Arts & Culture
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The Golden Gate Bridge is one of the world’s largest examples of the Art Deco style. Named for the Exposition Internationale des Arts Décoratifs et Industriels Modernes, held in Paris in 1925, the Art Deco style was used by architect Irving Morrow to add aesthetic touches throughout the bridge. These include chevron or beveled shapes and an expression of verticality. The chevron design and the angular, stepped brackets on the horizontal struts are nonstructural additions made for visual effect. The concrete pylons at the ends of the arch portion have a chevron form in both plan and elevation, and their tops use staggered vertical forms instead of a squared-off flat-roof shape. Art Deco treatment also appears in a hidden feature on the Marin north side and in the concrete at the base of the south tower. Street lights for Highway 101 traffic point downward, while round lights pointing upward emphasize the towers’ height at night, an up-lighting technique often used on Art Deco skyscrapers of the 1930s, such as the Empire State Building.
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