I'm not sure how to answer the first part of this email, but for the record, I didn't mean that the Cira Center was Art Deco, I just meant that it would be a prominent feature on that approach to West Philadelphia.
I could tackle the first part by pointing out some "what style is it?" resources, but I guess I'm not up for a discussion of semantics on this. I think of Deco as a broad stylistic category including the clean lines of the Convention Hall and the geometric friezes of the Post Office, but if you want to call the train station "classical revival" that is certainly fine by me. ELISABETH DUBIN Hillier ARCHITECTURE One South Penn Square, Philadelphia, PA 19107-3502 | T 215 636-9999 | F 215 636-9989 | hillier.com -----Original Message----- From: William H. Magill [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Sent: Monday, January 03, 2005 2:08 PM To: Dubin, Elisabeth Cc: University City List Subject: Re: [UC] UCHS and Civic Center demolitions: a review On 03 Jan, 2005, at 10:51, Dubin, Elisabeth wrote: > When one comes toward West Philadelphia over the Schuylkill, there are� > three salient�things to look at as one crosses the bridge: the > triumvirate of art deco buildings comprised by the post office, the > train station, and the old convention hall.� There will soon be a > fourth - the Cira Center. What on earth is Art Deco about 30th Street Station? (Other than the construction period.) Greek Revival, I might buy, but Art Deco? Even the interior is more WPA than Art Deco, the exception being the massive chandeliers. There's a great image of 30th Street Station here: http://www.chesco.com/~apu/prr/prr_30.html Various descriptions of the structure describe it as evolving from the "neo-classical" popular when the building was started to the Beaux-Arts when it was completed, but nobody calls it Art Deco. For that matter, I'd have to look again at the Civic Center and Municipal Auditorium buildings ... I don't recall any feature that says to me "Art Deco," other than "when" they were built. (Again, excepting some of the interior lighting fixtures.) The same for the Post Office building -- it is clearly "Government Monument" in style; yeah the interior lighting fixtures and elevators are probably technically Art Deco, but even they are obscured by the massive granite and marble expanses between them. The 30th Street Post Office doesn't even have as much style as does the 8th and Market Post Office. I don't think any of the three remind me of Art Deco half as much as the old WPEN or KYW Studios (now Temple U) in Center City. And yes, the lines of Cira Centre evoke Art Deco streamlining, but again, those have more in common with WPEN and the old KYW studios than with either the train station or post office, except for size. I can't help but wonder what the Building's architects would think of their design being called "Art Deco." T.T.F.N. William H. Magill [EMAIL PROTECTED] [EMAIL PROTECTED] [EMAIL PROTECTED] [EMAIL PROTECTED] ---- You are receiving this because you are subscribed to the list named "UnivCity." To unsubscribe or for archive information, see <http://www.purple.com/list.html>.
