Our distinguished early modernists Kiehnel & Elliott—who would later make architectural history by moving to Miami and introducing the Art Deco style there—designed Brushton School No. 3, and it is typical of their early work. It is also a good example of how they managed to flourish in conservative Pittsburgh: the form of the building is mostly the same classical shapes that more conventional architects would have drawn, and the Art Nouveau fun is all in the decorations. Richard Kiehnel adapted the ideas that were wafting over from Germany and Austria, hybridized them with the Prairie Style that was blowing in from Chicago, and created his own distinctive style of decoration that replaced the usual Doric, Ionic, and Corinthian ornaments.
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