art deco society of washington 2012.pdf · by the art deco society of washington, p.o. 42722,...

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ART DECO SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON

In This Issue:

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Industrial Designers Dress Woman of Future 3 Deco Discoveries: A Deco Capital in the Caribbean 6 Art Deco Now and Then: The Edison Hotel New York 15

Art Deco Now and Then: The Barclay-Vesey Building 27

ADSW

Board of Directors

President—Jim Linz

Vice President—Vacant

Treasurer—Lou Simchowitz

Secretary—Barbara Varvaglione

At Large Members:

Linda Lyons

Karyn Jarboe

Jonathan Mazur

Steve Knight

Isabelle Yerger

Ashley Amidon

Silver Spring—Richard Striner

Visit us on the web at

www.adsw.org

Webmaster—Jim Linz

Wanna Be a Member?

Join online at

www.adsw.org

Or call 202-298-1100

And request an

application

Trans-Lux

Trans-Lux is published four times a year

by the Art Deco Society of Washington,

P.O. 42722, Washington, D.C. 20015-

2722. Phone (202) 298-1100.

ADSW is a non-profit organization in-

corporated to foster public awareness

and appreciation of the Art Deco period

through volunteer actions to preserve the

era’s decorative, industrial, architec-

tural, and cultural arts.

Editor/Publisher—Jim Linz

Book Reviews Editor—Vacant

Calendar Editor—Vacant

Contributors: Jim Linz Barbara Billauer Bailey Clive Foss

Trans-Lux is looking for a few good writers. Please submit manuscripts and photographs to Jim Linz, PO Box 221011, Chantilly, VA 20153. Please enclose a self-addressed envelope for return of material. Sub-mission of letters/articles implies the right to edit and publish. ©2012 ADSW

On the Cover: Life Magazine, January 30, 1939 Donald Deskey design for the Woman of Future “Wardrobes of Chiffon Units for Perfect Future Bodies”

http://www.adsw.org

http://www.adsw.org

TRANS-LUX VOLUME 30 NO. 3

Industrial designers dress woman of future (Excerpted from Life January 30, 1939)

Nine industrial designers, streamliners of ships, trains and numerous me-chanical gadgets of the 20th Century were invited by Vogue to create fitting garments for ladies of the future. The photos below show the gar-ments featured in Vogue‟s February 1939 issue and displayed at the New York World‟s Fair. In their forward flight of fancy most of the designers envisage men and women with scientifically beautified bodies which never need be con-cealed. Antennae, wires and batteries will cool and heat them when not in air-conditioned places. Stitching will be replaced by some cementing or molding process. Materials will be sprayed into molds to shape the dresses. Twenty-first Century man will be a product of a Great Revolt against coats, buttons, lacings, collar buttons, neckties. He will look like the man at the bottom of page 5.

Walter Dorwin Teague Near-nudity, prophesized by Mr. Teague for the future, will be achieved by transparent or translucent chemical materials.

Egmont Arens Glass yarn dress in white, a Pliofilm (rubber product) veil and belt with traf-fic reflectors are used for this bridal outfit.


Russel wright Gilded aluminum foil, untar-nishable, waterproof, insu-lating, is the new material for this evening wrap. Note electric headlight.

Henry Dreyfuss Sprayed metal tendrils, transparent net, satin, for women of the future who will still want to be beautiful dolls in the evening.

Raymond Loewy Detachable parts will make dresses of the future suit-able in both hot and cold climates for women who travel fast and far.


Joseph b platt Like an electric blanket, this wool-fibre coat, which is woven with fine wire, will be heated from the batteries in the pockets.

George Sakier Wide conditioning belt to re-ceive high frequency radiations will be skirtless costumes of women of the future.

Gilbert Rohde Antennae hat to receive and send radio waves, disposable socks, one-piece transparent yarn suit designed for man of future.


Deco Discoveries:

A Deco Capital in the Caribbean

By Clive Foss

People headed for the Dominican Republic‟s main attraction, its pristine beaches and lavish resorts, aren‟t likely to have Art Deco on their minds, and even those who stop in Santo Domingo, the capital, are going to look at the magnificent colonial architecture - the oldest in the New World - rather than expecting to find anything more modern of interest. But this city has an impressive collection of Deco buildings thanks to a disaster and a dictator. At midday on 3 September 1930 a raging hurricane struck the heart of Santo Domingo, with winds rising to 180 miles per hour. The power of na-ture overwhelmed the works of man: at noon, there were 10,000 houses in the city; by 3PM only 400 were left standing, among them most of the solid works of the conquistadores. The city had almost disappeared; the devas-tation was far worse than New Orleans suffered in 2005. Just two weeks before, a new president, Rafael Trujillo, had been inaugu-rated after winning a rather dubious election. He moved to the rescue of the stricken capital with incredible speed and efficiency, getting the streets cleaned, removing the rubble and laying the path for the reconstruction that soon began. The popularity he gained, combined with removal of pos-sible rivals and creation of a new political party, enabled him to establish a dictatorship that would last thirty years. During most of this time, the re-gime favored Art Deco which was considered as an expression of the mod-

ernization Trujillo claimed to be achieving. As a consequence, prime exam-ples of the style are often much later here than elsewhere, continuing through the 1940‟s and even beyond. Since reconstruction after the hurricane took place at a time when Art Deco was very much in vogue for public and private buildings, Santo Domingo has a whole range of examples of the style, most of them unpretentious houses and apartments, with some larger commercial blocks and a few public buildings - nothing really grand, but much to enliven the urban land-scape, especially in the old colonial city.

The Plavime Building (shops below, apartments above) on the main com-mercial street, Calle del Conde, was completed in 1936, and is one of the


most locally admired structures for its harmonious design. The main facade has deep-set loggias with decorated square columns and is crowned with a row of finials. It makes a contrast with the stairwell tower which bears more characteristically Deco elements in the small pilasters, chevrons and cas-cading geometric design that rise above its small round balcony.


The contemporary Monte de Piedad building, originally the National Sta-tistics Office, displays the bright coloring prevalent in the city. Its Deco character appears in the strong verticality of its tall square pilasters, bal-anced horizontally by the projecting frames of the deep-set windows.

One design that crops up frequently in Santo Domingo is the 3-4 story commercial/office building built on a chamfered plan - that is, with one corner of a rectangle cut away to provide a distinctive entrance facade and allow the typically Deco symmetry of wings spreading out from the center. Two examples, both on the main commercial street, will illustrate the variety possible with this plan. The rectilinear Savinon Building of 1946, formerly home of the national lottery, features an entrance facade whose windows are flanked by fluted pilasters between tall square attached


columns, all rising to a stylized drum with glass blocks and a fluted small dome. In the wings, a concrete latticework admits the air while protecting against the fierce Dominican sun. This is arguably the most striking example of the capital‟s Deco heritage.

Not far away is the very different Gonzalez Ramos Building of the 1940s, which presents a similar plan, but with sensuous curves defined but only partially offset by strong unadorned pilasters.


The zigzag aluminum frames of the heavily outlined casement windows provide another kind of balance in this sophisticated structure.

Another eye-catcher is the Telecommunications building designed in 1945 by the same husband and wife team, Octavio y Gloria Iglesias Molina, who were responsible for the Savinon building. This is similar in its strong verticality marked by pilasters projecting between the narrow windows and its entrance facade enhanced by projecting forward and rising above the rest of the building. It is a good example of the stripped-down classi-cism that flourished almost everywhere in the 1930‟s.

Holiday Party Celebrating

ADSW’S 30th AnniverSAry

Greenbelt’S 75th AnniverSAry

Sunday, December 16, 2012, 2-5 PM

Greenbelt Community Center

Co-sponsored by Friends of the Greenbelt Museum

Details Coming Soon


That was also the era of the Streamline Moderne, represented here, among many others, by the Hotel Discovery whose deep curving wrap-around balconies, half embedded columns of the ground floor and port-hole windows of the stairwell express the idiom of the time.

Beside all this is a mass of more humble buildings, sometimes only with a detail, like rising vertical elements (pilasters or simple colored stripes) or curved balconies to mark them as products of a Deco age.


Chamfered doorways, clusters of small half columns or zigzag supporting brackets are also signs of the times. You can find Art Deco of one shape or another in virtually every street of the old city, and plenty beyond its walls.


So, if you find yourself with a stop in Santo Domingo on the way to a beach holiday (it‟s also a convenient jumping-off point for Cuba), take an

hour or two to wander around the colonial city; if you‟re decophile, you won‟t be disappointed.


Art Deco Now and Then:

The Hotel Edison New York

Barbara Billauer Bailey

New York First

When Washingtonians think of Art Deco Landmarks in their backyard, they don‟t think skyscrapers. Instead, what usually comes to mind is the Carlyle Hotel or the Kennedy Warren Apartment Complex. With the ten story limit on the DC skyline, the hallmark Art Deco-set-back skyscraper never had a chance to dominate or dramatize the Nation‟s Capital. New Yorkers, on the other hand, conjure Radio City Music Hall, along with the great sky-grazing edifices: Rockefeller Center, The Chrysler Building – or the Empire State Building, perhaps complete with visions of King Kong holding Fay Wray -- with Bauhaus lettering on the movie poster.

The façade of the Hotel Edison as originally constructed still stands today. Geometric orna-mentation underscores the windows and the tops of setbacks, interspersed with more intri-cate engravings below them, and massive engraves atop the building.


Refurbished lobby of the Landmark Art Deco Hotel Edison in New York City. Art Deco murals of New York City depicting it as it once was line the side walls.


While Art Deco, as a delineated design motif, first began in France and Germany in the early 1900s culminating in the Paris Exhibition of 1925, the art form eventually made its way to the New World, dominating Mi-ami, Florida and New York City– which I shall focus on here -as its Capitals. In the years preceding the Great Depression, New York City embarked on a building spree. Between 1928 and 1930, most of its great Art Deco buildings were constructed. Some are no longer with us; all that remains are historical memorabilia. But some, thankfully, are alive and well. Amongst the lesser known Art Deco icons is the first Art Deco skyscraper

built in NY , the Barclay-Vesey or Verizon Building, and a landmark N.Y.C. hotel, still functioning and in fine fettle, refurbished in its original Art Deco form, artifacts revived, restored, resurrected or recopied – not surprisingly, perhaps, since if you can‟t find it there, you won‟t find it anywhere.

The skyscraper of the 1930s was alternatively reviled and revered. Some saw it as a break with the past – heralding a new and modern age. Others

saw it as a continuance of an architectural tradition, a view which calmed those fearful of the size and speed the industrial age was foisting on those

New York City, c.1930 An Art Deco Treasure

The 1933 movie KING KONG ends with the following line:

“Oh no, it wasn’t the airplanes. It was beauty that killed the beast.”

The line is the epitaph on the giant ape Kong, shot dead by fighter planes after carrying Fay Wray to the top of the Empire State Build-ing.

What ‘beauty’ are they talking of? Perhaps it was the Art Deco Archi-tecture that landscapes the film? Notice the Art Deco print-face on the bottom of the poster and the Empire State Building in the back-ground.


who lived under its umbrella. This view also allayed the grievances of cor-porate gluttony of erection excess in times of dire economic hardship. (Sound familiar, anyone?). Alternatively, the skyscraper was viewed as a design conceit that maximized land-space use, and hence could almost be called economical. And finally, the skyscraper with its massive façade fur-nished the Art Deco geniuses of the day a palette upon which to cast their imagination and showcase the intersection of geometry, harmony (music) and aesthetics, which to me is the definition of the Art Deco motif. One manifestation of the use of geometry in building design is the step-back, the rectangular representation of narrowing the tops of the buildings as

they reach the apex, a modern rendition of the triangular configuration of the Great Pyramids. Before embarking on our journey of two lesser known Art Deco New York landmarks, here‟s a bit of 1930s wisdom on the skyscraper- the new archi-tectural phenomenon sprouting on the horizon: "Were not even the cathedrals extravagant, fantastic, and a little in-sane? Were they not built less for use than in order that the proud citi-zen might show what his community could do, and may not we be per-mitted to fling our towers into the sky with the same wanton exuber-ance?" ("Skyscrapers") "Just as the rulers and great nobles of Europe, the princes of India, and the long line of Chinese dynasts, used architecture to exalt themselves in their publics' eyes, and as the surest monument to their achieve-ments, so do our industrial rulers act today" (Dewing, "Towers" 593). "If the race itself is a competition in advertising, so, in a manner of speaking , have been all the competitions in tall buildings from the time when Pharaoh vied with Pharaoh matching tomb against tomb, to the pious rivalry of the cathedral builders, each seeking to raise a pointed arch or a spire nearer to God" (Brock). The architect Ralph Walker (who designed the Barclay-Vesey Building) believed that the difference between the great structures of the past and the tall buildings of the twentieth century was the human factor: "Where we have a tall structure that has no relation to death like the pyramids, or to religion like the Parthenon, which was placed on a high elevation to emphasize the position of a goddess we have something of a human need."


The Hotel Edison, New York City

Henry J Knapp was the original archi-tect and designer of the Hotel Edison. He was best known as a theater archi-tect with a flair for using building space to its maximum potential. Along with the

Hotel Edison, he also designed the Win-ter Garden Theater, the Helen Hayes Theater, and many others.

The Edison Hotel, still located at its original site between 46th Street and 47th Street, just west of Broadway, opened its doors in 1931, about the same time as the more famous landmarks, just as the Depression mush-roomed.

Postcards circa 1930s Notice the different set-backs of the façade, the side elevations framing the middle section.

In the postcard below the hotel towers above its neighbors.

The type face combines both modern and baroque lettering.


Perhaps to light imaginations and deter focus on the dire economic situa-tion, the hotel boasted 1,000 guest rooms on 26 floors, three restaurants, and a Grand Ballroom. Thomas Edison, himself, turned on the lights from a remote control switch, while sitting in his home in New Jersey.

The economic downturn resulted in its being the “newest” hotel in New York City until hotel construction resumed in 1957. Commensurate with its status as New York‟s newest hotel, the Edison boasted luxurious modern comforts like radios, private baths, and dining rooms air-conditioned with circulating ice water. In the 1940s as the economy revived, so did the social scene, and the Edi-son became home to the the famous Green Room, where the city's glitterati

spin in their best evening gowns to the live orchestra, enveloped by the glittering lights of Broadway and Times Square around the corner.


Hotel Edison

Now

Façade of the Hotel Edison as it stands today, exactly as it was when first con-structed in 1931. No-tice the step backs and ornamentation atop the battlements.

Henry Jerome was a band leader at the hotel, and instrumental in the

signing of Dorsey Burnette, Johnny Burnett and Paul Burlison to a manage-

ment contract there. Jerome got Johnny a daytime job as an elevator

operator and moved The Rock and Roll Trio to the hotel from the YMCA. In

the early 1950s, "Glorious" Gloria Parker and her Orchestra hosted an

evening broadcast on WOR from the hotel. Parker would open the show

with the glass harp (or musical glasses) and feature the popular Latin

sound on her marimba with her orchestra.

The Copacabana is a few doors down from the Hotel. This is

not the original Copa, which moved several times during its

lifetime. The current location, however, adds to the yester-

year feeling of the hotel as well as its location.


From the moment you enter until the moment you leave you are cosseted in period design. Note the vertical piers alongside the revolving doors- all done in industrial age steel.

This is the entry way to the

elevator bay as The Edison

Hotel stands today.

From the moment one enters,

every detail of the past glory

has been resurrected, and one

feels as if one is entering the

past.

Notice the lights alongside the

mirror and the table on which

the floral display is sitting.


The lobby is a feast for the eyes. Mirrors, lighting, carpets, floral displays – and the famous murals depicting New York City in its Art Deco heyday are true to form. Notice the lighting on the coffee-tables above, the ceiling ornamentation and the under lighting of the floral displays.

At left you see a mural high-lighting the Chrysler Building and Empire State Building. The artist's name is; Arnie Charnick – Scrutiny Studio It sits atop a period piece conso le– remin i s cent o f Jacques Ruhlman‟s French design.


The right side of the lobby as you enter. Notice the four panels of murals, the large urn-lamp as you enter, and the ceiling treatment, com-plete with period lighting.

Below left is a close-up of the left side of the lobby as you enter. The matching urn light in alabaster-like material is a classic form of Art Deco style. Notice, also, the ceiling detail. Below right is a close-up of the right side of the lobby with different mu-rals. A matching urn-shaped light graces the entrance. Notice the wall sconce above the table mounted urn. Several of these wall sconces grace the lobby.


Attention to Detail Hallway lighting (left). Notice the intricate carvings on bays housing the lighting fixtures.

On the right is the hotel‟s rear entry – the gold stair rail is original. Attention is paid to the oval shapes of the mirrors and oblong lighting .

More Attention to detail: Notice type face on clock (located on exit of main lobby), the phones below sitting on an art deco table placed over marble tile floors in a traditional pattern and the lighting fixture and ceiling decal above left.


Columns abut the clock on the exit from the main lobby.

Furniture

The furniture replications are remarkable. Notice below the lobby ar-rangements in Art Deco Aqua and Maroon. You can see also the edging of

the carpet pattern and the mirrored backdrop.

Room Furnishings Many of the rooms boast Art Deco furnishings as well. This suite was en-tirely done in period, with chair, couch, armoires, lamps and night-tables

being true to period – So thoroughly is the ambiance duplicated that one actually feels as if one stepped back in time.


Art Deco Now and Then:

The Barclay-Vesey Building

(now the Verizon Building)2

The very first Art Deco Skyscraper in New York City was the Barclay-Vesey Building, now the Verizon Building, which was completed in 1927. Construction of the concreted, steel and buff-brick structure located at 140 West Street in downtown Manhattan (named after the streets bordering it

on the north and south), began in 1923. On completion it was awarded the New York Architectural League‟s Gold Medal of Honor for expression of the new industrial age.

The set-backs of the Barclay-Vesey building are more or-nate than the Art Deco Sky-scrapers constructed in later years, no doubt a reflection of the cost cutting influence of the Great Depression.

Here, the geometric set-backs themselves contain set-backs, the cornerpieces are set at an angle, and the decorative embellishments are far more intricate. The window shapes vary between rectangular and arched. Notice above the arched window (center left) the angled abutment atop, appearing to contain small

windows of its own.

It also appears as if two color brick was used, highlighting the different elevations.

The architect, Ralph Walker of McKenzie, Voorhees & Gmelin, was heavily influenced by Saarinen‟s Chicago Tribute Entry (see TransLux, June 2011, BP Billauer Bailey, „Art Deco, Then and Now‟), although some call the build-ing „Mayan-influenced.‟ Architect Walker wanted to design a building with dramatic setbacks that would make the edifice an important part of the New York skyline, (it was then located on the water-front) yet would furnish aesthetic enjoyment and drama from close-up and afar.


The rounded entry way al-most reminds one of a mod-ernistic medieval palace. The repetitive geographic motif is evident in the em-bellishments atop the door frame, although the orna-mentation is more baroque in nature – perhaps a throw-back to the art nouveau

aesthetic of the previous perod. The height of the entryway is stellar, typical of Art Deco in its hey-day, and can be determined by comparing it to the puny humans walking past on the right.

An early postcard – At the time the building was built, it was located on the bank of the East River and framed by empty space and blue sky and lots of sunlight. The vista today is quite different, -- the building no longer abuts the River, the area is now densely populated by dozens of of-fice buildings. Notice the plane (same type as found in King Kong) on the right upper right corner. Again, notice the symmetry of the elevation, two lower wings flank a tall center column.


Using the step-back principle, which would become a key element of art deco design (and one used in the design of the Edison Hotel, amongst oth-ers), he succeeded in creating a building that inspired awe as well as aes-thetic appreciation.


This stark artistic rendition of the building, incorporat-ing subtle beacons of light which frame the central tower, casting the top-most portion of the middle sec-tion in deep shadow is very typical of Art Deco photog-raphy of the period, show-casing the angular motif of

the jutting columns in a Gothic glow.

The solid horizontal base and soaring verticals with window bays between vertical piers, reminiscent of Saarinen‟s design, culminate with sculptured „battlements‟ atop. Dramatic setbacks marked by buttresses and sculpture abound, until you reach the top with its limestone detailing and its sculptural work.

Notice the intricate detailing surround-ing the window ledges, almost ap-pearing a concrete-lace work. The circu-lar and S-shaped design is a carry-over from Art Nou-veau, but notice how the ornate design-work is contained within sharply de-

lineated geometric shapes.


Perhaps drawing from the predecessor Art Nouveau aesthetic, the en-trances are decorated with bronze bas-reliefs with a main theme of bells, emblematic of Bell Telephone Company, the first tenant. Walker wanted to employ an ornamental aesthetic that was unique and actually invented the complex foliage design which is interspersed with little babies and animal heads.

In this close up, the art nouveau influ-ences of the engravings are more visi-ble.

Notice, the simple scallops in the under-side of the archway which forms a stark contrast to the intricate design border-ing the entryway. In the center, above the door, is a bell – subtly announcing to all passers-by who dared look up - that this was the home of Bell Telephone.

A view from underneath the vertical piers highlights the almost lacy effect of the sculptured engravings. These are original designs of the architect. In the center you can see a bell, the trademark of Bell Telephone, the build-ings‟ first occupant. At 500 feet tall, with a square footage of 1,200,000 square feet, the

building contained 32 floors, and is another exemplar of economical use of space. Inside, a Guastavino-vaulted arcade with ceiling murals, typical of


the Art Deco period, but adorned in the neo-Romanesque periods runs the length of the Vesey Street Entrance. The lobby features marble walls and other ornate décor including ceiling murals depicting human communication through the ages, from Aztec runners to the telephone.

Renovation and Restoration:

The building sustained extensive damages during the September 11 attack from the collapse the nearby Trade Towers. The Excalibur Bronze Foundry and Petrillo Stone restored the intricate ornamental detail in the facade and in the lobby. The facade restoration involved carving motif designs in the ornamental limestone, and restoring the 10 frescoes in the lobby.

Hypodermic needles were used to inject acrylic resin to restore the paint and plaster on the lobby murals. On the executive office floors, barrel-vaulted ceilings and plaster friezes were restored, William F. Collins AIA Architects was the lead architec-tural firm working on the resto-ration, while Tishman Interiors managed the project.

While the building‟s thick heavy masonry in the infill exterior walls, which enclosed the building‟s steel frame, provided extra strength and absorbed much of the energy from debris hitting the building, nonetheless, damage to the east and south sides was ex-tensive. It took three years to renovate and refurbish -- to the tune of almost one and a half billion dollars.

About the Author Barbara Billauer Bailey, a retired lawyer is the author of Baronial Bedrooms, The Kama Sutra of Grand Design. She can be reached at [email protected]

art deco society of washington 2012.pdf · by the art deco society of washington, p.o. 42722,...

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