An Image for the Nation
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An Image for the Nation: Architecture of the Balkan Countries at 19th Century Universal Exhibitions in Paris By Cosmin Tudor Minea Submitted to Central European University History Department In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts Supervisor: Professor Ilona Sarmany-Parsons Second Reader: Professor Nadia Al-Bagdadi Budapest, Hungary CEU eTD Collection 2014 Copyright in the text of this thesis rests with the Author. Copies by any process, either in full or part, may be made only in accordance with the instructions given by the Author and lodged in the Central European Library. Details may be obtained from the librarian. This page must form a part of any such copies made. Further copies made in accordance with such instructions may not be made without the written permission of the Author. CEU eTD Collection i Abstract In this research I analyse the architecture of the Balkan nations at four 19th century universal exhibitions in Paris as well as their reception by the French audience. I argue that by way of participating and designing “national” architecture, the countries from the Balkans had to pose new questions and find quick answers related to national representation, architecture and cultural heritage. None of these were truly defined at that time so with this occasion a big impetus was given to the development of national styles, to a number of architect’s careers and to researches on the historical architectural heritage. The participating countries, Romania, Greece, Serbia and Bulgaria, promoted themselves with national pavilions, restaurants and other decorations inspired by their most prized historical monuments, all with the purpose of promoting their nation. However, even if the goal was to assert their unique features, they often displayed similar constructions, inspired by the common heritage of the peninsula. Another paradox represents the French perceptions, often contradicting the official national discourse of the Balkan nations. They saw these countries as a group, drew many parallels with the Orient and even sometimes criticized their pavilions. I finally show that a multitude of actors were involved in the process of designing a national architecture, French and locals, making it an exchange hub, in which ideas and influences spread with ease and had long term repercussions for the Balkan cultural landscape. CEU eTD Collection ii Table of Contents Introduction ............................................................................................................................. 1 Chapter 1: Theoretical Framework ........................................................................................ 11 a) A Comparative, Transnational and Relational Approach .......................................... 11 b) Nation-Building in the Balkans .................................................................................. 17 Chapter 2: The First National Architecture in the Balkans ................................................... 21 a) Meanings in Architecture: Theoretical Considerations and Examples from the Romanian Case of Nation-Building .................................................................................. 21 b) The Balkan Architectural Context and the National Styles in the Balkan Capitals ... 29 Chapter 3: Displaying Balkan Architecture for the First Time at Universal Exhibitions ..... 43 a) Balkans under the Western Gaze ................................................................................ 43 b) The Beginnings: Universal Exhibitions in Paris in 1867 and 1878 .............................. 46 Chapter 4: First Time Together: Balkan Countries Architecture at the Paris World Exhibition of 1889 ................................................................................................................................... 54 a) Overview of the Balkan countries participation ......................................................... 54 b) Romania ...................................................................................................................... 59 c) Serbia .......................................................................................................................... 66 d) Greece ......................................................................................................................... 68 Chapter 5: The Paradox of National Representation: Balkan Countries Pavilions at Paris Universal Exhibition of 1900 ................................................................................................ 72 a) The Balkan Countries at the 1900 Universal Exhibition ............................................ 72 b) Greece ......................................................................................................................... 80 c) Serbia .......................................................................................................................... 85 d) Romania ...................................................................................................................... 89 e) Bulgaria .................................................................................................................... 103 f) Final overview .......................................................................................................... 109 Conclusions ......................................................................................................................... 113 Appendix: Short Resumes of the Main Architects Mentioned in the Text ......................... 119 List and Sources of Figures ................................................................................................. 123 Bibliography ........................................................................................................................ 124 Figures..................................................................................................................................135 CEU eTD Collection iii Introduction In 1866 the young Minister of Foreign Affairs, Alexandru Odobescu, faced the biggest challenge of his life: He was named the organiser of the Romanian section at the Paris Universal Exhibition of 1867. His country was a young one too. It had been Romania only for one year and it had yet to gain what everyone dreamt of: Independence from the Ottoman Empire. But this was less important now because Odobescu had the chance of representing Romania as an independent state in front of the whole world. He even obtained the right to have a national pavilion, a first among the Balkan nations. With the characteristic enthusiasm for the Romanian national cause, that was to guide most of his career, Odobescu set to work. He quickly hired his old friend from the time of his studies in Paris, the architect Ambroise Baudry, to build the Romanian pavilion. He sent him large drawings and photographs of the most famous monuments in the country to be imitated for the pavilion. One of these, the monastery of Curtea de Argeș, was also reproduced in miniature in the main exhibition building. Odobescu knew that these types of ancient monuments were a way to display a glorious unique past of a country that had survived Ottoman rule. His surprise must have been great when the pavilion was seen by the French audience as rather an expression of an Oriental culture, thus connecting it directly with the Ottomans, and in one publication it was even compared to a mosque. What is more, the pavilion itself was located among the Oriental CEU eTD Collection countries section and close to the "exotic" part of the exhibition.1 Of course, Odobescu was aware 1 The Romanian Pavilion at the Parisian Exhibition of 1867 and its reception is described in detail in Chapter 3 1 of the long Western tradition of orientalising the Balkan Peninsula but he surely did not expect that even the carefully designed “traditional Romanian” architecture was to be seen in this way. The episode described above was not unique, but rather the first case in a series of perceptions of Balkan national architecture at universal exhibitions. As we will see, Western views were the result of a mixture between old stereotypes, different perception of architectural forms and the French mediated exhibition. After all, the architect was French and even if the Romanians decided what monuments to present as sources of inspiration, the resulting building was still his work. Therefore the way national architecture was conceived was a result of a complex process that would lead to various often contradictory results. In light of this, my aim is to address the question how a variety of actors created a national architecture for the Balkan countries at the Parisian universal exhibitions. They were French and local officials, French and local architects who had to obey strict rules and work in a team to come up with a design that would satisfy both the participating countries and the French organisers. This collective effort posed new questions the Balkan nations had to ask which in turn reverberated into the cultural and architectural landscape of the Peninsula. I shall take into account only the universal exhibitions of the 19th century, where some or all the Balkan countries participated with a national pavilion. These were held in Paris every eleven years: in 1867, 1878, 1889 and 1900. The countries analysed from the region are those that obtained a great degree of autonomy or indeed were independent at various points in this period: Greece, Serbia,