nippon Kōbō, its de-facto state propaganda machine, to reinforce America’s love affair with all things Japanese at the 1939-1940 New York World’s Fair. The temple-like national pavilion set amidst an extensive garden celebrated the strong diplomatic and trade relationship between the two countries, while highlighting the ‘softer’ and more feminine side of Japan through displays featuring attractive, kimono-clad women engaged in silk production, ikebana floral arranging, and the ubiquitous ‘tea ceremony.’ The reception given to the genderbending performing arts company, Takarazuka in May, 1939, suggests Americans were unwilling to change their perception of Japan as the land of cherry blossoms and willowy maidens.

The Sunshine State Emerges on the World Stage

2019 ◽  
pp. 189-197
Author(s):  
David J. Nelson
Keyword(s):  
New York ◽  
Great Depression ◽  
Entire Population ◽  
World's Fair ◽  
Tourist Industry ◽  
Tourist Attractions ◽  
The Great Depression ◽  
New York World's Fair ◽  
The World ◽  
Park Service

Near the end of the Great Depression, Florida ends the decade with a triumphant tenure at the 1939 New York World’s Fair, dozens of thriving tourist attractions, and a newly built Florida Park Service. By 1940, Florida enjoyed a thriving tourist industry that attracted more than double the entire population of the Sunshine State.

Digitization, Virtual Collections, and Total Archives in the Twenty-First Century

2021 ◽  
pp. 148-173
Author(s):  
Jason Lustig
Keyword(s):  
New York ◽  
World War Ii ◽  
Case Studies ◽  
Jewish History ◽  
First Century ◽  
World War ◽  
Historical Materials ◽  
The World ◽  
Cairo Genizah

This final chapter argues that struggles over archival ownership and the possibility of archival totality continue far beyond the years immediately following World War II. It considers three case studies to consider new forms of total archives being created through virtual collections and digitization: The Center for Jewish History in New York City (formed in 1994/1995 and opened in 2000), the efforts by the YIVO Institute for Jewish Research to digitize materials found in Lithuania and reunite them with their own files, and the Friedberg Genizah Project’s initiative to digitize and join together fragments of the Cairo Genizah found in repositories around the world. These case studies showcase enduring visions of monumentality and indicate how archival construction is not merely the province of the past. Instead, the process of gathering historical materials is a continual process of making and remaking history.

An Athenian Interlude

Prima Donna ◽  
2021 ◽  
pp. 89-118
Author(s):  
Paul Wink
Keyword(s):  
New York ◽  
World War Ii ◽  
York City ◽  
The Self ◽  
Significant Gain ◽  
World War ◽  
Self Confidence ◽  
The World ◽  
National Opera ◽  
Major Turning Point

This chapter, “An Athenian Interlude,” analyzes a major turning point in Callas’s life associated with her move, at age thirteen, from New York City to Athens. In Athens, she experienced poverty, personal humiliation, and, during the World War II years, threats to her life. But her singing benefited from the strong mentorship she received from Elvira de Hidalgo, which helped launch her operatic career. Callas’s success as a singer with the Greek National Opera fueled resentment among her older and more established colleagues who envied her talent and resented being dethroned by a mere teenager who spoke Greek with an American accent. Poverty and conflicted relations at home with her mother and sister failed to compensate Callas for hostility at work. A significant gain in weight further undermined her self-confidence. Her experiences during the seven years spent in Athens exacerbated the split between Callas, the self-assured artist, and Maria, the vulnerable young woman.

Franklin D. Roosevelt and US Foreign Relations

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Graham Cross
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
New York ◽  
World War Ii ◽  
Foreign Relations ◽  
Active Role ◽  
The United States ◽  
American People ◽  
World War ◽  
The World ◽  
The Impact

Franklin D. Roosevelt was US president in extraordinarily challenging times. The impact of both the Great Depression and World War II make discussion of his approach to foreign relations by historians highly contested and controversial. He was one of the most experienced people to hold office, having served in the Wilson administration as Assistant Secretary of the Navy, completed two terms as Governor of New York, and held a raft of political offices. At heart, he was an internationalist who believed in an engaged and active role for the United States in world. During his first two terms as president, Roosevelt had to temper his international engagement in response to public opinion and politicians wanting to focus on domestic problems and wary of the risks of involvement in conflict. As the world crisis deepened in the 1930s, his engagement revived. He adopted a gradualist approach to educating the American people in the dangers facing their country and led them to eventual participation in war and a greater role in world affairs. There were clearly mistakes in his diplomacy along the way and his leadership often appeared flawed, with an ambiguous legacy founded on political expediency, expanded executive power, vague idealism, and a chronic lack of clarity to prepare Americans for postwar challenges. Nevertheless, his policies to prepare the United States for the coming war saw his country emerge from years of depression to become an economic superpower. Likewise, his mobilization of his country’s enormous resources, support of key allies, and the holding together of a “Grand Alliance” in World War II not only brought victory but saw the United States become a dominant force in the world. Ultimately, Roosevelt’s idealistic vision, tempered with a sound appreciation of national power, would transform the global position of the United States and inaugurate what Henry Luce described as “the American Century.”

scholarly journals Maxo Vanka's collage "World War II" is a brilliant gematrical composition

1999 ◽  
Vol 32 ◽  
pp. 111-117
Author(s):  
Tine T. Kurent
Keyword(s):  
New York ◽  
World War Ii ◽  
World War ◽  
The World

The American-Croatian painter Maksimilian Vanka, 1 1889-1963, or Maxo for his friends, composed together with his American wife Margaret, her father dr. Stetten DeWitt and his friends Louis and Stella Adamic, his most enigmatic work, the "WORLD WAR II" collage. The collage originated at the reunion of Maxo Vanka, his wife Margaret, his friends Louis and Stella Adamic, with Margaret's father Dr. Stetten DeWitt, after his return from Europe at war. The party was exhilarated with Dr. Stetten's safe escape from Korcula (Dalmatia) to Paris, Le Havre and on board of the French liner lie de France to New York, and preoccupied with the imminent World War.

scholarly journals The Torah Ark of Arthur Szyk

Arts ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 60
Author(s):  
Susan Nashman Fraiman
Keyword(s):  
New York ◽  
World War Ii ◽  
World War ◽  
Post World War Ii ◽  
Central Focus ◽  
Jewish Art ◽  
Unpublished Work ◽  
The World

This paper discusses the design and symbolism of a hitherto unpublished work by the artist Arthur Szyk (1894–1951), an ark for the Torah which he designed for the Forest Hills Jewish Center of Queens, New York, and which was dedicated in 1949. The Torah Ark is the central focus of all synagogue worship. Szyk’s ark is unique in its multiplicity of symbols and texts, which was at odds with the modernist idiom of post-World War II synagogue architecture. This research, which also brings previously unpublished material, analyzes the possible sources for the work and its distinctive message, which is exceptional in the world of modern contemporary Jewish art.

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