10 Secrets Of Gotham City You Didn’t Know About
2. The Architecture Of Gotham City
The architecture of Gotham seems to be less a matter of evolving with each new era, but rather adding new styles to the existing work. Most of these styles are not complementary to each other and, in fact, clash, but strangely they work when viewed as a whole. This gives Gotham its unique and somewhat imposing look, and provides at least some explanation as to why large parts of the city are in near-perpetual shadows.
In the post-Civil War era, Judge Solomon Wayne was a huge proponent of the Gothic revival style of architecture. He paid young architect Cyrus Pickney to begin construction on several prominent buildings, including Wayne Manor. In the early 20th Century, the Art Nouveau, and especially the Art Deco movements, hit Gotham City with a bang, and many of its current landmarks have definitive Art Deco influences - including the Clock Tower, Gotham City Hall, and the Gotham Opera House.
After the earthquake that decimated Gotham, Lex Luthor bought large portions of the city and replaced its formerly ornate architecture with the glass and steel buildings that are more at home in Metropolis than Gotham. For a time, there were many giant-sized advertising props on the roofs of Gotham that were commandeered by villains. This happened so often that an actual law - the “Sprang Act” - was passed banning their use.