Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1930-09-27
MODERN BUILDING
DESIGN PRACTICAL
Present Generation Cares
Little for Tradition, as
SkyScrapers Reveal.
BY WILLIAM ORR LUDLOW,
Fellow Of the American Institute Of Architects

BY WILLIAM ORR LUDLOW,
Fellow of the American Institute Of Architects
Is modernistic architecture soon 70
diSplace the prevailing styles?
Do colonial, Elizabethan, Italian
Renaissance now belong to the past in
this country and few years hence will
they simply indicate buildings that are
old fashioned? Shall we soon refer to
! them with the complacent superiority
with which we mention Victorian
Gothic, French nansard, cupola and
band saw architecture?
| Now, this is a very interesting cues
ton to most of us, and an exceedingly
important question to those who are
about to build, or who are anxious about
the sale value of their homes or other
buildings.
Cares Little for Tradition.
In attempting an answer. let us admit
the fact that the present generation
cares little for tradition. We are be-
| ginning to do things now more because
they are reasonable than because I'VE
always have done them that way" To
be sure, 1t leaves us in a position of I'M
certainty about what we shall be doing
tomorrow, but, after all, adventure is
the only way of progress.
We must admit, too, that in this INA =,
chine age" efficiency is making us more
materiaiistic and less responsive to such
intangible things as sentiment, tradi-
ton. beauty. These new standards have
! even now affected nearly everything
business methods. habits, customs,
| ethics, religious views, music, art, all
in greater or less degree. and that they
will affect our architecture is quite sure.
Architecture Revolutionixed.
Indeed. one has but to look at our
recent skyscrapers to see that the ar
chitecture of our big buildings has not
only been affected. 1t has been revolu-
tiontzed. We have proven that it is
not necessary to borrow the old clothes
of previous generations to cover an en-
tirely new creation-the steel frame
building. We have designed Office
buildings that are truthful, logical and
beautiful; that have no trace of colo
NAL, Elizabethan or Italian.
Moreover in our big buildings we are
beginning to replace the small units
like brick by materials in large units
such as sheets of non-corrodible chrome
steel, large wall boards for plaster,
light, hollow plaster blocks for brick
or tile, reinforced concrete in great
slabs for terra Gotta blocks. Already,
therefore, the skyscraper of today bears
no resemblance even in style to high
buildings Of only few years ago, and
tne SKyScraperS OF rev years hence
viii bear no resemblance to the sky
scrapers of today.
It is quite sure then that we are in
the midst, perhaps only at the begin
ming, of an eraa of change, and what is
happening to our large buildings is
likely to happen to our smaller build
ingS. In fact, we are quite sure to
use IN our smaller buildings many Of
the new materials borrowed from our
large buildings.
New Products on Market.
OF course, In designing our houses.
We have not the same problems to
solve that the steel frame and great
height impose. nor have the require
mentS Of the house changed as greatly
as those Of the Office building. But
every day new materials and new forms
Of construction are being put on the
market and new things are demanded
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