REWIND TO WORLD EXPO 1970 TO A NEW LEVEL OF GRANDEUR AT WORLD EXPO 2025 IN JAPAN, PREPARING TO REVIVE THE INNOVATION STAGE ONCE AGAIN
TEXT: TIWAT KLEAWPATINON
PHOTO COURTESY OF 1970 OSAKA WORLD EXPO
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More than half a century later, Osaka returns to the global stage as host of the World Expo for a second time. Expo 2025 will welcome participation from over 150 nations, including Thailand. Held under the overarching theme ‘Designing Future Society for Our Lives,’ the event will be organized around three key pillars: ‘Saving Lives,’ ‘Empowering Lives,’ and ‘Connecting Lives.’ Together, these themes articulate a shared vision for the future of humanity—one shaped by advancements in medical science, artificial intelligence, and a wide range of transformative technologies. This Expo’s designated venue is Yumeshima, a man-made island in Osaka Bay, which has also been earmarked as the site of Japan’s first integrated casino resort. But before looking ahead, it is worth turning back the clock to 1970, when Osaka first played host to the World Expo. How did Japan envision the promise of a ‘new world’ back then?
In 1970, the world was still deep in the Cold War era. Although tensions between the United States and the Soviet Union were gradually easing, the two superpowers continued their fierce competition in space exploration with America having just achieved the first successful moon landing a year prior. Meanwhile, the Vietnam War was reaching a boiling point, sparking widespread global protests calling for peace. It was also during this period that early computer networks were being developed, laying the groundwork for the digital age. Culturally, the world was alive with the spirit of the hippie movement, rock and roll, and flourishing pop music. At the same time, the post–World War II economic boom had begun to slow, signaling the start of a new chapter in global economic dynamics.
The World Expo has long served as a global stage where nations present cutting-edge innovations to an international audience. For Japan, the first host nation from the East, Expo 1970 offered a historic opportunity to rebrand itself on the world stage. Once seen primarily through the lens of its defeat in World War II and the devastation wrought by the atomic bombings in 1945, in just three decades, Japan had transformed from a war-torn nation into the world’s second-largest economy, only just behind the United States. This rapid economic ascent, often referred to as the ‘Japanese economic miracle,’ was driven by annual growth rates exceeding 10% over consecutive years. Central to this success was Japan’s strategic pivot toward the production and export of complex industrial goods, ranging from consumer electronics and automobiles to advanced steel manufacturing. Japanese products quickly gained global acclaim for their precision, reliability, and innovation. The generation behind this transformation came to be known as the true nation-builders, whose philosophies of work, design, and discipline continue to shape Japanese culture and industry today.
World Expo 1970 was held under the theme ‘Progress and Harmony for Mankind,’ a title that encapsulated aspirations for global peace, human advancement, and collective development. Hosted in Suita, a city in Osaka Prefecture, the event drew participation from 77 countries and attracted a record-breaking 64 million visitors – a milestone that would stand until the 2010 Expo in Shanghai.
True to Japan’s newfound identity as a leader in modern innovation, Expo 1970 stood apart from its predecessors. The fairgrounds featured futuristic architecture unlike anything the public had seen before; structures that looked as though they had leapt from the pages of a science fiction novel. Spearheaded by the legendary architect Kenzo Tange and supported by a team of more than a dozen architects, the design team included now-iconic figures such as Arata Isozaki and Kisho Kurokawa.
The national pavilions at Expo 1970 brought together some of Japan’s most influential industrial leaders. These architectural showcases also provided a platform for the country’s most progressive designers to articulate bold, forward-thinking visions. Among the standout examples were the Takara Battalion and the Toyota IHI Pavilion by Kisho Kurokawa, a leading proponent of the Metabolist movement, which emphasized adaptable, expandable, and organically evolving architecture. Another iconic installation was the Fuji Group Pavilion, a monumental inflatable structure designed by Yutaka Murata. Using an air-pressurized framework, the pavilion could be easily dismantled after the event. It also made history as the site of the world’s first IMAX screening.
The undisputed centerpiece of the exposition, however, was the Tower of the Sun; a 70-meter-tall sculpture by artist Taro Okamoto that stood at the heart of the fairgrounds, welcoming visitors from around the world. Rich in symbolism, the tower featured three distinct faces: the face on the back represented the past, the central face symbolized the present, and the golden mask at the top evoked the future. With its surreal form and philosophical depth, the Tower of the Sun became the defining visual icon of Expo 1970. It has since been referenced in countless films and manga (fans of 20th Century Boys will no doubt recognize it instantly). The tower still stands today in the Expo Commemoration Park, also known as Expo’70 Commemorative Park, in Suita, Osaka, preserved on the very site where the 1970 World Exposition was held.
Expo 1970 marked the world’s first introduction to wireless mobile phone networks, early concepts of high-speed magnetic levitation trains such as the Maglev, and some of the first personal computers designed for home use. The U.S. Pavilion famously displayed a moon rock retrieved from the Apollo space missions. Meanwhile, the Soviet Union’s exhibition featured full-scale models of the Soyuz spacecraft and the Lunokhod-1 lunar rover. Notably, Expo 1970 was the last World Expo in which the Soviet Union was officially a participant, and its pavilion attracted the highest number of visitors – over 30 million.
For Japan, Expo 1970 represented a triumphant return to the global stage. The event remains a landmark in the history of international expositions, particularly as a moment when the East stepped forward to present a vivid and jubilant vision of a ‘new world.’ Looking back, perhaps the most compelling aspect of a World Expo is not merely the technologies on display, but the prevailing worldview – the collective imagination of the future and the paradigms that defined it at a particular moment in time. More than five decades later, as Osaka prepares to host Expo 2025, the questions remain: What new ideas will come to the fore? What vision will Japan offer the world this time? And what is the worldview of the present? The answers await at Expo 2025.