Wereldtentoonstelling te Antwerpen (Wyck Oud Antwerpen) 1894

This is Jef van der Linden's "Wereldtentoonstelling te Antwerpen (Wyck Oud Antwerpen)," a medal made in 1894 for the World's Fair in Antwerp. These fairs were displays of industrial advancement, offering visitors the chance to experience innovations firsthand. They also revealed the cultural biases of the time, often showcasing colonial holdings in ways that reinforced European superiority. This medal commemorates “Old Antwerp," a re-creation of a medieval Flemish city. This fair happened to coincide with King Leopold II’s brutal exploitation of the Congo. The medal serves as a token of the fair's complex layering of nostalgia with the era's imperialist appetite. These created historical narratives, which served the political and economic agendas of the colonizers. Reflecting on this medal, we see how objects of celebration can also carry narratives of exploitation and cultural erasure. Consider this piece a prompt to reflect on the selective histories we choose to remember and the stories we often leave untold.