American Skyline

Architecture as Muse: American Skyline

America’s first skyscraper, a ten-story Home Insurance Building in Chicago, was completed in 1884, and by the end of the 19th century, office buildings of twenty or more stories could be found throughout the country. New York, Chicago, Philadelphia, and other cities in the United States grew at a dramatic rate beginning in the 1880s, as industrialization and population growth radically changed the face of these urban hubs. Workers and residents hailing from rural parts of the county and from abroad crowded into large cities, leading to an increase in the value of urban land and the need for developers to build upward. The availability of cheap cast iron, structural steel, and the electric elevator allowed for the construction of ever-taller buildings, while mass transit, including trolleys, cable cars, subways, and bridges, contributed to the growth of urban sprawl.

Throughout the decades, artists, architects, and illustrators have been captivated by the energy, scale, and grandeur of our nation’s metropolises, documenting the evolution of the American skyline in varying styles and media. Trained architects Anton Shutz (1894-1977) and Mark Freeman (1908-2003) created meticulous prints and drawings representing the construction and design of urban structures. In contrast, Impressionist artists such as Childe Hassam (1859-1935) utilized expressive, broken brushstrokes to suggest ever-changing movement, light, and color in the city. Ashcan School artists of the early 1900s, such as John Sloan (1871-1951) and Reginald Marsh (1898-1954), focused on gritty aspects of urban life, picturing teeming crowds and tenements. Today, artists continue to draw inspiration from myriad facets of American cities, large and small.

American Skyline celebrates the ingenuity and artistry manifest in cities throughout our nation and is part of the New Britain Museum of American Art’s Architecture as Muse series of exhibitions, which are drawn entirely from our permanent collection. Featuring paintings and works on paper by artists Childe Hassam, Ben Shahn (1898-1969), John Sloan, Fairfield Porter (1907-1975), Thomas Hart Benton (1889-1975), and others, the exhibition explores the rise of American cities and iconic urban landmarks, from the Brooklyn Bridge, New York, to Broad Street, New Britain.