This book is about the design of the faccedil;ade of 51 of Americarsquo;s most extravagant early skyscrapers. Included are the biographies of noted architects and the aristocrats who financed Americarsquo;s first skyscrapers. This book discusses the influences of European aesthetic values in Americamdash;and scandals; rogues and class distinctions. Interpretations by contemporary critics are sprinkled throughout the text. Woven throughout the book are inquiries about the validity of Greek and Roman mythologies and their relationships to ldquo;modernrdquo; America and its spirit of invention and progress. Foreign traditions were challenged by some architects but then accepted by most. Why was it necessary for the long-dead hero of a faraway civilization to be included on the faccedil;ade of a newly invented American skyscraper? This book tells why.
#1516073 in eBooks 2013-03-01 2013-03-01File Name: B00BURPHN2
Review
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Five StarsBy Customerso sool0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Four StarsBy Andrzej Baranowskiimportant; deeply moving document on how to save architecture from the trap of selfishness and commodification.