9/11 in Design: The architecture of the World Trade Center
Sep 11, 2009 - By Joe Wertz
A buzzing hub illustrative the vibrant energy of New York’s commercial and cultural influence around the world, the World Trade Center eight years ago was reduced to a smoldering hole. These days, columns of light represent the two iconic towers and the site’s evolved meaning as a permanent memorial and daily reminder of human loss and the country’s determination to press ever forward and skyward.
First proposed in 1946, construction of the WTC site didn’t begin until 1962. Minoru Yamasaki, a Seattle-born architect with Japanese ancestry was chosen to lead a design team supported by well-known NYC firm Emery Roth & Sons. Yamasaki unveiled his vision in 1964, a pair of 80-story, aluminum alloy-clad skyscrapers based on the clean lines inspired by the Modern and International architectural styles used by Swiss/French designer Le Corbusier.
Primary construction broke ground in 1966 and the two towers were officially “topped out” in 1970 and 1971. When the ribbon was cut in the spring of 1973, the $900 million twin towers each had 110 floors, 4.3 million square-feet of floor space and stood more than 1,360 feet tall. [pics via kidneynotes, wallyg, reneeanddolan, kimyo, itaca2000 and bagpipes4hire]
