Chrysler Building
Chrysler Building,
in midtown Manhattan, New York City, at Lexington Ave. between 42d and 43d St. The ultimate art decoart decoor art moderne
, term that designates a style of design that originated in French luxury goods shortly before World War I and became ubiquitously and internationally popular during the 1920s and 30s.
..... Click the link for more information. -style skyscraperskyscraper,
modern building of great height, constructed on a steel skeleton. The form originated in the United States. Development of the Form
Many mechanical and structural developments in the last quarter of the 19th cent. contributed to its evolution.
..... Click the link for more information. , it was commissioned by Walter P. ChryslerChrysler, Walter Percy
, 1875–1940, American industrialist, founder of the Chrysler Corp., b. Wamego, Kans. He began as a machinist's apprentice and rose within the industry to become vice president in charge of operations at General Motors in 1919.
..... Click the link for more information. , designed by William Van Alen, and built in 1926–30. For about a year, until the completion (1931) of the Empire State BuildingEmpire State Building,
in central Manhattan, New York City, on Fifth Ave. between 33d St. and 34th St. It was designed by the firm of Shreve, Lamb, and Harmon and built in 1930–31.
..... Click the link for more information. , the Chrysler was the world's tallest building. Comprised of 77 stories and 1,048 ft (319 m) tall, this steel-framed office building is a stepped tower with two primary setbacks. It is topped by a series of gleaming, gradually diminishing arches clad in stainless chromium-nickel steel, pierced by narrow triangular windows and surmounted by a slim 185-ft (56-m) stainless spire. The building also features ornaments of the same steel, including enormous stylized eagle heads, pineapples, and automobile-related designs. Its lobby is an art deco extravaganza of marble, chrome, and fresco.
Bibliography
See studies by N. Shivers (1996) and D. Stravitz (2002); N. Messier, The Art Deco Skyscraper in New York (1983).