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Rethink Society

Architecture · 50+2 series · Industry Changes Architecture

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late 19th–early 20th centuries

When Walls Stopped Carrying the Building

The Early Skyscraper

Historic view of the Flatiron Building rising over Manhattan.
The Flatiron Building, New York, photographed around 1903.Irving Underhill; Library of Congress · No known restrictions on publication · Library of Congress · Source record

The Moment

Structural frames increasingly separated the building's skeleton from its exterior envelope.

The Rethink

The facade and structure could become distinct systems.