Biography
Cass Gilbert (November 24, 1859 – May 17, 1934) was an American architect. An early proponent of skyscrapers, his works include the Woolworth Building, the United States Supreme Court building, the state capitols of Minnesota, Arkansas, and West Virginia, the Alexander Hamilton U.S. Customs House (Now the Smithsonian Museum of the American Indian in Manhattan), the Detroit Public Library, and the Saint Louis Art Museum and Public Library. His public buildings in the Beaux Arts style reflect the American ideal of a society heir to Greek democracy, Roman law and Renaissance humanism. Gilbert’s achievements were recognized in his lifetime; he served as president of the American Institute of Architects in 1908–09.
Gilbert understood that architecture should reflect historic traditions and the nobler society values. His design of the new Supreme Court building in 1935, with its classical lines and human scale size, was intended to stand out from the outsized federal buildings along the National Mall in Washington, D.C.
Heilbrun says “Gilbert’s pioneering buildings injected vitality into skyscraper design, and his ‘Gothic skyscraper,’ epitomized by the Woolworth Building, profoundly influenced architects during the first decades of the twentieth century.” Christen and Flanders note that his reputation among architectural critics went into eclipse during the age of modernism, but has since rebounded because of “respect for the integrity and classic beauty of his masterworks”.
Nationality:
American
Dates:
November 24, 1859 – May 17, 1934
Occupation:
Architect
Schools attended:
Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)
Taught at:
Student of / Worked for:
Abraham M. Radcliffe, McKim, Mead & White
Teacher of: