Klaus Bürgle

100-storey residential towers, jet powered commuter trains, 1968.

The graphic artist Klaus Bürgle was born in Stuttgart, Germany in 1926.

Bürgle studied at the the Stuttgart State Academy of Art and Design from 1948 to 1951. After a 1-year stint working at a graphic design firm, he decided to go freelance. It was in 1953 that he began illustrating for science and technology magazines such as Das Neue Universum ("The New Universe").

Throughout the 1950's and 60's, Klauss Bürgle created countless covers and interior illustrations for a wide variety of popular science books and magazines, as well as working on scientific-themed television shows. While space exploration was certainly his favorite subject, many of his works show futuristic cities and transport.

Much like Star Trek or Expo 67 itself, I've always loved how the "future" was depicted in the past...!

"Air station" connected to rail system with parking for thousands of cars, 1955.

Interchange with seperate levels for cars and public transit, 1965.

Multi-storey expressway with overhead monorails, 1959. (I love the cars...!)

A fully automated rapid transit system carrying both people and cars, 1969.

Remote-controlled high-speed tube trains, above and below ground, 1967.

Polar-region air terminal, 1953.

images: retro-futurismus.de

SPRING BREAK AMÉRICAIN : AUCUN DANGER N'ARRÊTE LES ÉTUDIANTS À CANCUN.

Voici revenu la folle période de la semaine de relâche scolaire. Elle n'a pas la même signification d'un pays à l'autre ou...d'un étudiant à l'autre. Pour certains c'est un temps de repos, de ressourcement, de réflexion. Pour d'autres, c'est une semaine de lecture et de rattrapage dans les travaux scolaires. Mais pour la majorité des collégiens américains, le "Spring Break" veut dire : vacances au soleil du sud, parties à n'en plus finir, et une foule d'activités permettant de s'amuser, de lâcher son fou, et de se changer les idées. Au diable la discipline et les études ! On n'obéit à rien ni à personne. On vit au rythme de ses fantaisies. On profite de la liberté et de la jeunesse, avec excès et insouciance. Dans de telles circonstances et avec un état d'esprit semblable, on ne sera pas étonné que les directives ou les avertissements des autorités publiques, concernant d'éventuels dangers du spring break, soient pas mal ignorés par les collégiens en goguette.

Ainsi, pour la troisième année consécutive, le Département de la Sécurité Publique du Texas (DSPT) a mis en garde les jeunes de cet état du sud des USA contre les dangers de se rendre au Mexique pour la relâche. Le DSPT faisait spécifiquement référence à la violence engendrée par les activités criminelles des cartels de la drogue dans le pays voisin, situé au sud des États-Unis. On recommandait aux vacanciers étudiants d'éviter particulièrement certains bars et certains clubs de nuit de Cancun, Acapulco, Mazatlan, Cabo San Lucas et Tijuana. Évidemment, le département du tourisme mexicain, et les responsables à l'ambassade du Mexique, ont protesté vigoureusement contre ces avis du DSPT. Ils les jugent trop alarmistes et exagérés. Il faut dire que les agents économiques mexicains tiennent beaucoup à cette clientèle américaine. Elle est payante puisque chaque étudiant dépense en moyenne $ 500 durant son court séjour au Mexique. Il est vrai que certains hôtels ne désirent pas accueillir ces jeunes souvent trop turbulents, qui font du vandalisme ou troublent la quiétude des autres clients.

Mais tout indique que les mises en garde du DSPT n'ont pas été entendues ni respectées. D'après les réservations d'hôtels (dont plusieurs affichaient complet), Cancun était déjà assurée d'être cette année la destination numéro 1 des étudiants pour le Spring Break. L'an dernier c'est Punta Cana et la République Dominicaine qui avaient obtenu les faveurs des collégiens américains qui ont voyagé en dehors de leur pays, en cette période de relâche. Interrogés à savoir pourquoi ils voulaient passer leurs vacances à Cancun malgré les avertissements de danger à cet endroit, quelques étudiants ont répondu qu'ils avaient mis de l'argent de côté pendant des mois afin de se payer du bon temps là-bas. "Peu importe, ont-ils affirmé, nous aurons du plaisir malgré tout". Parmi les moyens de se faire du fun, il y a les fameux concours de LA PLUS BELLE FILLE EN BIKINI ou ceux de LA FILLE QUI SECOUE LE MIEUX SON POPOTIN. Voici un exemple de ce dernier genre de compétition. Ça date d'il y a deux ans, sur la plage de Panama City, en Floride. Vous constaterez qu'il y a forcément de meilleures candidates que d'autres. Ça crève les yeux ! Oh Boy !

Betsy McCall at Expo 67

 

In 1951, McCall's women's magazine introduced a paper doll called Betsy McCall; a spunky little girl with a pug nose, brown eyes and a brown bob.

An instant hit, the editors of McCall's had rightly guessed that mothers would be even more inclined to buy their magazine if it contained a nice little extra for their daughters. Each month, little girls across America begged their mothers for the very latest Betsy. Additionally, for a small fee (25¢ in 1967) paper dolls printed on cardboard could be ordered by mail.

Appearing in most issues of the magazine from 1951 to 1995, each Betsy McCall installment came with a set of paper dolls and clothing, as well as a fun little story meant to inspire children as they played. Sometimes Betsy would be helping Mom around the house, working in the yard, or celebrating a holiday.

In August of 1967, Betsy and her family visited Expo 67. She wrote to her cousin Linda of her Expo adventures:

 

"All five of us have been touring the fair - the twins in a pushcart like zillions of other babies," wrote Betsy. "It's hard for me to describe the buildings very well because they are like nothing you've ever seen, so I'm sending snapshots Daddy took."

 

"We rode on the monorail, which is a railroad in the air; it slips through the United States pavilion and comes out the other side - Daddy says it's like a squiggly worm going through an ENOURMOUS apple..."

original image source: thebleudoor.com

Montreal's "Men in Yellow"

To the millions of visitors anticipated at Expo 67, the city of Montreal wanted to show itself as modern, dazzling and cosmopolitan. And a modern and dazzling city could not be dirty. Enter the "Men in Yellow".

 

Dressed in yellow suits, Montreal's litter-pickers assured that city streets were clear of paper, litter and other light refuse from the months of March to December. Armed with a pincer-stick, broom and shovel, the eagle-eyed men scoured the city's streets mounted on special carrier-tricycles.

The tricycles were acquired in 1962, and by 1964, Montreal's Roads Department counted 80 of them divided amongst 5 sectors: north, south, east, west and center. Scooter-mounted supervisors linked by radio to the complaints department ensured that any urgency was quickly dealt with...

 

images (1) centredepaix.org

(2-3) personal collection (Montreal '64 magazine)

PLB's "Katimavik" T-Shirt

 PLB has done it, again!

For spring 2012, Pier-Luk Bouthillier proposes a design that pays homage to one of my personal favorite symbols of Expo 67: the "Katimavik".

The Katimavik was the dominant element of the vast Canadian pavilion at Expo 67. At 109 feet high, visitors could climb to the top of the structure for breathtaking views of the Expo site.


The word "katimavik" means "meeting place" in Inuktitut, symbolizing Canada's role as host at Expo 67.

Interesting to note, "katimavik" can also mean "to take care of". This adds a deeper meaning to the design: "taking care of" our planet is one of PLB's core values...

Available in men's or ladies', in asphalt or black.

 

photos: Patrick Cardinal
design: PLB

The Morocco Pavilion

Located on Île-Notre-Dame between the pavilions of Tunisia and Ethiopia, Morocco's participation at Expo 67 was a traditionally-styled pavilion 72 feet in diameter and 14 feet high. Its shape was inspired by a typically Moroccan motif - the 8 point star - with wood and plaster sculptures throughout, and a floor covered in Moroccan mosaics.

Adjoining the main pavilion was a 65-foot minaret, embellished with ornamental arches.

Pillbox hatted hostess (left) ornamental arch (right).

Hostesses dressed in sunny yellow uniforms were on hand to guide visitors through a variety of exhibits that told Morocco's story in 2 parts: its contributions to civilisation prior to its 1956 independance, and its achievements after.

A large cupola in the center of the pavilion featured 2 luminous dioramas, complete with life-sized mannequins in traditional costume. One display showed the southern village of Tinerhir while the other featured the imperial city of Meknès, known as "The Versailles of Morocco". In another nearby exhibit, mannequins costumed as royal guards or as teachers represented the city of Fez, whose university was at least 400 years older than the Sorbonne.

In galleries around the central area, photographs, statues and more costumes reflected a past enriched by Morocco's proximity to other Mediterranean civilizations. Morocco's agricultural contributions to the world were highlighted: the cultivation of rice, buckwheat, sugarcane, ginger, cotton and silk, and fruits such as bananas, cherries, oranges, lemons and grapefruit.

Treasured relics were exhibited in adjacent display cases: a Neolithic vase, a Phoenician sphinx, a Punic lamp, a 14th-century frieze, a Berber bust from the Roman era. Other artifacts included ancient coins and jewels, daggers, ceramics, caskets, embroidery from North Morocco, forged iron from the city of Meknès, etc.

A 12th century Koran was on display in a section devoted to ancient manuscripts, where early Islamic advances in medicine, geometry and astronomy were discussed. A 14th century astrolabe, at once a scientific tool and a work of art, was a typical example of the refinement of the era.

 

The section on modern Morocco showed recent progresses in the country: industrialization, increased school attendance, improved public hygiene and improvements in agriculture. Modern buildings harmonized with traditional architecture in an exhibit on Casablanca. Montages, models and photographs presented the new city of Agadir which had been devastated by an appalling earthquake some years before.

In yet another section, photographs showed Morocco's natural beauty: spectacular mountains and valleys, deserts, coasts and beaches...

The El Mansour restaurant served dishes which captured the lush and refined essence of Morocco's culture. Visitors could sample typical dishes such as mechoui or chicken served with prunes, in a relaxed and voluptuous atmosphere of soft divans and the scent of sandalwood and rose-water...

 

images: (1) personal collection
(2) library and archives Canada
(3) courtesy DC Hillier
(4) alamedainfo.net
(5) personal collection, from the Man and His World 1968 guide
(6) Dixon Slide Collection, with special thanks to DC Hillier for retouching
(7) personal collection, from the Memorial Album

GM's "New Look" Bus

In 1959, General Motors introduced its iconic "New Look" transit bus.

With its slanted windows, fluted aluminum siding and distinctive 6-piece rounded windshield, the design quickly became known as the "Fishbowl".

The original production began in late 1959 in Pontiac, Michigan, and the very first New Looks were delivered to the Washington, D.C. transit system that same year. In 1961, a second production line was started in London, Ontario, with their first buses going to the Hull City Transport in Hull, Quebec. US production ended in 1977 but continued in Canada until 1986. More than 44,000 units were built throughout this time.

The buses were produced in several lengths: 29, 35 and 40 feet. Transmission choices were four-speed manual or automatic. Originally, all New Looks were powered by 6-cylinder diesel engines. General Motors resisted V8 power but eventually gave in to pressure from customers.

New Looks were available in both "Transit" and "Suburban" versions. Transits were traditional city buses with two doors; Suburbans had high-backed, forward-facing seats, underfloor luggage bays, and only one door. GM had refused to install lavatories on its buses, so some transit companies added their own...!

The New Look's reliability, ease of maintenance and relatively economical operation made it the mainstay of North American transit systems from the 1960's through to the 80's.

Bus drivers loved them because of the ease of steering and the visibility through the large windows. Bus enthusiasts call it their favorite.

I've always loved the New Look's design: there's something about the windswept windows, the fishbowl windshield, the angles that keep it from looking too "boxy"... It's what I picture in my mind when I think of a "bus".

 

images: stevemunro.ca, scanned from a 1963 brochure.