The Glasgow International Exhibition was the second of 4 international exhibitions held in

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...

, Scotland during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The exhibition took place during a period of half-mourning requested by

Edward VII Edward VII (Albert Edward; 9 November 1841 – 6 May 1910) was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and Emperor of India, from 22 January 1901 until his death in 1910. The second child and eldest son of Queen Victoria an ...

but was still popular and made more than £35000 profit. The exhibition was opened by the King's daughter, the Princess Louise,

Duchess of Fife Duchess of Fife is the typically the wife of the Duke of Fife, an extant title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom which has been created twice, in both cases for Alexander Duff, 6th Earl Fife. In one case however, the incumbent was Duchess of F ...

Exhibits

The exhibition followed the lead of the first Glasgow exhibition, the

International Exhibition of Science, Art and Industry The International Exhibition of Science, Art and Industry was the first of 4 international exhibitions held in Glasgow, Scotland during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. It took place at Kelvingrove Park between May and November 1888. Th ...

, held in 1888, taking place in Kelvingrove Park. It ran between 2 May and 4 November. It marked the opening of the city's

Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum is a museum and art gallery in Glasgow, Scotland. It reopened in 2006 after a three-year refurbishment and since then has been one of Scotland's most popular visitor attractions. The museum has 22 galleries, h ...

and also commemorated the fiftieth anniversary of the first world's fair held in the UK, doubling that attendance with 11.5 million visits. Following the style popularised at the 1893

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

world's fair, the main exhibition building was in Renaissance-Baroque style. But the large industrial hall contrasted strongly having a large white facade with Spanish, Turkish and Venetian ornamentation and a large golden dome atop. This design by James Miller won him one of his many awards. Countries with close ties to Glasgow exhibited including Japan, Canada and Russia. The Russian exhibition was the largest, a 'Russian village' of 4 pavilions reported to have cost the

Tsar of Russia This is a list of all reigning monarchs in the history of Russia. It includes the princes of medieval Rus′ state (both centralised, known as Kievan Rus′ and feudal, when the political center moved northeast to Vladimir and finally to Mos ...

£30,000 and included several brightly coloured buildings designed by

Fyodor Schechtel Fyodor Osipovich Schechtel (russian: Фёдор О́сипович Ше́хтель; August 7, 1859 – July 7, 1926) was a Russian architect, graphic artist and stage designer, the most influential and prolific master of Russian Art Nouveau and ...

. Whilst Charles Mackintosh's designs for the major exhibition halls were rejected, he did design four pavilions for commercial organisations, and one for the

Glasgow School of Art The Glasgow School of Art (GSA; gd, Sgoil-ealain Ghlaschu) is a higher education art school based in Glasgow, Scotland, offering undergraduate degrees, post-graduate awards (both taught and research-led), and PhDs in architecture, fine art, an ...

. Many art works were displayed, including ''Danae'' by

Edward Burne-Jones Sir Edward Coley Burne-Jones, 1st Baronet, (; 28 August, 183317 June, 1898) was a British painter and designer associated with the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood which included Dante Gabriel Rossetti, John Millais, Ford Madox Brown and Holman Hun ...

, a plaster version of Rodin's ''Burghers of Calais'' and 160 works loaned by William Burrell. Entertainments included a switchback railway, a water chute, an Indian theatre and soap sculptures. The fair was visited by the King of Siam and by Empress Eugenie.

Legacy

The land used for the exhibition remains a park,

Kelvingrove Park Kelvingrove Park is a public park located on the River Kelvin in the West End of the city of Glasgow, Scotland, containing the Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum. History Kelvingrove Park was originally created as the West End Park in 1852, and ...

, the 40 foot cast-iron Walter MacFarlane Saracen Fountain from the

Saracen Foundry The Saracen Foundry, Possilpark, Glasgow c.1890 The Saracen Foundry was the better-known name for the Possilpark, Glasgow–based foundry company W MacFarlane & Co. Ltd, founded and owned by Walter MacFarlane. MacFarlane's was the most importan ...

now resides in the city's Alexandra Park and the two

Port Sunlight Port Sunlight is a model village and suburb in the Metropolitan Borough of Wirral, Merseyside. It is located between Lower Bebington and New Ferry, on the Wirral Peninsula. Port Sunlight was built by Lever Brothers to accommodate workers in it ...

cottages, designed by Glasgow architect James Miller, can still be found in Kelvingrove Park.

References

External sources

* http://www.theglasgowstory.com/imageview.php?inum=TGSA00363 image of the opening of the exhibition {{Authority control World's fairs in Glasgow 1901 in Scotland History of Glasgow Culture in Glasgow 1900s in Glasgow 1901 festivals

Exhibits

Legacy

See also

References

External sources