Brno Exhibition Centre
Encyclopedia
Thanks to its geographic location between the capitals of Prague
Prague
Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...

, Bratislava
Bratislava
Bratislava is the capital of Slovakia and, with a population of about 431,000, also the country's largest city. Bratislava is in southwestern Slovakia on both banks of the Danube River. Bordering Austria and Hungary, it is the only national capital that borders two independent countries.Bratislava...

, Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...

, and the Katowice region in the south of Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...

, as well as the infrastructure and size of the fairgrounds, and backed by the Czech industrial base and tradition in manufacturing, the Brno Exhibition Center has emerged as a leading venue for international conventions, trade shows and special events in Central Europe
Central Europe
Central Europe or alternatively Middle Europe is a region of the European continent lying between the variously defined areas of Eastern and Western Europe...

.

Established in 1928, the Brno Exhibition Centre is recognized as the exhibition hub in Central Europe, and therefore is also called the Central European Exhibition Centre. The recent exhibition and convention center features a mixture of modern, newly built halls with exhibition halls built in the functionalist style architecture of the 1920s.

The Brno Convetion and Exhibition Centre
  • occupies a site on 667,000 sqm (7,179,528 sqr.ft)
  • provides a total gross exhibition area of 203,523 sqm incl. open air space
  • provides world class exhibition halls with an exhibition area of 72,057 sqm
  • 15 exhibition halls
  • visitor capacity: 25,000 – 30,000 (maximum 60,000) a day
  • exhibition halls are equipped with A/C and Wi-Fi internet
  • 7.000 parking spaces at and around the center
  • new hall P, with its capacity up to 10,000 persons, is a superb facility for large scale events

The Tradition

The city of Brno
Brno
Brno by population and area is the second largest city in the Czech Republic, the largest Moravian city, and the historical capital city of the Margraviate of Moravia. Brno is the administrative centre of the South Moravian Region where it forms a separate district Brno-City District...

 has a long-standing tradition of trade fairs, which is inseparable from the industrial development of the city into an industrial, scientific and logistics hub in Central Europe. Annual markets and trade exhibitions were held in Brno since 1243. As a result of the booming textile industry in the city, the first trade shows were held in the 18th century. Since 1821 regular trade exhibitions – “similar to those in Western Europe” - were held in Brno. Wholesale merchants from Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...

, Linz
Linz
Linz is the third-largest city of Austria and capital of the state of Upper Austria . It is located in the north centre of Austria, approximately south of the Czech border, on both sides of the river Danube. The population of the city is , and that of the Greater Linz conurbation is about...

, Saxony
Saxony
The Free State of Saxony is a landlocked state of Germany, contingent with Brandenburg, Saxony Anhalt, Thuringia, Bavaria, the Czech Republic and Poland. It is the tenth-largest German state in area, with of Germany's sixteen states....

, Hungary
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...

 and Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...

 attended the annual markets in Brno, i.e. from the same regions as today. 104,000 visitors attended the Imperial Jubilee Exhibition in 1888, the largest exhibition held in Brno until that time. From 1922 – 1927 Brno Annual Exhibition Markets were regularly held

Thanks to the tradition of trade fairs and a unique exhibition centre that is recognized as the leading trade show venue in Central Europe
Central Europe
Central Europe or alternatively Middle Europe is a region of the European continent lying between the variously defined areas of Eastern and Western Europe...

, the city of Brno, Czech Republic
Czech Republic
The Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Poland to the northeast, Slovakia to the east, Austria to the south, and Germany to the west and northwest....

’s second business city, is also nicknamed as “The Capital of Trade Fairs”.

Historical Milestones

  • 1923 – Brno
    Brno
    Brno by population and area is the second largest city in the Czech Republic, the largest Moravian city, and the historical capital city of the Margraviate of Moravia. Brno is the administrative centre of the South Moravian Region where it forms a separate district Brno-City District...

     municipality counselors decided on the project of a new international exhibition centre
  • 1927 – 1928 the construction of the Brno Exhibition Centre was completed
  • May 26, 1928 – inauguration of the Exhibition of Contemporary Culture in Czechoslovakia 1928 under patronage of Tomáš G. Masaryk, the first President of Czechoslovakia]]
  • 1956 – 1. Exhibition of Czechoslovak Engineering
  • 1958 – 1. International Engineering Fair (MSV Brno)
  • 1991 – Privatization of Brno Trade Fairs and Exhibitions Co.
  • 1998 – Acquisition by strategic partner Messe Düsseldorf
    Messe Düsseldorf
    Düsseldorf Messe is a trade fair ground and organizer, based in Düsseldorf, Germany. With a workforce of 1,459 employees worldwide and a total exhibition space of 285,000 sqm in Düsseldorf, the company is one of the largest in the industry...

    , modernization of the exhibition centre

Exhibition Of Contemporary Culture In Czechoslovakia 1928

By its construction on the purpose of the Exhibition of Contemporary Culture in Czechoslovakia in 1928, the city of Brno gained the most modern and the largest exhibition centre in Central Europe
Central Europe
Central Europe or alternatively Middle Europe is a region of the European continent lying between the variously defined areas of Eastern and Western Europe...

.
For decades, based on the same layout, it has been holding its No. 1 position, until recent days.

Hall A, formerly the Palace of Industry and Trade, has become a landmark of the city of Brno. The majestic parabolic arch’s unique structure has become a symbol of the Brno exhibition center. It is embodied in the corporate logo of Trade Fairs Brno Co. Architects: Josef Kalous, Jaroslav Valenta

Tomáš G. Masaryk,the first President of Czechoslovakia, was the patron of the exhibition commemorated the 10th anniversary of the independent Czechoslovak state. The exhibition demonstrated the creative intellectual potential of Czechs and Slovaks in culture and technology. The exhibition endorsed the fact that in the 1920s Czechoslovakia was ranked among the 10 most developed nations in the world.

Such a surprising show, grandiose, and full of purity! Incomparable to any challenge I have ever seen. Whatever you do; here one must pay homage to the principle of integrity. After such a great and successful demonstration, in all our enterprising and designing we should say: “Yes, this is how things should be done...., “wrote Karel Čapek
Karel Capek
Karel Čapek was Czech writer of the 20th century.-Biography:Born in 1890 in the Bohemian mountain village of Malé Svatoňovice to an overbearing, emotional mother and a distant yet adored father, Čapek was the youngest of three siblings...

, about the Exhibition of Contemporary Culture in the National Journal, May 1928.

The Unique Architecture

Along with the elegant Villa Tugendhat
Villa Tugendhat
Villa Tugendhat is a historical building in Brno, Czech Republic. It is one of the pioneering prototypes of modern architecture in Europe, and was designed by the German architect Ludwig Mies van der Rohe...

, the most famous building from this period, designed by Ludwig Mies van der Rohe
Ludwig Mies van der Rohe
Ludwig Mies van der Rohe was a German architect. He is commonly referred to and addressed as Mies, his surname....

, the modernist architecture of the Brno Exhibition Centre manifested the new identity of Czechoslovak society with the spirit of modern ideas and technological progress.
In the city of Brno modernism lives on. Brno, the capital of Moravia and the Czech Republic's second-largest city, is a long way from Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...

. But in the 1920s and 1930s, it was one of the hotbeds of Modernism in Central Europe.
wrote International Herald Tribune
International Herald Tribune
The International Herald Tribune is a widely read English language international newspaper. It combines the resources of its own correspondents with those of The New York Times and is printed at 38 sites throughout the world, for sale in more than 160 countries and territories...

.

The fairgrounds with the Exhibition of Contemporary Culture in Czechoslovakia 1928 is said to have become a turning point in Czech design and architecture. The center’s architecture has been acknowledged internationally. Examples of its architecture were displayed in the Museum of Modern Art
Museum of Modern Art
The Museum of Modern Art is an art museum in Midtown Manhattan in New York City, on 53rd Street, between Fifth and Sixth Avenues. It has been important in developing and collecting modernist art, and is often identified as the most influential museum of modern art in the world...

 in New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...

 and appeared in the publication The International Style & Architecture, which introduced modernism to the New World. Further interesting developments of the fairgrounds followed in the late 1950s and 1960s. The monumental dome of hall Z, designed by architect Lederer
Lederer
Lederer is a surname and may refer to:* Abraham Lederer, Bohemian-Hungarian Jewish educator and writer* Andrew J. Lederer, New York comedian* Esther "Eppie" Pauline Friedman-Lederer, a/k/a Ann Landers , American advice columnist...

, and in the early 1960s, the Administration Office Building by architect Spurný. The modernization after 2000 successfully complemented the avant-garde style of the centre. The latest multi-functional hall P with 12,000 sqm, opened in June 2009, is the largest exhibition facility of its kind in Central Europe
Central Europe
Central Europe or alternatively Middle Europe is a region of the European continent lying between the variously defined areas of Eastern and Western Europe...

.

Shows And Events

Since 1958, Brno Exhibition Center is internationally known through the International Engineering Fair (MSV Brno), acknowledged as the premier industrial show in Central Europe. The MSV served as a business meeting point between “East and West” fostering technology transfer and information. Today, it serves as the business meeting point in the Central European EU-member states. 12,000 Czech and international firms and about 1 mil. visitors attend the trade and other events held at the center.

Besides trade shows and exhibitions, the centre is an ideal venue for high level political summits, conventions, concerts, sporting events, corporate gatherings and presentations. The center’s hall interiors and exteriors are suitable for film making purposes and is used by film production teams for shooting commercials, music videos, or movie scenes with a large number of persons or audience.

Among other events the Czech Summit 2007, summit of the presidents of the Central and South-Eastern European states, and the 2009 EU Meeting of agricultural ministers under the Czech EU presidency were held here.
The Rolling Stones chose the Brno Exhibition Centre for the 2007 A Bigger Bang European Tour
Rolling Stones concerts
Since 1963, the English rock group The Rolling Stones has performed hundreds of concerts around the world, being one of the world's most popular live music attractions....

.
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