EXCLUSIVE WALKING TOUR FOR VOLUNTEERS OF THE CENTER FOR ARCHITECTURE AND DESIGN, AIA PHILADELPHIA, + THE COMMUNITY DESIGN COLLABORATIVE ONLY. Tour departs from the Center (1218 Arch St).
Experience the transformation of Philadelphia from America’s 19th century engine of industry to a 21st century capitol of business and culture. This 2-hour tour explores Philadelphia’s diverse range of architectural styles and building technologies from the 1870s to the present, detailing the social, economic, and political forces that shaped the modern cityscape. It is divided into three parts:
Era 1 – Late Victorian / Post Civil War (1870 – 1890)
- A period of architectural eclecticism
- Stone-age building techniques (masonry) with lots of ornamentation
Era 2 – Birth of the Skyscraper (1890 – 1930)
- The adaptation of old forms to new functions (mass manufacturing)
- Steel-frame construction disguised behind traditional materials with some ornamentation
Era 3 – The Modern City (1930 – present)
- A period of Modernism & Post-Modernism
- Curtain wall building technique allows vast, minimalist, glass surfaces
Highlights include the spectacular Victorian interior of the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Art (PAFA); the soaring central court of Philadelphia’s first department store, Wanamaker’s; and the atrium of Pennsylvania’s tallest skyscraper, the Comcast Center.
* Join us after the tour at 4:15 PM for the 15-minute Universal Sphere experience at the new Comcast Innovation + Technolgy Center (aka Comcast 2).
* Optional drinks at the top of the tower (Four Seasons Hotel bar) at 4:30 PM. GREAT VIEWS OF THE CITY!
If this tour fills up, we'll schedule another tour for volunteers in early spring.