When we think of a “midÂcenÂtuÂry modÂern” home, we think of glass walls. In part, this has to do with the post-World War II decades’ proÂmoÂtion of the southÂern CalÂiÂforÂnia-style indoor-outÂdoor subÂurÂban lifestyle. But busiÂness and culÂture are downÂstream of techÂnolÂoÂgy, and, in this speÂcifÂic case, the techÂnolÂoÂgy known as insuÂlatÂed glass. Its develÂopÂment solved the probÂlem of glass winÂdows that had dogged archiÂtecÂture since at least the secÂond cenÂtuÂry: they let in light, but even more so cold and heat. Only in the 1930s did a refrigÂerÂaÂtion engiÂneer figÂure out how to make winÂdows with not one but two panes of glass and an insuÂlatÂing layÂer of air between them. Its trade name: TherÂmopane.
First manÂuÂfacÂtured by the Libbey-Owens-Ford glass comÂpaÂny, “TherÂmopane changed the posÂsiÂbilÂiÂties for archiÂtects,” says Vox’s Phil Edwards in the video above, “How InsuÂlatÂed Glass Changed ArchiÂtecÂture.” In it he speaks with archiÂtecÂturÂal hisÂtoÂriÂan Thomas Leslie, who says that “by the 1960s, if you’re putting a big winÂdow into any resÂiÂdenÂtial or office buildÂing” in all but the most temÂperÂate cliÂmates, you were using insuÂlatÂed glass “almost by default.”
ComÂpetÂing glass manÂuÂfacÂturÂers introÂduced a host of variÂaÂtions on and innoÂvaÂtions in not just the techÂnolÂoÂgy but the marÂketÂing as well: “No home is truÂly modÂern withÂout TWINDOW,” declared one brand’s magÂaÂzine adverÂtiseÂment.
The assoÂciÂatÂed imagery, says Leslie, was “always a slidÂing glass door lookÂing out onto a very verÂdant landÂscape,” which promised “a way of conÂnectÂing your inside world and your outÂside world” (as well as “being able to see all of your stuff”). But the new posÂsiÂbilÂiÂty of “walls of glass” made for an even more visÂiÂble change in comÂmerÂcial archiÂtecÂture, being the sine qua non of the smoothÂly reflecÂtive skyÂscrapÂers that rise from every AmerÂiÂcan downÂtown. Today, of course, we can see 80, 900, 100 floors of sheer glass stacked up in cities all over the world, shimÂmerÂing decÂlaÂraÂtions of memÂberÂship among the develÂoped nations. Those slidÂing glass doors, by the same token, once announced an AmerÂiÂcan famÂiÂly’s arrival into the prosÂperÂous midÂdle class — and now, more than half a cenÂtuÂry latÂer, still look like the height of moderÂniÂty.
RelatÂed conÂtent:
Why Do PeoÂple Hate ModÂern ArchiÂtecÂture?: A Video Essay
Why Europe Has So Few SkyÂscrapÂers
A Glass Floor in a Dublin GroÂcery Store Lets ShopÂpers Look Down & Explore Medieval Ruins
Based in Seoul, ColÂin MarÂshall writes and broadÂcasts on cities, lanÂguage, and culÂture. His projects include the SubÂstack newsletÂter Books on Cities, the book The StateÂless City: a Walk through 21st-CenÂtuÂry Los AngeÂles and the video series The City in CinÂeÂma. FolÂlow him on TwitÂter at @colinmarshall or on FaceÂbook.
While I do agree that new glass techÂnoloÂgies have draÂmatÂiÂcalÂly altered buildÂings, there are a few points I would temÂper:
1. Most all modÂern buildÂings in the 50’s 60’s used sinÂgle-pane glass. It was cheap and enerÂgy was cheap, so was the thinkÂing. Dual-pane glass is very hard to work with because you can’t just cut to fit durÂing conÂstrucÂtion. Dual-pane realÂly only became stanÂdard after the 1970’s enerÂgy shock. And a lot of time it was more or less the same design, just using dual-pane instead of sinÂgle-pane.
2. The glass techÂnolÂoÂgy that more draÂmatÂiÂcalÂly altered design was tintÂed / absorbÂtive and reflecÂtive glass and that’s more about air conÂdiÂtionÂing than heatÂing. That’s when buildÂing forms were stripped of sun shades, overÂhangs, operÂaÂble winÂdows and all the othÂer things peoÂple did to keep the sun out / keep cool. Just look at modÂern buildÂings in the 1950’s and then in the 1980’s. It changed mostÂly because of the new types of tintÂed and absorbÂtive glassÂes that were availÂable.