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Thanks to the growing popularity of Mid Century Modern style, breeze blocks have crept back into today’s designs. Today, the decorative concrete blocks are making a comeback. The American influences can be seen in the streamlined Mid Century Modern look of the embassy, while the ‘temple’ look of the structure was inspired by similar South Asian holy places. Built in 1959, the embassy was designed to be a fusion of American and South Asian architecture. Courtesy of WikiData.Īcross the ocean, the American embassy in New Delhi also features a prominent use of breeze blocks.
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The large fountain and low-profile of the embassy give it a local South Asian twist. The exterior of the Parker Palm Springs is surrounded by white breeze blocks that shield the 5-star hotel from the blazing desert sun and provide a private oasis for vacationers and celebrities alike. In Palm Springs, CA, one luxurious hotel uses concrete breeze blocks in a way that truly stands out. Quintessential Breeze Block Buildings The Parker Palm Springs uses concrete breeze blocks to create a dramatic facade to the entrance of the hotel. It’s estimated that there are over 200 different breeze block patterns today. Local breeze block factories produced standard patterns, like the common snowflake one, while making unique patterns that were specific to the factory too. Because of their weight and the cost involved with shipping them long distances, it was often cheaper to manufacture them locally. In fact, breeze blocks became so popular that most large cities and towns had their own breeze block factories. California used breeze blocks to protect against the hot desert sun, while Florida architecture used breeze blocks to minimize the damage of dangerous storm winds. They were especially popular in the warmer parts of the country, like California and Florida.
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They also provided shade for the massive Mid Century floor-to-ceiling windows that were popular at the time. Courtesy of Curbed.īreeze blocks provided a visually pleasing (and affordable!) way to filter out harsh sunlight while still providing ventilation. Mid Century grocery stores used breeze blocks to make their exteriors look a bit more interesting. The decorative concrete blocks were widely used in Mid Century Modern design up until the 1970s, when they began to fall out of style. They continued to grow in popularity in the following decades, especially when used in houses and apartments. Breeze Blocks’ Historyīreeze blocks-sometimes called screen blocks-were inspired by sun-reducing screens in Asia and first used in America in the 1930s. Photo by Dave Folks Styling by Lindsay Jarvis. This 1957 Twin Palms home has a view to its own pink breeze block from inside. Breeze blocks provide shade, circulation, protection and privacy to buildings all over the world, and they’ve got the rich history and style to prove it. But these fascinating blocks are more than just decorative-they’re an important component of Mid Century Modern design. Breeze blocks are the patterned, decorative concrete blocks you may have seen covering the sides of a building or stacked upon each other to form a wall.