The 1931 Beaux-Arts Ball, where famous architects
dressed up as their buildings.

Raymond Hood
1881-1934

Raymond Hood is one of the most renowned architects in the history of the Art Deco period as well as New York City. He studied at both Brown University and MIT, as well as the Ecole des Beaux Arts in Paris. Some of his masterpieces include the Radio City Music Hall auditorium and foyer, the RCA Building at Rockefeller Center, and the 1929 New York Daily News Building. His style is recognized through his distinctive use of banding techniques and terra-cotta.

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William Van Alen
1883-1954

William Van Alen is most renowned for his design of the Chrysler Building in New York City. He had studied in Brooklyn at the Pratt Institute, as well as winning a fellowship that allowed him to study in Paris. Upon returning to New York, he became known for the design of commercial structures that defied historical conventions. He was one of the first architects to use stainless steel over a large exposed building surface, as exhibited on the Chrysler Building. Even today, the Chrysler Building's distinctive peak remains one of the Manhattan skylines most recognizable elements.

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Henry Hohauser
1895-1963

Henry Hohauser was educated at the Pratt Institute in Brooklyn. He came to Florida in 1932 where he quickly gained repute as one of the most prominent architects in Miami Beach. He was greatly influenced by the World's Fairs and the Chrysler Building in New York City. Some of his projects, of which there were well over 300, included The Cordozo Hotel (1939), The Colony (1935), The Century (1939), The Park Central Hotel (1937), The Essex House Hotel (1938) and the Edison Hotel (1935). He is best known for working in the Nautical Moderne style.

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L. Murray Dixon
1901-1949

Lawrence Murray Dixon moved to Miami Beach in 1928 to start his own practice after having worked for the New York City architectural firm Schultze & Weaver. The design of some of the most popular hotels in Miami Beach are credited to him. These include The Victor Hotel (1937), The Raleigh Hotel (1940), The Marlin (1939), The Tides Hotel (1936), The Senator (1939), and The Ritz Plaza Hotel (1940). His work is best known and recognized for its striking use of circles and banding.

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T. L. Pflueger
1892-1946

Timothy Pflueger was born and raised in San Francisco, the same city where later in life he was to gain repute and still remains a most notable architect. He studied at the Beaux Arts Institute of Design, and saw his first work completed in 1912. His later works included the Pacific Telephone and Telegraph Building (1925), the Medical-Dental Office Building (1929), the Oakland Paramount Theater (1931), George Washington High School (1932), El Rey Theater (1936), and Transbay Terminal (1939). He was also a lead architect for the 1939 Golden Gate International Exposition.

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