The Urban Picturesque: Legitimizing the New York Skyscraper through Art

Abstract

In the early twentieth century, debate concerning the social impact of skyscrapers in the modernizing city was widespread, and usually quite acrimonious. This paper will address how artists of this time-period, in their artistic representations of cities and skyscrapers created an urban metaphor of the picturesque as a means to influence a public, increasingly not in favour of the skyscraper. In effect, skyscrapers slowly crept into artistic representations, humbly appearing in late-nineteenth century architectural magazine illustrations or as accents in the skyline of American impressionist paintings. The prolific growth of the twentieth century brought the public debate over skyscrapers into the spotlight and artists took this as an opportunity to promote their views. Some artists, such as the Pictorialists took the opportunity to aestheticize their pictures of the buildings in a fashion that might convey a sense of sublime in the city. Much of the scholarship on the depiction of the skyscraper in the arts has been limited to the Pictorialist photographer’s advancement of modern art in New York City; however, these studies neglect the social significance of the Pictorialist’s use of nature metaphors to create an urban sublime reminiscent of the romantic, picturesque landscapes of the previous century. My paper examines the effect of this aestheticization and the significant promotion and support of the skyscraper from the visual arts, specifically from the photographs of Alfred Stieglitz and his circle. I will investigate the development of this aesthetic and how familiarity with this style strengthened support for the skyscraper in the metropolis of New York City. I will further explore these ideas by examining the treatment paintings and photography, in the construction of a familiar sense of awe and, in other words, conjuring the picturesque as a device.