Expos to Epcot: How World's Fairs Gave Us Walt Disney World

A historical talk traces how the grand ambitions of world’s fairs helped shape the ideas behind modern theme parks and Walt Disney World.

Expos to Epcot: How World’s Fairs Gave Us Walt Disney World takes place on Friday, February 13 at The Wolfsonian-FIU on Miami Beach. Bethanee Bemis, museum specialist at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History, examines how international expositions used immersive design, technological optimism and consumer spectacle to imagine the future.

The program gives particular focus to the 1964-65 New York World’s Fair, where many concepts that later informed Walt Disney World were first tested. Inspired by the exhibition World’s Fairs: Visions of Tomorrow, the talk is presented in collaboration with the Smithsonian Institution and reflects The Wolfsonian’s role as a Smithsonian Affiliate.