| Vocabulary |
| architect-
An
architect is a person who is involved in the planning, designing and oversight
of a building's construction. |
| spire-
a
tapering structure on the top of a building, usually on churches. |
|
William Van Alen,
the architect who designed
the Chrysler Building, was born in Brooklyn, New York in 1883. He went to the Pratt Institute in Brooklyn while
he worked at the office of Clarence True. In 1911, he came back to New
York from Europe where he formed a partnership with H. Craig Severance.
The partnership became known for its multistory commercial structures.
William Van Alen was in a race with his partners. Secretly, he built
a spire that made the Chrysler Building beat the record for the world's
tallest structure. Not even that, but he wasn't even getting paid due to
differences between his boss and him. William Van Alen died in 1954, but
his best structure, The Chrysler Building, lived long after him.
http://www.fortunecity.com/victorian/statue/1287/English/ArtDeco/chrysler/vanall2.gif
|
