Con la venia de MercurioPatrimonio cultural e iconográfico de la Feria Internacional de Muestras de Asturias (1924-2016)

Abstract

Although the current fairs and exhibitions of different range combine their commercial objectives with cultural, artistic and social activities, of undeniable great interest, the clear mercantile purposes keep maintaining their relevance at present. The Sunday rest and the improvement of the means of transport have benefited these initial Asturian events. Therefore, the railway and the automobile have shortened the travel time to the fairground and have increased the number of visitors. Apart from transmitting the socioeconomic and industrial pulse of hosting centre, the organization of trade fairs has engendered a vast documentary and iconographic corpus, which has allowed our study to be focused on various events that have been taking place in Gijón since the first quarter of the XXth century. On every occasion, the most important contemporary political episodes, such as the Dictatorship of Primo de Rivera, the Second Spanish Republic, the Dictatorship of Franco and Democracy, have influenced decisively, for the good or the bad, the sixty trade fairs’ development.