Los Angeles architecture can be best described in the words of famous architect Frank Lloyd Wright: “Tip the world over on its side and everything loose will land in Los Angeles.”
The Bradbury Building. Photo copyright 2015 by Anna Boudinot.
From Victorian to Adobe to Craftsman to Modernist and everything in between, Los Angeles architecture is a mishmash of styles, cultural influences, and artistic movements. Frank Lloyd Wright designed a few houses in LA himself, including the majestic Ennis House and the stately Hollyhock House, but he was a mere teenager when the Bradbury Building was constructed in the 1890s.
The oldest commercial building remaining in Los Angeles, the Bradbury Building has a bizarre story that reads almost like folklore. Lewis Bradbury, a millionaire who had a made a fortune on gold mines in Mexico, decided to commission a building and plaster his name on it for prosperity. He purchased a plot of land in downtown Los Angeles’ Bunker Hill neighborhood and hired architect Sumner P. Hunt to design an office building for him. Yet when Hunt presented the blueprints to Bradbury, Bradbury for some reason did not want Hunt to oversee construction. For reasons either not understood or not recorded, Bradbury then pointed a finger at Hunt’s young draftsman, George H. Wyman, and asked him if he would like to construct the building instead.
Some of the gorgeous metalwork inside the Bradbury Building. Photo copyright 2015 by Anna Boudinot.
Young Wyman had no experience as an architect – this would be the equivalent of a storyboard artist being suddenly asked to direct a movie, though lord knows stranger and stupider things have happened in Hollywood – so he decided to go home and talk it over with his wife. He and his wife then employed something called a planchette, which is basically a Ouija board with a pencil attached to it, so they could talk to Wyman’s dead brother. The dead brother told Wyman to go ahead and accept Bradbury’s offer.
The story gets weirder still, with differing accounts. Some say that Wyman used the designs that Hunt had already created; some say that Wyman based the design off of a science fiction novel called Looking Backwards by Edward Bellamy. The book was written in 1887 but took place in 2000. It described a futuristic structure that had a glass pyramid on the top to let light in, with walls of muted earthy tones inside to help absorb and soften the light.
Stepping into the Bradbury Building today, you see that Wyman achieved this goal. A peaked glass skylight allows sunlight to flood the building’s interior: the open-air design allows you to stand in the central court and look all the way to the top floor. Gorgeous wrought iron railings adorn each landing, and “bird cage” elevators have human operators just like in the old days. The prophesy of earthy tones comes to life with terra cotta, marble, and tile in subtle pinks and oranges. The building is a truly breathtaking sight, and is open to the public daily, though you can’t go past the first floor. Its current occupants include the Los Angeles Police Department’s Internal Affairs Division, who signed a 50-year lease on the space in 1996.
The still-functioning elevator at the Bradbury Building. Photo copyright 2015 by Anna Boudinot.
The building was in disrepair for many years in the 20th century but was revived in the 1970s thanks to the hard work of civic leader Ira Yellin. In fact, his advocacy led to the structure’s designation as a National Historic Landmark. No matter the state of the building, it has always been a favorite location for filmmakers. You will recognize it from 500 Days of Summer, The Artist, Lethal Weapon 4, Chinatown, Wolf, Disclosure, and perhaps most famously, Blade Runner. The 99% Invisible blog has a cool post about the Bradbury Building that includes still photos and clips from the above movies and more.
Located at 304 S. Broadway (at Third Street), the building has no admission fee. It is across the street from Grand Central Market and close to Angel’s Flight, two other historic Los Angeles locations that are worth a visit. While strolling through the streets of downtown Los Angeles, chances are you’ll get an ample glimpse of “everything loose” that has landed in Los Angeles and made the city such a unique and fascinating place.