Art Deco flourished just before World War I, with increased attention between World War I and World War II, and made use of modern materials, such as chromium plate, as well as more conventional materials, including stained glass and colored tiles.  Other names appear with regard to this architectural style of the 20s and 30s--art moderne, jazz moderne, to name two--but William J.R. Curtis in Modern Architecture notes that regardless of the name, "it flew in the face of European modern movement puritanism in its obsession with ornament, axial composition, gaudy polychromy, and a sort of consumerist theatricality."

    To view other styles, click on the links above.  For further examples, click on Art Deco 2, Art Deco 3, Art Deco 4. or Art Deco 5

    Of course, the most famous Art Deco skyscraper of them all--the Empire State Building in New York City.  Designed by William F. Lamb and built between 1930-1, it is 1,050 feet tall, with 102 stories.  It is made of Indiana limestone and granite, with aluminum mullions.  It is iconic, and little more need be said here.  Two books of interest for further reading are Tauranac, The Empire State Building (1995) and Berman, The Empire State Building 2003).