'A multifaceted diamond’ out of steel : exhibiting the European Communities at Expo 67

Abstract

In the 1960s, the European Communities’ Joint Press and Information Service promoted the newly established European institutions (The European Coal and Steel Community – ECSC – in 1951, the European Economic Community – EEC – and Euratom in 1957) with a variety of cultural diplomacy initiatives. These addressed both the citizens of their Member States and audiences outside of the Community territory. In this article, I look at the latter, by examining the pavilion that was developed for World Expo 1967 Montreal. After briefly introducing Expo 1967, and its theme “Man and his World” (Terre des Hommes), I discuss how the European Communities’ pavilion came into being, and how a specific image of the European Communities was developed with a North American audience in mind. A description of the pavilion’s exhibition and its main messages is complemented with a close analysis of the pavilion’s aim to connect Europe’s reputation as the Old Continent, historically and culturally rich, with Community-driven technological and economic innovation. Finally, I explore how the pavilion and its messages were received, and how the Joint Service reflected on its participation in Expo 1967.