Opening Reception: Thursday July 9

The World’s Fairs of 1939–40 and 1964–65 presented architecture in a variety of modern and postmodern styles. The photo exhibit Persuasive Images: Architecture and the 1939–40 and 1964–65 New York World’s Fairs will “reassess the conventional perceptions of the Fairs’ architecture, which was often ignored or ridiculed,” says curator Richard Hourahan, archivist, Queens Historical Society. “Examining commissions, designs, and completed projects allows a critical look at the themes and politics behind the Fairs’ creation and at the same time restores the architecture to its epochal significance.”

On view at the Godwin-Ternbach Museum at Queens College from June 29 to July 27 will be over 100 photographs, selected from an array of local, national, and international archives, depicting rarely seen images of the architecture of both these World’s Fairs. As we look back on the 20th century, this show contextualizes and provides new insights into the significance, power, and cultural phenomena of world expositions.

Join in our Oral History project and record your memories of the Fair on “Saturday Stories”