Inter-Continental Motors
In 1964, the Inter-Continental Motors Building was heralded as "One of the World's Most Beautiful Dealerships." Glass-walled, light, and airy, it is one of the last remaining examples of the pure Texas Modernism of O'Neil Ford. Now the building's glory days are a distant memory, waiting to be revived. When the Inter-Continental Motors Corporation moved its headquarters to San Antonio, it turned to O'Neil Ford, already known for his use of indigenous Texas materials and his distinct brand of Modern design. Ford's design team constructed a showroom that would catch the eye of all driving along Broadway, the city's main commercial corridor at that time. Framed by large trees and standing next to a gem-like park, the showroom gleamed with tall windows, Saltillo-tile porches, and polished metal. The most Miesian of Ford's designs, the building boasts classic Ford detailing. Ford's partner Howard Wong said: "[Ford] couldn't do a pure Mies building to save his life." Pure Mies it may not be. It's better. Think commercial vernacular meets High Modernism - Texas-style. Inter-Continental Motors is an outstanding opportunity for the creative reuse of a dust-filled showroom, too long forgotten, to become an icon of popular Modernism once again.
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