Terrace Plaza Hotel

  • Client Thomas Emery'S Sons, Inc.
  • Expertise Hospitality
  • Region North America
  • Location Cincinnati, Ohio, United States

Project Facts
  • Completion Year 1948
  • Size Number of Stories: 18 Building Gross Area: 600,000 square feet
  • Collaborators
    Jaros, Baum & Bolles Weiskopf & Pickworth A. Feder Alexander Calder
Project Facts
  • Completion Year 1948
  • Size Number of Stories: 18 Building Gross Area: 600,000 square feet
  • Collaborators
    Jaros, Baum & Bolles Weiskopf & Pickworth A. Feder Alexander Calder

The Terrace Plaza was the first hotel designed by SOM and one of the first modern hotels in the United States. Its lobby, located on the eighth floor, was reached by express elevators from the street entrance. Two department stores originally occupied the first seven floors. The top floor, home to a small gourmet restaurant, offered panoramic views of the city.

SOM designed the restaurant’s interiors and accessories, and commissioned Joan Miró to design a mural as a focal point for the space. Other artists’ works were included as part of the architectural design; a Calder mobile hung in the lobby, and a Saul Steinberg mural adorned the main restaurant.