International Style
International Style Soundex Code I536
Wikipedia page about the International style
The term International Style first came into use via a 1932 exhibition at New York City's Museum of Modern Art, curated by Hitchcock and Johnson, Modern Architecture - International Exhibition, which declared and labelled the architecture of the early 20th century as the “International Style”.
Glass and steel, in combination with usually less visible reinforced concrete, are the characteristic materials of the construction. With the surge in the growth in cities in the first half of the twentieth century, particularly after World War Two, the International Style provided an easily achievable style option for vast-scale urban development projects, "cities within cities", intended to maximize the amount of floor space for a given site, while attempting to convince local planners, politicians and the general public that the development would bring much-needed wealth to the city while, on the other hand, rejecting the proposal would lead to the development being taken to a different, competing city.
There are few pre-World War II examples in Chicago--most were built after 1950--although a handful can be found in Hyde Park, South Shore, and West Town.
The most common characteristics of International Style buildings are said to be:
horizontal proportions
emphasis on broad, flat walls
windows wrapping around corners
flat roofs
rectilinear forms
light, taut plane surfaces that have been completely stripped of applied ornamentation and decoration
open interior spaces
a visually weightless quality engendered by the use of cantilever construction
