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Downtown Pittsburgh is known for the quality and varietyof its architecture, and for the mix of old and new buildings that make up the city's Central Business District. The buildings span a century and a half of Pittsburgh's history, and were designed in styles that range from the Greek Revival, through a number of eclectic Victorian styles, to the Classical Revival and Art Deco of the early twentieth century and the Modern Style of the postwar era. Regardless of their variety, though, the exteriors of these buildings are generally sober and restrained. It is in their interiors that the ornamental richness of their times is revealed. Beginning with the first large-scale interiors, during the post- Civil War period, architects were able to explore the boundaries of decorative taste as building owners vied to impress customers and tenants with opulence and scale. Thus, as commercial and public buildings became larger as the nineteenth century progressed and turned into the twentieth, the public lobbies and banking halls in those buildings became larger and more richly decorated.
Buildings constructed in the Modern Style of the post-World War II period, associated with the redevelopment effort known as the Pittsburgh Renaissance, abandoned the effort to impress the public by means of richness of ornament. Architects and developers who wanted to create an impressive public space relied more on the volume of the space and the quality of materials for the effect. Unfortunately, in many buildings there was no effort made to create amenities in the public areas. Instead, a mean functionalism reigned, providing only cramped spaces and mundane materials. Worse, some of the fine older building interiors were mutilated through remodeling, especially during the 1960s and 1970s. However, with the recent advent of the historic preservation movement, and of the post-modern style in architecture, there has developed a greater appreciation for the value of the public amenities provided in older buildings - and a corresponding resurgence in the use of large-scale spaces, rich materials, and ornament in the public areas of new buildings.
Today, there are many splendid and valuable interior spaces in Downtown Pittsburgh. They provide a unique architectural setting for the everyday work and lives of the citizens, customers, and workers who work in and pass through them.
DOWNTOWN HISTORIC INTERIORS WALKING TOUR
PLEASE NOTE:
This tour is designed to explore the interiors of buildings that are generally open to the public during normal business hours. Most of the buildings are privately-owned, and although their owners are generally proud to accept visitors, they have the right to restrict access to them. Please respect the rights of the owners and tenants of these buildings, and follow any rules set out by them for use of or access to them.
