204 W Iowa St.
Project Overview
Architect: Unknown Year Built: 1937 Architectural Style: Art Moderne
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Architectural Description |
| 204 W. Iowa is a small rectilinear and symetrical Art Moderne house built in 1937. Art Moderne or Streamline Moderne became popular after 1930 when "streamlined" industrial design styles for ships, airplanes, and automobiles crossed over into architectural design. Art or Streamline Moderne was a transformation of Art Deco that saw excessive ornementation discarded in favor of sleek, aerodynamic and fluid curves which emphasized motion and speed. Concrete and glass replaced exotic wood and stone as prefered building materials. Art Moderne was both a reaction to Art Deco and a reflection of the harsh economic climate of the 1930's. Some characteristics of Art Moderne buildings include smooth wall surfaces, curved corners, emphasis of the horizontal with grooving and balustrades, flat roofs, asymmetrical facades, glass-block windows, round windows, and windows turning corners. | |
| 204 W. Iowa has a flat parapet roof with a decorative black brick coping, or ledge, at the roof line. Additional black brick bands across the irregularly coursed yellow stone façade emphasize the horizontal plane between the the steel-framed wraparound windows. The symetrical front façade is simple with no unnecessary ornamentation. A half-circle overhang covers the main entrance. | |
Historical Description | |
| Fred Foster, Professor of Geography, was the longest tenured resident of 204 W. Iowa, having resided here from 1955-1987. Foster was recruited to UIUC as part of an effort to transform the cartography department into one of the top programs in the nation. Foster honed his cartographic skills while serving in the OSS during WWII. Geographers were critical to intelligence gathering during the war and Foster was a key figure in producing military intelligence in the European theater. He was the first Chief of Map Intelligence at the OSS’ most important outpost in London in 1944 and quickly rose through the ranks to become Child of Map Intelligence for all OSS European operations in 1946. While not confirmed, it is likely that Foster knew another key cartographer in the OSS, Paul Child, future husband of Julia Child, who was deployed to Ceylon in 1944 to establish a map intelligence operation in support of the newly appointed British Supreme Allied Commander of the South East Asian Theater, Admiral Lord Mountbatten. | |
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Map Locations:
203 W. Iowa St.
