Milan hosts World Fair
Milan will host the Universal Expo in 2015. The Expo, also known as World Fair, is a large public exhibition held since the mid 19th century. The first Expo was held in The Crystal Palace in Hyde Park, London, in 1851 under the title “Great Exhibition of the Works of Industry of All Nations”. The “Great Exhibition” was an idea of Prince Albert, Queen Victoria’s husband, and was the first international exhibition of manufactured products. As such, it influenced the development of several aspects of society including art and design education, international trade and relations, and even tourism.
 
 
 
 
Since the inception in 1851, the character of world expositions has evolved. Three eras can be distinguished: the era of industrialization, the era of cultural exchange, and the era of nation branding.
The first era could be called the era of 'industrialization' and covered, roughly, the period from 1800 to 1950. In these days, world expositions were especially focused on trade and famous for the display of technological inventions and advancements. Inventions such as the telephone were first presented during this era.
The 1939 New York World's Fair and the 1949 Stockholm World's Fair represented a departure from the original focus of the expositions. From then on, Expos became more strongly based on a specific theme of cultural significance, and began to address issues of humankind. They became more future oriented and 'utopian' in scope. Cross-cultural dialogue and the exchange of solutions became defining elements of the expos.
From Expo '88 in Brisbane onwards, countries started to use the world expo more widely and more strongly as a platform to improve their national images through their pavilions. In a world where a strong national image is a key asset, pavilions became advertising campaigns, and the Expo a vehicle for 'nation branding'. Apart from cultural and symbolic reasons, organizing countries also utilize the world exposition to brand themselves.
 
Today's world expositions embody elements of all three eras. They present new inventions, facilitate cultural exchange based on a theme, and are used for city, region and nation branding. Many exhibitions created for the Expo;s are still being used in the city that held the fair, or transported back to where they came from ans till function there. Expo 2012 will be held in Yeosu, South Korea, with the theme "The Living Ocean and Coast: Diversity of Resources and Sustainable Activities”. As said the expo in 2015 will be in Milan.