CÂTEVA DATE CU PRIVIRE LA CONSTRUCȚIA, AMENAJAREA ȘI ORGANIZAREA ACTIVITĂȚII CASEI ROMÂNEȘTI LA NEW YORK WORLD’S FAIR (1939–1940). RESTITUIRI DOCUMENTARE DIN ARHIVELE NAȚIONALE ȘI ALE MAE: 1938–1939

Abstract

The present text is part of a more complex research on Romania’s participation in the New York World’s Fair (1939–1940). The main objective of this research is to reconstruct the representation of Romania’s national identity at a certain point in time (1939), classifying it as one element in a series of this kind. We will also concentrate on how this representation was perceived by the public opinion of the 1930s. As such, it is not only research on cultural history and public diplomacy (external propaganda, as it was called at the time), but also on bilateral Romanian-American relations (economy, politics etc.). Last but not least, it also represents a study in imagology. This paper, the first of a series, aimed at reconstructing some of the events related to the preparations led by the officials in Bucharest charged with the country’s participation in the New York World’s Fair, for the construction of the pavilion known as the Romanian House, designed by the architect Octav Doicescu and erected for this occasion. I have brought forth information referring to the evolution of the works done at this pavilion and the difficulties encountered throughout the process, such as: changes made to the architectural design, the relation between the entrepreneurs and workers, the transportation of construction materials from overseas, the exhibitions, the negotiations for appointment of the restaurant’s manager etc. All this took place between May 1938 and April 1939. Our sources are to be found at the National Historical Archives (Saint-George’s fund and Ministry for Commerce and Industry fund) and at the Archives of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Washington fund). To those sources we have added published documents from different public libraries and on-line archives (http://www.cooperativag.ro/, http://octavdoicescu.blogspot.com/ etc.) and details brought forth by specialised literature from 1997–2018 (articles /studies on the subject by Daniel Bogdea, Nicolae Dascălu (Nicolae Ureche), Narcisa Mitu, Raluca Preotu, Zoltan Rostas, Ileana Stanca-Desa, Claudiu-Alexandru Vitanos, Laurențiu Vlad etc.).