The earliest shopping malls of the 1950s resembled bunkers. They were built to keep people out of the cold and out of the Cold War. The shopping malls of the 70s and 80s took on a life of their own, with neon lights and retro designs. These malls were arguably America’s greatest communal spaces of the century. They were gigantic chat rooms before the internet existed.
Since the 9/11 terrorist attacks in America, I’ve noticed that the shopping mall has once again changed to meet consumers’ needs. In an effort to make shoppers feel safe from a potential terrorist attack, shopping mall architects began deconstructing the mall space. The roofs were torn off and stores spaced out to create open malls. It was an architectural shift that made sense, especially with more and more Americans wanting more energy-efficient buildings. Americans wanted to feel safer and to shop under the glow of sunlight instead of fluorescent lights. Significantly, consumers were no longer susceptible to the Gruen effect because they were looking down at their smart phones. Therefore, the shopping mall as we once knew it became just a shell of its former self.
—Seph Lawless (Author and Huffpost Journalist)