American Art Deco: Modernistic Architecture and Regionalism [Hardcover]

Carla Breeze (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 21, 2003

A lavishly illustrated survey of American Art Deco architecture.

Art deco architecture flourished in large cities and small towns throughout America in the 1920s and 1930s. Many of the best examples office buildings, movie theaters, hotels, and churches are still in use. Deco architects, artists, and designers drew on European styles but were most committed to a style that grew organically, as they saw it, from their native soil. Two themes bound Deco buildings and their decorative schemes together: a regional pride that tied buildings to their specific locales and functions, and a growing national symbolism that asserted the buildings' identity as uniquely, independently American. American Art Deco features description sand over 500 color photographs of seventy-five lavish and innovatively designed buildings across the country that have been preserved both outside and in, giving the full scope of this beloved, exciting style.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Carla Breeze is a photographer and the author of, among other works, New York Deco and L.A. Deco. She lives in New York City.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 320 pages
• Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company; 1 edition (July 21, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0393019705
• ISBN-13: 978-0393019704
• Product Dimensions: 11.1 x 10.1 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.8 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #451,019 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

31 of 31 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Glorious deco detail., September 19, 2003

By 

Robin Benson - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: American Art Deco: Modernistic Architecture and Regionalism (Hardcover)

Architectural photographer Carla Breeze has focussed her camera on the best seventy-five Art Deco buildings across the Nation and produced a glorious book of color photos that perfectly captures the style. I really liked this book because she concentrates on the architectural detail of each building (with 450 photos) and in many cases, when this detail is on the outside, it is just not viewable from the ground.

The introduction has an interesting eighteen-page photo section dealing with materials: metal, concrete, terra cotta, mosaic, glass, wood and stone. I found this very useful when looking at the images. Each building starts on the spread (though some have more pages) with a street address and some background text and captions for the photos. The elegant layout does not interfere with the wonderful buildings (a tip of the hat to book designer Robert Wiser). Could anyone take a better photo of the stunning Niagara Mohawk Power headquarters in Syracuse on page seventy-three, I doubt it.

To complement this lovely book have a look at Rediscovering Art Deco USA: A Nationwide Tour of Architectural Delights by Barbara Capitman, Michael Kinerk and Dennis Wilhelm, a methodical nationwide survey, though it concentrates on commercial buildings rather than houses. If you are Deco spotting on the road leave a space in the glove compartment for David Gebhard's excellent The National Trust Guide to Art Deco in America (Preservation Press) if it's not in this book then most likely it's not worth looking at.

***FOR AN INSIDE LOOK click 'customer images' under the cover.

17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Superb book on American Art Deco Architecture, January 6, 2006

By 

Lucas (Jonas Ridge, NC USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: American Art Deco: Modernistic Architecture and Regionalism (Hardcover)

This is the finest book presently available on American Art Deco Architecture, in my opinion. Beautifully photographed and printed in Italy (288 oversize pages in full color), it's a must have if you have an interest in Art Deco and/or Architecture.

All the finest American examples are here, the Niagara Mohawk Power Corporation Building in Syracuse, the Chrysler Building in New York, the Louisiana State Capitol in Baton Rouge, and the Eastern Columbia, Wiltern Theatre/Pellissier and Bullocks Wilshire Buildings in Los Angeles, just to name a few. Most of the buildings are photographed from the outside as well as inside, with numerous detail photographs of doors and moldings.

Carla Breeze is an architectural photographer by trade and she does a superb job with this book, I especially like the fact that perspective control has been used in the photographs (all the vertical lines are parallel) which makes for a much more pleasing look. The sleek and modernistic style of Art Deco, popular during the 1920's and 1930's, has yet to be matched, in my opinion, and Ms. Breeze captures the essence of it skillfully.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars JAZZ AGE BEAUTY, October 9, 2006

By 

Shannon Deason (Houston) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: American Art Deco: Modernistic Architecture and Regionalism (Hardcover)

This is quite simply a fantastic book, the images ara crisp and well presented and the text is easy to navigate. Every major Art Deco building in American is chronicled and presented in its best light. It is such a relief that so many of these great buildings have survived, unlike many other architectural styles, Art Deco has always had a huge throng of admirors, people who loved the style and fought very hard to help preserve it. Everytime I set foot in one of these great buildings, like the Louisiana State Capitol or Radio City Music Hall or the Chrysler Building I am reminded of the shear artistry that went into these buildings and am disappointed at the austere, crass styles that have followed. I highly recommend this wonderful book, frankly it is the best I have seen on American Art Deco.