Architecture: Biographies

A Dictionary of Architecture and Landscape Architecture A Dictionary of Architecture and Landscape Architecture Further reading

Alen, William van

A Dictionary of Architecture and Landscape Architecture | 2000 | | Copyright

Alen, William van (1883–1954). Born in Brooklyn, NYC, he studied at the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris before setting up his practice in NYC. The firm became known for its very tall commercial buildings in which the Classical allusims to base, shaft, and capital were abandoned. Van Alen's most celebrated work is the Chrysler Building, NYC (1928–30), a monument not only to Walter P. Chrysler (1875–1940), but also to corporate advertising. The Art Deco upper part of this skyscraper incorporates eagle-head and radiator-cap gargoyles as well as a series of semicircular forms recalling hub-caps.

Bibliography

Bletter & and Robinson (1975);
Nat. Inst. for Arch. Education (1964);
Placzek (ed.) (1982)

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JAMES STEVENS CURL. "Alen, William van." A Dictionary of Architecture and Landscape Architecture. 2000. Encyclopedia.com. 1 Jun. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

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JAMES STEVENS CURL. "Alen, William van." A Dictionary of Architecture and Landscape Architecture. 2000. Retrieved June 01, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O1-AlenWilliamvan.html

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van Alen, William

A Dictionary of Architecture and Landscape Architecture | 2000 | | Copyright

van Alen, William (1882–1954). See Alen.

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Pick a style below, and copy the text for your bibliography.

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JAMES STEVENS CURL. "van Alen, William." A Dictionary of Architecture and Landscape Architecture. 2000. Encyclopedia.com. 1 Jun. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

JAMES STEVENS CURL. "van Alen, William." A Dictionary of Architecture and Landscape Architecture. 2000. Encyclopedia.com. (June 1, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O1-vanAlenWilliam.html

JAMES STEVENS CURL. "van Alen, William." A Dictionary of Architecture and Landscape Architecture. 2000. Retrieved June 01, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O1-vanAlenWilliam.html

Learn more about citation styles

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