PICTURING THE ALASKA-YUKON-PACIFIC EXPOSITION - NICOLETTE BROMBERG

You know the deal, saw this at the main library downtown, had to cop. I’m always interested in the micro-genre of books about the city I’m living in (mostly non-fiction, very rarely does a fiction book have something profound to say about a city itself). LA has some of the best, between all the Mike Davis stuff and 4 Ecologies and An Island on the Land, to say nothing of Los Angeles Plays Itself, a top 10 movie for sure (perhaps tied with Sans Soleil for best essay-movie of all time). Chicago has lots of books but is especially rich in academic papers about micro-neighborhoods. The overseas places I’ve lived get a little spottier but Mexico City at least is rich in texts. Irregardless, this is a rather minor addition to the Seattle book pantheon. Honestly, it’s mostly a picture book, which is fine and what I wanted. The photos are from this Frank Nowell guy who lived up in Alaska and photographed the goldrush. There’s also a section of the book that tries a contemporary photo in the exact spot of the originals. This is mildly interesting, the fair took place on what is now UW’s campus, the famous framing of Mount Rainier on the quad is a A-Y-P thing, but it’s the same trick over and over and is mostly boring. The book also comes with an essay from Bromberg which is likewise disappointing. You have to read through the lines to get at the really interesting stuff. For instance, we learn that Japan is super involved in this project, they have the biggest pavillion and “Japan Day” is the largest and most successful of the “days”. China. however, due to the racism they, as a nation and individually, experienced at other recent World’s Fair style events as well as the then-recent expulsion of Chinese from Seattle, did not involve themselves. This hierarchy, this drive of Japan’s to be the Western Modern peer of the USA, comes to play itself out in WWII, which looms across all of these World’s Fair style events. It’s got all that classic World’s Fair stuff. Bizarre inventions like the world’s largest book, literal human zoos, endless imperial boosterism, blind optimism, cringy cultural pastiche. Lots of Eskimo-exploitation, a genre that I’ve only ever seen at the Velaslavasay Panorama. I first became aware of this fair when I saw a photo (reproduced in this book) a Torii who’s poles are carved to be “Totem Poles”. The animals in the pole have light up eyes. It’s an insane image, it shows a deeply American view of the world and it’s a pretty Seattle-specific image. Because of the Space Needle the ‘62 Fair is the famous one, but this “Westward the Course of Empire Takes Its Way” themed shindig is closer to the city Seattle actual ended up becoming. 1909 Torii