Lever House, designed by Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM) and completed in 1952, is one of the most significant architectural achievements of the mid-20th century. Situated on Park Avenue in New York City, this sleek, minimalist tower heralded a new era for corporate architecture and became a defining symbol of the International Style.
Lever House Technical Information
- Architects1-9: SOM
- Location: 390 Park Avenue, New York City, USA
- Client: Lever Brothers Company (Unilever)
- Topics: International Style
- Area: 24,155 m2 | 260,000 sq. ft.
- Project Year: 1950 – 1952
- Photographs: © Lucas Blair Simpson
The idea was to make a building that was simple, sleek, and suited for modern industry. Lever House was intended to be a practical solution to the needs of a corporation, but also a structure that looked ahead to the future of architecture.
– Gordon Bunshaft, SOM Lead Architect 10
Lever House Photographs
Design and Formal Composition: A Minimalist Glass Curtain
In post-war America, there was a distinct shift towards modernism in architecture, particularly in corporate structures. SOM, one of the pioneering firms of the time, played a pivotal role in shaping this movement. Lever House was commissioned by the Lever Brothers Company (now Unilever) as their U.S. headquarters, with the design spearheaded by Gordon Bunshaft, alongside Natalie de Blois. This project marked a key moment for SOM and helped solidify its reputation as a leader in modernist design. Lever House emerged as a sleek alternative to the decorative skyscrapers that had characterized earlier decades, signaling the future of corporate towers.
The defining feature of Lever House is its revolutionary glass curtain wall. This innovation made it one of the first fully glazed skyscrapers in the United States, transforming how buildings engaged with their urban surroundings. Gone were the heavy masonry exteriors; instead, Lever House presented a continuous ribbon of glass, which allowed for maximum light and transparency while conveying a sense of modern efficiency. The glass curtain wall, often associated with Ludwig Mies van der Rohe’s work, found a unique expression here, balancing aesthetics and function.
Lever House’s design adhered strictly to the principles of modernism, characterized by minimalism and functionalism. The narrow, vertical form of the tower maximized floor space while maintaining a human scale. The building’s raised structure left much of the ground floor open, creating a generous plaza and lobby area. This design move, rare at the time, emphasized the relationship between the private corporate space and the public realm, fostering an open, inviting urban environment.
The absence of ornamentation and the purity of its glass and steel structure aligned with the ideals of the modernist movement, particularly Mies’s concept of “less is more.” Bunshaft and de Blois masterfully executed these principles, resulting in a building that rejected unnecessary decoration in favor of clean lines and spatial clarity.
Urban Impact and Relationship to the Streetscape
Lever House didn’t just transform how buildings looked; it redefined their interaction with the city. By raising the structure off the ground and setting the tower back from the street, SOM introduced a public plaza—a bold move that contrasted with the fortress-like towers of previous decades. The ground-level plaza provided a rare open space in Manhattan’s dense urban fabric, fostering a stronger connection between the building and the city.
This urban gesture was not just an aesthetic or functional choice; it also influenced zoning regulations that followed. Lever House’s setback and open space model would become a blueprint for future corporate towers, making it a pioneering work in corporate urbanism. This interaction with the streetscape also anticipated the future developments along Park Avenue, most notably the Seagram Building by Mies van der Rohe and Philip Johnson, which would arrive several years later.
The dialogue between Lever House and its surroundings is profound. While it stood as a solitary, radical structure in the early 1950s, it soon became part of a broader urban narrative that transformed Park Avenue into a modernist corridor. Lever House’s refined glass façade and elegant proportions set a new standard for skyscraper design and established a harmonious balance between corporate functionality and public engagement.
Legacy and Preservation: A Modernist Masterpiece
Lever House’s influence on skyscraper design extends far beyond its construction. It popularized the use of glass curtain walls, a feature that became synonymous with corporate modernism in the decades that followed. Buildings like the John Hancock Tower in Chicago and the United Nations Headquarters in New York owe a clear debt to the aesthetic and technical breakthroughs that began with Lever House. It helped shape an architectural vocabulary that would define the modern corporate skyline.
However, preserving modernist structures like Lever House presents unique challenges. In the early 2000s, SOM itself led a restoration of the building to address the natural wear and tear that had affected the pioneering curtain wall system. The restoration required a delicate balance between maintaining the integrity of the original design and updating the building for contemporary use, particularly in terms of energy efficiency and material degradation. The challenge of restoring aging glass and steel structures, compared to more traditional masonry, has become a key discussion point in architectural preservation.
Lever House Plans
Lever House Image Gallery
About SOM
Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM) is one of the most influential and enduring architecture, engineering, and urban planning firms in the world, founded in 1936 in Chicago. Known for its pioneering contributions to modernist design, SOM has played a central role in shaping 20th and 21st-century skylines with projects like the Lever House in New York and the Willis Tower in Chicago. The firm is renowned for its innovative integration of architecture and engineering, especially in the use of steel and glass curtain wall systems, creating iconic, functional, and sustainable structures globally.
Notes & Additional Credits
- Building Type: Corporate Office Tower
- Floors: 21 stories (Tower)
- Height: 307 feet (93.5 meters)
- Facade Type: Glass Curtain Wall
- Architectural Style: International Style / Modernist
- Architects: Gordon Bunshaft, lead architect, Natalie de Blois (SOM)
- Structural Engineers: Weiskopf & Pickworth
- Mechanical Engineers: Jaros, Baum & Bolles (JBB)
- Landscape Architect: Thomas Dolliver Church
- Gordon Bunshaft and SOM: Building Corporate Modernism by Nicholas Adams
