The Emergence of Modernism in Architecture and its Influence on Skyscrapers in the 1920s

Introduction

In the early 20th century modernism emerged, a style of architecture which responded to advances in technology and changes in society, resulting in the rational use of materials to reduce ornamentation, and decoration and to promote the openness of structures. This movement was dominated by architect Louis Sullivan’s view that “Form follows function”, designing buildings around the essential needs of the building which then dictates the form.

This essay aims to investigate the effects of the 1920s on the architectural design of skyscrapers, comparing the first skyscraper, the Home Insurance Building in Chicago in 1884 to the Chrysler Building in New York in 1930. Influences, events, technologies, and society’s demands on buildings will be focused on during this Modernist period.

The skyscraper was a radical development in the Modernist period which showcased both advancing technology and design. America was the birthplace of skyscrapers and was deemed as an American legacy which justifies the importance of this topic choice.

A Brief Description of the Home Insurance Building

The Home Insurance Building located in Chicago, designed by architect William Le Baron Jenney in 1884 was named the first skyscraper It was originally a 10-story office building, 41.2 m high, constructed with a skeleton of cast iron and steel beams, using wrought iron girders where cast iron shelves were bolted, carrying most of the weight of the external masonry cladding. 

Home Insurance Company of New York headquarters with its main function to store all the investment records, claims, and payments statistics. Construction was halted as city officials had concerns over its safety as it was the first precedent skyscraper. The building eventually opened in 1885. An additional two further floors were added in 1891 and the building was later demolished in 1931. The building became an example of the Chicago School of Architecture to educate aspiring architects in the same manner of Bauhaus, named the “Commercial Style of Architecture”.

Theoretical Background

This section looks at the theoretical background which supported the design of the first skyscraper in 1884 and the events that took place changing the design capabilities and attitudes in the later reviewed Chrysler Building in 1930. The ways in which the 1920s affected skyscrapers and architectural style will be investigated. A summary of these dates and times can be viewed on the timeline on page 1.

Prior to the Home Insurance Building, pre-industrial materials and technology available placed limits on the size and appearance of buildings. During the Industrial Revolution, stronger building materials developed using wrought iron and steel in the 1820s, resulting in buildings growing much larger with a thinner form. This can be seen in the Home Insurance Building, weighing 1/3 of a masonry building of a similar size. Fireproofing systems were designed to protect the iron structure from melting by covering them with materials such as oak, concrete, plaster, and terracotta tiles in 1874. The first passenger elevator was designed by Elisha Otis in 1857, allowing ease of movement above five stories. Inventions such as filament lighting provided a safer light compared to an open flame and pressurized plumbing enabled water to be made available beyond gravity feed systems, making it possible for the development of skyscrapers to be functional and inhabited.

Chicago needed to be rebuilt after a fire in 1870 which destroyed 2000 acres of the city, leaving thousands homeless. Rebuilding the city offered attractive opportunities.

to many architects and engineers at a time of national economic recession. Chicago could now be rebuilt using pioneering technologies in a modern way, signaling the beginning of a modern time. Skyscrapers were appealing as more floors in a building led to more rental income from the same piece of land and it is cheaper to construct more floors than it is to construct foundations and roofs.

In 1888 Leroy Buffington had devised a new system of wrought iron skeleton framing, riveting connections rather than bolting them, supporting a lighter-weight masonry and glass envelope.

Historically in the 1880s, the terminology skyscraper referred to a habitable building with 10 floors or more, as heights were restricted to 400 feet. However building laws changed in 1880, allowing for much taller designs, so now skyscrapers are classed as having 40 floors or more.

After the Home Insurance Building had been built, the Chicago Tribune newspaper held the first architectural prize-winning competition in 1922 for “the most beautiful and distinctive office building in the world” which influenced future skyscraper designs internationally, with 260 designs submitted, all varying in styles.

In the 1920s there was an economic and building boom, with increasing competition to have the tallest, most impressive buildings. Architects were increasingly influenced by a Gothic revival and the Arts and Crafts movement led by William Morris promoting more handcrafted products and the aesthetic quality of buildings. This emphasized the clear relationship between structure and form, celebrating harmonious values. Modernism during the 1920s favored the Art Deco style, classifying it to be the “International Style”.

Building heights rapidly increased with developments in technology, such as the hydraulic elevator, and developed steel frame bracing, calculating wind moving forces on buildings. This led to the introduction of zoning laws in 1923 to protect the streets from endless rows of buildings rising from the sidewalk, enforcing designs to be stepped back from the sidewalks the taller they became, allowing more light and air at ground level.

In the 1920s there was also a dramatic social and political change. More Americans now lived in cities than in rural areas, the nation’s wealth doubled, with national advertising increasing and chain stores spreading that it was a consumer society, named “The Roaring 20s” with increased social activities, jazz music, cinema, and the globalization of automobiles.

A Brief Description of The Chrysler Building

The 1930s Chrysler Building is situated in New York, designed by architect William Van Allen and Walter Chrysler, the head of the Chrysler Corporation. The building served as the Corporation's headquarters from 1930 until the mid-1950s. It has 77 floors with a total height of 318.9 m. It was the world’s tallest building for 11 months, prior to the erection of the Empire State Building. The Chrysler Building housed ground floor shopping, office space, a private officer's Cloud Club, and an observation platform on the 71st floor.

The Chrysler Building is still the tallest brick building in the world, using 3,826,000 white and grey bricks, horizontally decorating the building, creating a non-loadbearing outer wall, built with 29,961 tonnes of steel with 391,881 rivets and a total of 3826 windows. Famous for its terraced crown, cladded in the steel with a radiating sunburst pattern which is illuminated at night, the building is decorated in Chrysler’s automobile elements from radiator caps, fenders, hubcaps, hydraulic breaks elevators to eagle gargoyles and lavishing its lobby and elevators in wood veneers, showcasing the materials used in his car designs.

Comparison of the Home Insurance Building and the Chrysler Building

Even though these buildings are both skyscrapers, the designs, size, shape, and functions are very different from each other. The Home Insurance Building uses very modest materials with little ornamentation. Built with a steel frame skeleton bolted onto iron floors which carry most of the weight of the external masonry cladding, the building only had one function, to be an office and provide adequate storage.

In contrast, the Chrysler Building, which is 67 floors taller, was designed in a very glamorous Art Deco style, a more romantic backdrop often showcased in films and embracing the new technologies available and the changed planning restrictions. It is also built with a steel frame but in this case, the steel was riveted, and the external walls are non-load bearing. The Chrysler Building was multi-functional, incorporating shops, offices, tourism, and clubs, and was used to showcase automobile products. Keeping up with the competition of the 1920s, it was designed to be the tallest building, no longer in the “Commercial Style” but in the new “International Style”, Indicating the advances in technology and building techniques in a short 46-year period.

Conclusion

Based on the findings it can be concluded that the 1920s did affect the architectural style of skyscrapers. From the first skyscraper in 1884, named the “Commercial Style”, to the more modern “International Style” incorporating Art Deco into the Chrysler Building in 1930. Modernism in architecture has developed, responding to new technologies, increased competition, social changes, and demands on functions of buildings in the 1920s. As technology advanced, so did the way architects designed and built, constantly pushing the limits, from the heights of skyscrapers to the structure and materials they are built with. No longer just an office building, but a status symbol of power and wealth, changing the function of the building to more of an advertising and promotional tool.