J. André Fouilhoux

Jacques André Fouilhoux (September 27, 1879 – June 20, 1945) was a French-born architect active in the United States from 1904 to 1945. He is most well known for his work on Tribune Tower in Chicago; Rockefeller Center; early skyscrapers such as the Daily News Building and 30 Rockefeller Plaza; and the 1939 New York World's Fair, for which he designed the central Trylon and Perisphere. Many of his early works are also listed in the National Historic Register, including 705 Davis Street Apartments and Wickersham Apartments in Portland, Oregon. According to the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission, Fouilhoux has received less attention than partners such as John Mead Howells and Raymond Hood, but was "known as an astute engineer and a painstaking supervisor and his work gained the respect of his collaborators."

Early life and education Jacques André Fouilhoux, better known as J.A. Fouilhoux throughout his career in the United States, was born to a Catholic family in Paris, France, on September 27, 1879. He attended the Lycée Janson-de-Sailly in Paris, and went on to earn B.A., B.S. and B.Ph. degrees from the University of Paris (Sorbonne). In 1908, he and Jean Butler Clark of Baltimore married in New York.

Career Early works Trylon and Perisphere at the 1939 New York World's FairIn 1909, Fouilhoux relocated to Portland, and began a partnership with Morris H. Whitehouse that would last until World War I. While this design approach befit the zeitgeist, critics and historic preservationists describe a unique perspective in his architectural style. Many of his buildings there are still standing and listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

With the outbreak of World War I, Fouilhoux put his burgeoning career on pause and enlisted in the U.S. Army. He served as an officer in France in the 129th Field Artillery Regiment with future president Harry S. Truman and was discharged with the rank of major.

Tribune Tower and Daily News Building

In 1920, Fouilhoux returned to the U.S. and for the rest of his life would be based in New York In the post-war architectural boom, Fouilhoux's work espoused and memorialized American democratic values, particularly freedom of the press. A lightness in the building's gothic details enables the vibrancy of the design to not be beholden to its silhouette, as with other skyscrapers.

Rockefeller Center

In 1931, Fouilhoux joined a consortium of preeminent architectural firms coordinated by Raymond Hood that would be involved in the construction of Rockefeller Center. Todd, Robertson and Todd Engineering Corp., as advisers to John D. Rockefeller and his family, "selected architects who would be primarily interested in good planning, utility, cost, income, low operating expenses and progress ... men who were not committed to the architectural past nor too much interested in wild modernism." Three different firms—listed as Corbett, Harrison & MacMurray; Hood, Godley & Fouilhoux; and Reinhard & Hofmeister—formed the collective Associated Architects for Rockefeller Center. From its inception, Rockefeller Center has captured the urban imagination of commercial media.

After Hood's death in 1934, and following his work on Rockefeller Center, Fouilhoux partnered with Wallace Harrison on a commission from John D. and Nelson Rockefeller to design the Rockefeller Apartments just to the north.

World of Tomorrow The 1939 New York World's Fair was Fouilhoux and Harrison's most audacious architectural and engineering work. The New York Building Commission wrote that Fouilhoux's design contributions "created the distinctive tone of the exhibition." In 1934, the fair's intended theme was to honor the 150th anniversary of the inauguration of George Washington, however the more abstract, forward-thinking theme "Building the World of Tomorrow" won out by 1936. Built in Flushing Meadows–Corona Park, a former dump site in Queens, the Fair used over 1,200 acres to imagine the future through a lens of innovation, consumerism, and commercialization. Imposing white masses of the "finite and infinite"—sometimes called the "spike and sphere" or "ball and bat"—they aptly represented futurism based on modernist principles that envisioned extreme abstractions achievable through new technologies. The Fair embodied an imposing physicality and ambitious futuristic vision and welcomed almost 50 million visitors during the two seasons it was open. Despite these achievements, it did not live up to attendance or financial revenue goals. Still, it was "by no means a flop… it literally and figuratively replaced ashes with promise... On a practical level, it offered a preview of the tools needed to rebuild the world after the war." In 1941, Fouilhoux joined the firm Harrison, Fouilhoux & Abramovitz and completed the Crotona Toll House for the Bronx Zoo and worked on military bases at Coco Solo and Balboa, Canal Zone. While some community members lamented the demolition of the 19th century mansions that were removed to make way for the development, the Clinton Hill Co-ops played a significant role in stabilizing the neighborhood with middle-class housing during the war. The Clinton Hill Co-ops would be Fouilhoux's final contribution to the architecture of New York City. He fell to his death on June 20, 1945, while conducting an inspection of the Clinton Hill Co-ops roof and upper floors.

Citations and professional connections President of New York Building Congress, elected 1942, 1945 Member of the American Society of Civil Engineers Member of the Architectural League of New York Chairman of the French Engineers in the United States, Inc. Treasurer and trustee of the Beaux-Arts Institute of Design Member of the Advisory Council of the Cooper Union Art School Visiting Critic at the Columbia School of Architecture Member of visiting committee of the School of Architecture of Massachusetts Institute of Technology President of the American Relief for France, Inc. Vice President and trustee of the French Hospital and French Benevolent Society Board of Trustees of St. Vincent de Paul Institute Member of the Commerce and Industry Association of New York The University Club The Catholic Club President of the Liturgical Arts Society