Bunshaft, Gordon (1909-1990), an American architect, greatly influenced the style of corporate architecture in the mid-1900’s. In 1937, Bunshaft began work as an architect for Louis Skidmore of the firm of Skidmore and Owings. In 1939, he joined the firm of Skidmore, Owings & Merrill as a designer. During his long career with the firm, Bunshaft designed some of the most important commercial skyscrapers of his time.
Bunshaft’s most significant buildings include Lever House (1952), Manufacturers Hanover Trust (1954), and Chase Manhattan Bank (1961), all in New York City. The structures reflect Bunshaft’s conviction that architecture should be functional art. For example, Lever House is a skyscraper on stilts. The elevated horizontal base covers its site to provide a civic plaza. The shaft, set back and balanced on the base, soars in precisely proportioned vertical and horizontal ribbons of steel and glass.
Bunshaft was born on May 9, 1909, in Buffalo, New York. He died on Aug. 6, 1990.
