Why Are All New Buildings Glass Boxes?

Walk through any modern city today—from London to Jakarta—and you’ll likely see the same thing: tall, sleek towers covered entirely in glass. But why does everything suddenly look like a giant iPhone?

Where did the Glass Box Trend Come From?

Glass buildings gained popularity in the early 1900s. The International Style, a movement in architecture that eschewed ornamentation and championed function, clean lines, and yes, lots of glass, was influenced by architects such as Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, who is well-known for saying "less is more."

Glass was regarded as clean, honest, and futuristic (you could "see through" the structure!). And when glass barriers became tougher and more energy-efficient due to technological advancements, cities jumped on board.

Why Do Cities Keep Building Them?

The glass box design has emerged as the preferred style for new construction for several reasons:

1. Less expensive and quicker to construct: Compared to traditional brick or stone, glass curtain walls—basically, large panes of glass on the outside of a steel frame—can be installed more quickly. Glass provides developers with high impact, speed, and affordability.

2. Allow Light to Exist: Natural light is adored by all. Big glass windows create bright interiors, reduce the demand for artificial lighting, and offer excellent views—especially in skyscrapers. Both employees and tenants benefit from it.

3. Glass = Modern: There is a cultural belief that glass is synonymous with modernity. You wrap your structure in glass if you want it to appear modern, futuristic, or polished. This international design language conveys the message that "we're keeping up with the times."

What’s the Downside?

Despite their cool appearance, glass buildings have some significant disadvantages:

• Is the sun shining through all of that? It transforms structures into enormous greenhouses. To stay cool, glass structures frequently require powerful air conditioning, which consumes a lot of energy.

• Birds are confused by transparent glass. They frequently perish on impact after flying directly into windows. This has resulted in significant bird deaths in urban areas like Toronto and New York.

• The majority of glass buildings are not as eco-friendly as you might think, despite their sleek appearance. In the cold, they lose more heat, while in the summer, they absorb too much. To accomplish climatic targets, some cities, like New York, have even outlawed new buildings made entirely of glass.

The glass box may be going out of style, or at the very least, being given a serious reconsideration. Architects are experimenting with smart glass (that tints itself in sunlight), shading systems, and hybrid façades that mix glass with wood, stone, or metal. Adaptive reuse, or renovating existing structures rather than demolishing them to construct new ones, is another emerging trend.

Future cities may resemble more imaginative, environmentally conscious, and people-centered areas rather than identical boxes as a result of increased pressure to design sustainably.

Citations

1. International Style - Overview (no date). https://www.theartstory.org/movement/international-style (Accessed: July 22, 2025).

2. Potter, B. (2025) 'Why skyscrapers became glass boxes,' Construction Physics, 13 January. https://www.construction-physics.com/p/why-skyscrapers-became-glass-boxes (Accessed: July 22, 2025).

3. Schoenefeldt, H. (2024) Glass skyscrapers: An environmental bane to the built environment. https://trellis.net/article/glass-skyscrapers-environmental-bane-built-environment/.