Le Pavillon soviétique de l’Exposition de 1937 à Paris: aspect financier et problèmes d’organisation

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This article focuses on the financial aspect and certain problems in the preparation of the Soviet Pavilion for the 1937 International Exposition in Paris. Following up a short introduction that gives a contextual overview, the essay discusses how various plans, guidelines and competitions affected the décor of the Pavilion’s interior and how the items of the collection were selected. Details such as the deadlines imposed on the artists help to understand the importance of the human factor in the event of this scale. The article also explores financing of the Soviet Pavilion at the Exhibition related to the economic situation of the time and political objectives. The analysis of the closing balance sheet reveals important problems in the Soviet management. The article discusses the prices of the most expensive commissioned works as well as their fate after the Exhibition. A comparative study of the expenses of other participating countries, on the one hand, and in relation to the Soviet standards of living on the other hand, sheds light on the scale of the granted budget. Finally, I discuss the attitude of Soviet officials to the income earned at the Exhibition because of its international importance. The cross-cutting theme of the article, which clarifies certain mechanisms in the decision-making and management, is the role of the chief leaders of the Soviet part of the Exhibition.