Millions of visitors flock to New York each year to witness the excitement of Wall Street, famous for its shoulder-to-shoulder Deco towers jostling for prominence above the canyon like streets. Skyscraper Rivals is the first book to examine the architecture of Wall Street between the wars through an amazing array of contemporary and archival images and an informed discussion of the financial, geographical, and historical forces that shaped this district. The book focuses on the AIG Building—once known as the Cities Service Building—and three other major towers in the financial district, in their race to be the tallest, the most modern, and the most lavish. We meet the tycoons who paid for these structures, the architects who designed them, the workers who labored in them, and the artists and photographers who portrayed them. The economics of skyscraper construction and the real-estate market of Wall Street are explained; also included are illuminating details and anecdotes surrounding each building's history. An essay by Carol Willis, director of New York's Skyscraper Museum and author of Form Follows Finance, provides an introduction.
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Book Description
Editorial Reviews
About the Author
Carol Willis is founding director of the Skyscraper Museum in New York City.
Daniel M. Abramson is an assistant professor of art history at Tufts University who has written extensively on another financial structure, John Soane's Bank of England.
Daniel M. Abramson is an assistant professor of art history at Tufts University who has written extensively on another financial structure, John Soane's Bank of England.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Production values (pictorially/editorially) are fantastic.,
By A Customer
This review is from: Skyscraper Rivals (Hardcover)
Coincidentally, I also am in Somerville, MA. I happened upon this only because it was displayed prominently in a local Cambridge institution in Harvard Square on top of a stack of new architecture and art books that I passed by just browsing. I probably buy more computer-related books (not many at all) than architecture these days, but after looking through this I easily decided to buy it then and there. Two buildings I never previously knew existed, but are richly and lovingly documented (right down to the oddball uniforms the staff had to wear during that period in time). Equal parts historical reference and architectural anthology of the two structures. It currently occupies the top shelf of my living room bookcase.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Great Book on Skyscrapers,
By A Customer
This review is from: Skyscraper Rivals (Hardcover)
Daniel Abramson is a first-class writer who beautifully handles a large and interesting subject. Hundreds of photos make the book highly accessible. The text perfectly complements the photographs. Outstanding.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Wonders of Wall Street,
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This review is from: Skyscraper Rivals (Hardcover)
What a wonderful book, the vintage black and white photos are amazing. I found this book so interesting, I had no idea about this wonderful story. I recommend this book on so many levels. If you enjoy great vintage photos, interesting history, and New York..all of which I do. This books makes you appreciate the beauty of Art Deco skyscrapers and makes you sad that the more modern buildings don't even compare. I commend the authors on reviving this wonderful history and for providing wonderful vintage photos of a more stylish past.
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Front Cover | Front Flap | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Back Flap | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
Inside This Book
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First Sentence:
THE SKYSCRAPER EXPLOSION IN NEW YORK'S FINANCIAL DISTRICT OF THE late 1920s and early 1930s revolutionized the Lower Manhattan skyline. Read the first page Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
skyscraper rivals, four major towers, area skyscrapers, skyscraper planning, skyscraper owners, financial district skyline, trapezoidal base, riveting gangs, observation gallery, aluminum railings, pyramidal cap, skyscraper architecture, frameless windows, skyscraper architects, bank halls, skyscraper construction, corporate suites, skyscraper building, penthouse floors, tower floors, observation lounge Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Wall Street, New York, Irving Trust, Art Deco, The Manhattan Company, Pine Street, Broad Street, Ralph Walker, East River, University of Oklahoma Libraries, Western History Collections, Yasuo Matsui, Architectural Forum, Cunard Building, Ely Jacques Kahn, William Street, Exchange Place, Van Vleck, Woolworth Building, Berenice Abbott, Benjamin Wistar Morris, Standard Oil Building, World War, Bankers Trust Building, Exterior Expression New!
Books on Related Topics | Concordance | Text Stats Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | Front Flap | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Back Flap | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
THE SKYSCRAPER EXPLOSION IN NEW YORK'S FINANCIAL DISTRICT OF THE late 1920s and early 1930s revolutionized the Lower Manhattan skyline. Read the first page Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
skyscraper rivals, four major towers, area skyscrapers, skyscraper planning, skyscraper owners, financial district skyline, trapezoidal base, riveting gangs, observation gallery, aluminum railings, pyramidal cap, skyscraper architecture, frameless windows, skyscraper architects, bank halls, skyscraper construction, corporate suites, skyscraper building, penthouse floors, tower floors, observation lounge Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Wall Street, New York, Irving Trust, Art Deco, The Manhattan Company, Pine Street, Broad Street, Ralph Walker, East River, University of Oklahoma Libraries, Western History Collections, Yasuo Matsui, Architectural Forum, Cunard Building, Ely Jacques Kahn, William Street, Exchange Place, Van Vleck, Woolworth Building, Berenice Abbott, Benjamin Wistar Morris, Standard Oil Building, World War, Bankers Trust Building, Exterior Expression New!
Books on Related Topics | Concordance | Text Stats Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | Front Flap | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Back Flap | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
Citations (learn more)
This book cites 49
books:
See all 49 books this book cites
3
books
cite this book:
- Real Estate: Aspen Roadmap Law Course Outline (Aspen Roadmap Law Course Outlines) by Robin Paul Malloy in Back Matter (1), Back Matter (2), and Back Matter (3)
- Delirious New York: A Retroactive Manifesto for Manhattan by Rem Koolhaas in Back Matter (1), Back Matter (2), and Back Matter (3)
- Building the Empire State (Norton Book for Architects and Designers) by Carol Willis in Back Matter (1), Back Matter (2), and Back Matter (3)
- Empire State Building by Carol Willis in Back Matter (1), and Back Matter (2)
- The East River (Images of America) by The Greater Astoria Historical Society on page 5, and page 115
See all 49 books this book cites
- Higher: A Historic Race to the Sky and the Making of a City by Neal Bascomb in Back Matter (1), and Back Matter (2)
- The Ethos of Rhetoric (Studies in Rhetoric/Communication) by Michael J. Hyde on page 195, and page 197
- The American Skyscraper: Cultural Histories by Roberta Moudry in Back Matter
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