Art Deco Weekend 2017 The 40th Annual Art Deco Weekend | Page 13

Leonard Horowitz was an industrial designer who helped transform Miami Beach ’ s Art Deco District into a pastel of pastel colors . He was the co-founder of the Miami Design Preservation League .
Although the Deco era had affects on virtually all industrialized parts of the world , the examples found in Miami Beach are especially representative of the genre . The forms are repetitive , and almost always symmetrical . There are ex ¬ ceptions to all things , of course ; in this case the towers of the New Yorker and the facade of the St . Moritz both belie the accepted concept of symmetry .
More universal are the seemingly random curves and repetitious wove forms . There appears to have been a popular fixation with the number three , as most rhythmatic progressions appear in triads . Familiar examples are three steps , three platforms ( often with flagpoles ), three ziggurats on rooftops , etc . A unique tropical af ¬ fectation is the “ eyebrows ”, or ledges that afford shade in the fierce Florida sun while permitting cool breezes to enter the edifice . These touches should not be viewed as ornamental afterthoughts , but rather as an embellishment on an important central form . An overlooked consideration of original Art Deco design is the use of pastel colorings . Today there is a tendency to re-create Deco on a garish , almost glittering scale . Of more interest is the potential of these early modern buildings by merit of their inherent architectural ad ¬ vantages . By authentically re-creating the intended “ mood ” of such structures by manipulating lighting and land ¬ scaping , the original magic of Miami ’ s balmy thirties once again comes alive .
Try it yourself ; some summer evening , with the moon high over the Bay , takes a leisurely drive through the Beach ’ s original neighborhoods . You may not know a balustrade from a driveway , but if you sit back and relax you might hear the strains of Rudy Vallee wafting out through the Venetian blinds .
[ Editor ’ s Note : from Night & Day September 1977 Special Art Deco Number with articles by MDPL members ]
40 YEARS OF FABULOUS 11