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The most beautiful interiors in Detroit, mapped
This article highlights 16 of Detroit's most stunning architectural interiors, showcasing a diverse range of buildings from historic churches and grand theaters to museums and modern commercial spaces. While Detroit's skyline is often admired, the article emphasizes that the city's interiors are equally, if not more, breathtaking. The selection deliberately excludes residential homes, with one exception, to maintain focus on public and semi-public spaces. It also features only one church, providing suggestions for other notable religious interiors.
Among the featured locations is the Most Holy Redeemer Church, designed by Donaldson and Meier in 1921, which boasts an ornate sanctuary with a coffered ceiling, intricate arches, columns, and painted panels. The Fisher Building, an Albert Kahn design, is described as “Detroit’s largest art object” with an impressive marble exterior surpassed by its main arcade, featuring vibrant frescoes, a barrel-vaulted ceiling, gold panels, and marble pillars. Cadillac Place, another Albert Kahn creation, impresses with its long barrel ceiling in the arcade, adorned with diverse panels and materials.
The McGregor Memorial Conference Center, designed by Minoru Yamasaki, offers a pleasant interior with pyramidical skylights and extensive windows, creating an inviting atrium. The Detroit Main Library, a Cass Gilbert design, showcases marble walls, grand frescoes, and ornate ceiling panels. The Maccabees Building, also by Albert Kahn, is noted for its lobby, which includes a dramatic barrel ceiling, marble surfaces, gold-clad elevators, and Art Deco fixtures. The Detroit Institute of Arts is celebrated for its Kresge Court, C. Howard Crane-designed theater, and, most notably, Rivera Court with Diego Rivera’s “Detroit Industry Murals.”
The Whitney, a Romanesque Revival mansion now operating as a restaurant and venue, features sumptuous wood paneling and stained-glass windows. The Masonic Temple, a Neo-Gothic masterpiece by George D. Mason, is recognized as the world's largest Masonic temple, with various theaters, rooms, and lobbies incorporating Egyptian, Byzantine, and Italian cultural influences. Orchestra Hall, though plain externally, reveals a magnificent interior with painted panels, archways, corbels, and medallions. The Fox Theatre, designed by C. Howard Crane, is highlighted for its opulent and eclectic mix of Egyptian, Far Eastern, and Indian decorative styles.
The David Whitney Building, a Beaux Arts-style structure by Daniel H. Burnham & Co., boasts an impressive four-story atrium with a skylight, adorned with decorative terra cotta and marble. The private Detroit Athletic Club, designed by Albert Kahn, features an ornate lobby with a decorated ceiling and wood-paneled walls, complemented by a lovely main dining hall. One Campus Martius, a modern addition, stands out for its glass-filled lobby, skylight atrium, and multi-floor waterfall. Finally, the Guardian Building, known as the “Cathedral of Finance” and designed by Wirt C. Rowland, features a stunning three-story, Aztec-themed lobby and banking hall made of Rookwood Pottery and Pewabic Tile, with a metal screen incorporating a Tiffany-clock inlay and a Michigan commerce mural. The Belle Isle Aquarium, another Albert Kahn design, is notable for its glowing green-tiled and vaulted ceiling.
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