Curtis and Davis Architects and Engineers was an architectural and design firm in New Orleans, Louisiana USA.

[citation needed] In 2011, Kenneth Schwartz, then dean of the Tulane University School of Architecture, stated: "It [Curtis and Davis] was the pivotal firm of the city from the 1950s on.

[1] Curtis approached Davis about forming the firm,[4] at a time when they perceived that the city of New Orleans was ripe for an infusion of modernist architecture.

[5] Revivalist designs had dominated New Orleans architecture in the years leading up to the founding of Curtis and Davis.

The two founders then capitalized the firm for USD 500 and rented office space on Union Street in the New Orleans Central Business District.

By 1960, the firm had a considerable number of international design projects underway and had opened satellite offices in New York, London, Berlin, and Los Angeles.

Its headquarters at the time was in the Caribe Building, also a Curtis and Davis design, located at 2475 Canal Street in New Orleans.

[6] As part of the firm's successful expansion, Curtis and Davis employed a marketing director (then called a "job-getter") and instituted a public relations program.

[7]: 28 Typical of architectural practice,[8] Curtis and Davis often collaborated with other architects and designers, especially for large projects.

[9] By 1971, Curtis and Davis housed their headquarters in an historic and renovated sugar warehouse at 111 Iberville Street in the French Quarter of New Orleans.

Subsequently he served in the United States Navy as a lieutenant commander in World War II.

[3] Curtis and Davis architectural designs emphasized modernist aesthetics while making use of advances in materials and technologies.

Buildings designed by Curtis and Davis included ones for purposes that are commercial, educational, religious, recreational, residential, and even penal.

[1] The design style combined regionalism with functional characteristics in which they strived to show that the building belonged where it was built.

[14][15] In the early years of the firm, the local resistance to modernist style resulted in Curtis and Davis missing out on certain architectural design projects.

[6] An early project of Curtis and Davis was the Municipal Court House and Precinct Jail on Rampart Street in New Orleans.

A particularly distinctive feature was the roof of the building, fabricated of pressed concrete in six barrel shapes, giving an appearance of undulation.

The Rivergate Convention Center had 130,000 square feet of exhibit space with seating for up to 17,000 people, in addition to smaller meeting rooms.

As the commitment of the United States to Vietnam deepened, the original design of Curtis and Davis was significantly expanded by the architectural firm Adrian Wilson and Associates.

[22] The roof of the building subsequently was the site of the helicopter evacuation after the Fall of Saigon at the end of the Vietnam War.

[26] Curtis and Davis designed other buildings for IBM, including ones in Burlington, Vermont, Jackson, Mississippi, and Shreveport, Louisiana.

Curtis and Davis intended the design of the stadium to be suggestive of the grandeur of the arenas of ancient Rome and Greece.

Curtis and Davis designed the exterior of the Louisiana Superdome to have a bronze anodized finish in order to provide a distinct appearance compared to standard coatings.

Fifteen of their designs were constructed in the New Orleans metropolitan area, in addition to the Harkey House of Pascagoula, Mississippi.

[1] In the 1950s, the newly opened Municipal Court House and Precinct Jail included a nude sculpture by Enrique Alférez.

Local people, especially parishioners at nearby Our Lady of Guadalupe Roman Catholic Church, objected to the nude art.

[33] In 1974, Curtis and Davis allegedly donated $15,625 in political contributions in exchange for a half million dollars worth of contracts.

[13] By the 1970s, as a result of the economic downturn related to the 1973 oil crisis, Curtis and Davis focused on developing new design projects in the Middle East, especially Saudi Arabia.