VWilliam Van Alen (August 10, 1883 – May 24, 1954) was an American architect, best known as the architect in charge of designing New York City's Chrysler Building (1929-30).
William Van Alen was born in Brooklyn, NY in 1883. He attended Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, while working for the architect Clarence True. He also studied for three years at the Atelier Masqueray, the first independent architectural atelier in the United States, founded by Fr...
more
VWilliam Van Alen (August 10, 1883 – May 24, 1954) was an American architect, best known as the architect in charge of designing New York City's Chrysler Building (1929-30).
William Van Alen was born in Brooklyn, NY in 1883. He attended Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, while working for the architect Clarence True. He also studied for three years at the Atelier Masqueray, the first independent architectural atelier in the United States, founded by Franco-American architect Emmanuel Louis Masqueray.
Thereafter, Van Alen worked for several firms in New York, before he was awarded the Paris Prize scholarship in 1908; this led to his studying in Paris, in the atelier of Victor Laloux at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts.
When Van Alen returned to New York in 1911, he formed a partnership with H. Craig Severance. The partnership became known for its distinctive multistory commercial structures. Their friendship grew strained over time and eventually the partnership dissolved. Thereafter both Severance...
less
