Bullocks Wilshire Building vs E. Clem Wilson Building

Comparing the Bullocks Wilshire Building and the E. Clem Wilson Building is interesting because they both stand in Los Angeles, CA, and were completed in the same year, but they were designed by different architects.

This offers a unique glimpse at how rival designers approached projects in the same city during the same era.

These two towers present an interesting contrast in their proportions. The Bullocks Wilshire Building rises higher at 240ft (73m), while the E. Clem Wilson Building reaches 184ft (56m). However, the E. Clem Wilson Building accommodates more floors with 13 levels above ground, compared to 12 floors in the Bullocks Wilshire Building.

This suggests different approaches to interior space design. The Bullocks Wilshire Building has an average floor-to-floor height of approximately 6.1m, while the E. Clem Wilson Building has more compact floors averaging around 4.3m each. The taller building's more generous floor heights might indicate grander interior spaces, higher ceilings, or different programmatic requirements.

These different proportions likely reflect the specific needs each building was designed to serve, whether driven by zoning regulations, client requirements, or the intended use of the spaces within. The contrast shows how architects can achieve different spatial experiences even when working with similar overall building scales.

Both the Bullocks Wilshire Building and the E. Clem Wilson Building were designed in line with the aesthetic conventions of the Art Deco style.

At the time, this style was at the height of its popularity. So both Parkinson & Parkinson and Meyer & Holler followed what was in many ways expected of them, producing designs that fit comfortably within contemporary architectural norms, rather than breaking with convention.

The Bullocks Wilshire Building is primarily education, while the E. Clem Wilson Building is primarily commercial.

Originally, the Bullocks Wilshire Building was designed for retail, but over time it was converted to education. The E. Clem Wilson Building by contrast has maintained its original role.

These two towers illustrate the many possible ways to combine structure and enclosure in skyscraper design.