History Of Graphic Design
Posted on November 16th, 2008 at 5:07 pm
Posted in Art Deco
The Frist Center for the Visual Arts is a significant architectural structure. It occupies one of Nashville’s great historic landmarks, the former main post office. The post office was constructed in 1933 and 1934 under the direction of the local architectural firm of Marr & Holman. It was financed with monies appropriated by Congress during the Hoover administration. The building displays both of the most distinctive architectural styles of the period: classicism and Art Deco.
While the white Georgia marble and gray pink Minnesota granite of the exterior of the building (featured on the left image) reflects the “classicism” style (permanence, stability, order), the inside features cast aluminum doors and grillwork and colored marble and stones on the floors and walls which adhere to the trend known as Art Deco which was very popular in commercial interiors in the 1920s. 
Decorative cast-aluminum elements include national icons such as eagles; images of progress including the airplane, locomotive, ship, and automobile; and depictions of tools to symbolize industry, science, and agriculture. These symbols of civic and cultural ideals, as well as the form and design of the building, expressed a hope for economic revival to the American public.
Posted by Steve
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