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The East Coast of the United States
got a late start in architecture compared to Europe, but since the
1600s builders in America have sought to catch up with, and even
supersede, their European forebears. The content that follows is
admittedly generalized.
Art Deco
dates: 1920-1940
noted architects:
William Van Alen
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Even though the
style has a French name, Art Deco in the United States has a distinctly
American flair to it. Even with the Great Depression, buildings
constructed in this style reflect an optimism in the technological
future and a pride in American prowess. The style borrows from, among
other sources, Egyptian art.
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Chrysler
Building, New York (1930)
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Empire
State Building, New York (1931)
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Rockefeller
Center, New York (1939)
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Georgian
dates: 1720-1800
noted architects:
Charles Bulfinch
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The Georgian
architectural style, named for Kings George I-IV, was brought to the
New World by English colonists and persisted after the colonies gained
independence. It is characterized by balance of proportions and
restraint in ornamentation, in contrast to the Baroque which preceded
it and the Neo-Classical which came afterward.
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Massachusetts
State House, Boston (1798)
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International
dates: 1950-1980
noted architects:
Mies Van der Rohe
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Following World War
II, skyscrapers turned into towering glass boxes built in what was
known as the International Style. It was a cheap, bland sort of
architecture that reflected 1950s ideals of global unity and societal
conformity.
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United
Nations Secretariat Tower (1953)
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Pan
Am Building, New York (1963)
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Prudential
Tower, Boston (1964)
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Neo-Classical
dates: 1800-1943
noted architects:
John Russell Pope |
After dusting off
the Greek and Roman ideas of government by the people, the early
Americans decided to adopt classical architecture for their civic
buildings. Neo-classical architecture used such ancient motifs as
columns, vaults, and domes, then idealized and, ultimately, overused
them.
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| United
States Capitol, Washington (1800, expanded 1863) |
White
House, Washington (1800) |
Department
of the Treasury, Washington (1842) |
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Grant's
Tomb, New York City (1897)
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New
York Stock Exchange, New York City (1903)
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Jefferson
Memorial, Washington (1943)
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Neo-Gothic
dates: 1846-present
noted architects:
Richard Upjohn, John Augustus Roebling, Cass Gilbert
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The motivations for
reviving gothic architecture, I think, were not idealistic as they were
for Neo-Classical.
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| Trinity
Church, New York City (1846) |
Brooklyn
Bridge, New York City (1883) |
Woolworth
Building, New York City (1913) |
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| Riverside
Church, New York City (1933) |
National
Cathedral, Washington (1990) |
St.
John's Cathedral, New York City (unfinished)
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Postmodern
dates: 1975-present
noted architects:
I.M. Pei, Philip Johnson, Frank Gehry
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If "Modern" refers
to an historical era or a mindset, and not simply "up-to-date," then it
follows that "Postmodern" would come next. While modern International
architecture emphasized uniformity and predictability, anything goes in
postmodernism. The results range from the striking to the ridiculous.
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John
Hancock Tower, Boston (1976)
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Stata
Center, Cambridge (2004)
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