It was the dawn of the 20th century and a new generation emerged from the ravages of the first World War and the terrors of a vicious influenza pandemic. They craved innovation and excitement. They sought bold adventure and sumptuous excess and propelled themselves with lightning speed into the future, even as they embraced and modernized the remnants of ancient civilizations, from Mesopotamia to Babylon and beyond.
Along the way, they created some of the most remarkable, distinctive, and acoustically perfect buildings in human history. They were the architects of the illustrious and inimitable Art Deco movement, and they have left an indelible imprint not only on metropoles, towns, and cities around the world but also on the practice of acoustic design in architecture.
What is Art Deco?
Before we take a closer look at some of the most resonant Art Deco buildings in the world, it’s helpful to understand what, exactly, Art Deco is and how it came to be. The term refers to an aesthetic originating in France in the early 20th century and strongly shaping fashion, interior design, landscape engineering, and, especially, architecture. Indeed, some of the most iconic buildings in the United States, including New York’s famed Empire State Building and Chrysler Building, are preeminent examples of the Art Deco movement.
Art Deco is far more than a design aesthetic. It is a movement that is at once deeply rooted in its own unique historical moment, even as it appeals to ambitions and sentiments that are timeless. And this, perhaps more than anything else, helps to explain its enduring and seemingly universal appeal.
The aesthetic is distinctly modern, representing a concerted push toward innovation and reimagining among generations of architects and designers who came of age amid the tumult of successive international crises. From the outbreak of the first truly global war to the emergence of the equally devastating Spanish influenza, the rising generations were reeling from the loss of nearly a third of the younger population to illness or to combat.
In the aftermath of such global trauma, architects and designers sought a clean break from the traditions and mores of previous generations, the tastes, values, and standards of their fathers’ and grandfathers’ era. The masters of Art Deco embraced the principles of Futurism and heralded the promise of accelerating technological and scientific innovation. At the same time, they also revived the aesthetics of ancient civilizations, incorporating them in highly stylized and distinctly modern form. The result is a striking amalgam of the very new and the very old, of the natural and the industrial, that is wonderfully, wildly, and unmistakably Art Deco.
The Acoustics of Art Deco
Art Deco architecture features an array of characteristics that make it appealing and recognizable. It is known for its sleek lines, verticality, use of insets, recesses, and domes, and blending of natural and manmade materials, with a heavy use of marble and terracotta stone, composite tiles and mosaics, and sleek chrome and stainless steel.
From an acoustics standpoint, each of these elements contributes to the creation of unique, and uniquely remarkable, soundscapes. The porosity of terracotta and composite tiles, for example, counterbalance the impermeability of marble and steel surfaces to create a sound environment that blends sound wave absorption and diffusion, resulting in distinct zones of sound throughout the built space.
Likewise, the soaring height of so many Art Deco buildings is counteracted by the frequent use of low domed and vaulted ceilings, inset windows, and recessed storeys. These curved lines and recessed walls and ceilings help to break up and diffuse soundwaves, preventing echoes and reverberations and minimizing ambient noise while at the same time fostering ideal conditions for voices and other wanted sounds to carry crisply and clearly through the space, as at the famed Whispering Gallery in New York’s Grand Central Terminal, designed by Charles A. Reed and Allen H. Stern.
Edward Durrell Stone, Radio City Music Hall
Few buildings so seamlessly combine quintessential Art Deco style with superb acoustic design quite like New York City’s magnificent Radio City Music Hall. Designed by famed architect, Edward Durrell Stone, Radio City Music Hall’s main auditorium seats over 5,900 guests and features a domed ceiling, lush carpeting and curtained booths, and what may be the largest stage curtain in the world, weighing in at more than 6,000lbs.
At the back of the massive auditorium presides the “Horn Room,” today outfitted with the latest and greatest sound technologies to engineer the ideal soundscape for every event, be it a live concert, a dance or theater performance, a film screening, or an awards ceremony. But the acoustic marvels aren’t confined to the auditorium alone. The low-slung ceiling of the ticket lobby lends an intimacy to the sound environment, enabling multiple quiet, discrete conversations to occur simultaneously. The progression from the cozy lobby to the Grand Foyer, with its towering ceilings and immense footprint, is more than just visually dazzling. It also amplifies, literally and figuratively, the sound environment. The Foyer’s massive, custom-designed carpet absorbs sound and muffles ambient noise, particularly the reverberations of sound waves bouncing off the tall, mirrored side walls or reflecting back from the monumentally high ceiling.
Alfred Fellheimer, Central Terminal, Buffalo, New York
New York City’s Grand Central Terminal isn’t the state’s only railway terminal to masterfully blend Art Deco aesthetics and acoustic design excellence. Buffalo’s Central Terminal, designed by Alfred Fellheimer, boasts an array of innovations engineered to maximize the Art Deco appeal while minimizing the acoustic liabilities that might otherwise have been amplified by the hard surfaces, soaring ceilings, and sharp angles of their stylized geometric designs.
Among the most significant of the terminal’s innovations is the integration of Akoustolith, a composite form of stone tile designed for its acoustic properties. The porosity of the material enabled the material’s creators, Raphael Guastavino and William Sabine, to maintain the distinctive verticality and the sharp edges of the Art Deco style without subjecting occupants to a chaos of echoes and reverberations. In the Buffalo Central Terminal, Fellheimer strategically deployed Akoustolith tiles on the tall, straight exterior facade and the low, vaulted dome ceilings of the interior to reduce ambient noise while maintaining the beauty and functionality of the space.
Wirt C. Rowland, Guardian Building, Detroit
Constructed between 1928 and 1929, the Guardian Building in Detroit, Michigan, remains one of the boldest and most celebrated examples of Art Deco design. The brainchild of the renowned architect Wirt C. Rowland, this “Cathedral of Finance” stands as one of the most beautiful office buildings in the world.
Its straight, towering exterior, with bright, oversized terracotta bricks and granite base, dominates the city skyline. Inside, the monumental foyers feature marble floors and staircases and are topped by tall, vaulted ceilings. Glass mosaics, ornate tiles, and decorative reliefs adorn the walls and ceilings, while a filigreed monel metal screen separates the banking hall from the main lobby.
These features, though, do more than enhance the visual appeal and Art Deco flavor of the space. The tactile decorative elements break up the surface planes of walls and ceilings, increasing the diffusion of sound waves on marble, metal, and steel surfaces that are too hard to absorb them. At the same time, the interspersing of small domes and vaulted ceilings in entryways and lobbies supports discrete conversation, creating zones of sound through the strategic redirection and amplification of sound waves.
FSorb’s Customizable Solutions
Though the Art Deco aesthetic emerged more than a century ago, its influence on architects and designers is as strong as ever. FSorb’s wide range of customizable acoustic solutions makes it possible to achieve your most ambitious Art Deco ambitions while optimizing the sound environment of your space.
Indeed, FSorb’s highly customizable acoustic solutions enable designers, architects, and engineers to optimize the soundscape while unleashing Art Deco flare, including the geometric patterns and vibrant colors characteristic of the style. FSorb’s stylish and functional sound treatments are featured in public buildings, schools, offices, and homes across the globe and are perfectly engineered to meet every aesthetic and satisfy the most discerning Art Deco connoisseur.
For more information on our screen designs, please email info@fsorb.com for our tiered pricing and lead times. Contact your local FSorb representative today to explore the full range of acoustic panels, clouds, baffles, and more in all colors, shapes, sizes, and styles to turn your next commercial or residential acoustic design project into an Art Deco lover’s dream.
At FSorb, we are motivated by improving human health and do so by creating eco-friendly acoustic products. Our mission is to help designers build beautiful spaces that reduce excess ambient noise while calming the human nervous system. With over 25 years in the acoustic business we stand behind FSorb as a durable, environmentally friendly, and low-cost product. If you want an acoustic solution that is safe to human health at an affordable price, then we are your resource.
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