Bullock’s Wilshire, Art Deco department store building in Los Angeles, California.
This five-story Art Deco building stands at 241 feet (73 m) tall with a distinctive tower, featuring a terra cotta facade and decorative green copper accents along Wilshire Boulevard.
Constructed between 1928 and 1929 by architects John and Donald Parkinson, the building opened as the first major department store outside downtown Los Angeles and closed in 1993.
During its heyday, the store attracted Hollywood stars including John Wayne, Greta Garbo, and Clark Gable, who frequented its upscale boutiques and penthouse Tea Room for social gatherings.
Southwestern Law School acquired the building in 1994 and completed a 29 million dollar restoration, transforming it into an 83,000 square foot law library and academic center by 1997.
Herman Sachs painted a ceiling mural celebrating early 20th-century transportation modes including air, rail, and ocean liners but deliberately omitted automobiles, which were still emerging at the time.
Location: Los Angeles
Inception: 1928
Architects: The Parkinsons
Architectural style: Art Deco architecture
GPS coordinates: 34.06160,-118.28800
Latest update: December 1, 2025 07:36
Art Deco shaped cities from the early 1920s through the late 1930s. The style combines geometric patterns, metallic surfaces, and decorative ornament with functional architecture. Buildings display characteristic vertical lines, stepped forms, and symmetrical facades. The Chrysler Building in New York and Marine Building in Vancouver demonstrate the height and elegance of the style in skyscrapers. The Palais de Tokyo in Paris and Museum of Applied Arts in Budapest show its cultural applications. The Hoover Building in London and Daily Express Building in Manchester represent commercial architecture of the era. Cincinnati Union Terminal, Warner Theatre in Washington, and Wiltern Theatre in Los Angeles document the style's popularity in public buildings. The reach extended worldwide. Edificio Bacardi in Havana, Kavanagh building in Buenos Aires, and New India Assurance Building in Mumbai show regional interpretations. Villa Empain and Stoclet Palace in Brussels, Municipal House in Prague, Tokyo Metropolitan Teien Art Museum, and Universum Kino in Berlin document European and Asian presence. Tiong Bahru Estate in Singapore demonstrates the application to residential developments. The Miami Design Preservation League preserves one of the largest concentrations of Art Deco buildings in the United States. This collection includes public, private, and commercial structures that document the movement's international influence.
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