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While it is actually shaped like an oval, the name comes from the visual attributes of the epigeal portion of the structure.
After enthusiastic cries from local stakeholders for a memorial to the St. Louis riverfront in 1933, a signal was sent out across the world for an architect bold enough to capture the essence of the booming regional center nestled in a subtle oxbow of The Big Muddy.
Eero Saarinen began drafting the oval in 1939 and completed the design for the lower half of the structure in 1943. Pleased with his work, he decided that the lower half was not just a draft, but a place to build from. From 1943-1947 he began his intense study of gravity strictly in terms of stainless steel structures whose physics are mystical to those not engulfed in the studies of Vitruvius.
In an astonishing coincidence of symmetry, Eero closed his pocket notebook after a long day of plein air sketching on the Eades bridge. When he returned to this sketch, the opposing page was stamped with the outline of his underground vision. This carbon copy oval solidified his endearment with a quote from Mae West creating a simple yet stunning realization - If a little is great, and a lot is better, then way too much is just about right!
While the inversion of his original design would come with a laundry list of new challenges regarding gravity, weather, and aesthetics, Saarinen knew to leave well enough alone and committed himself to simply mirroring the Underground Arch to be the visible monument we live in the humble shadows of today.