New Formalism is an offshoot of late Modern architecture that more readily embraced (albeit in an abstracted manner) classical precedents. Employing historic features such as vaulting, columns, and classical proportions, the style is commonly seen on government and civic buildings.
New Formalism began to appear in the mid-1950s as a reaction against Modernism's functionalist aesthetics. Early buildings attempted to place more value into aesthetics and revisit the proportions and forms of classical antiquity. Edward Durell Stone's 1958 Time interview emphasized his personal approach to the style--"what we need is to put pure beauty into our buildings." New Formalism flourished during the 1960s, mostly on the West Coast.
New Formalism's references to classical architecture can be seen in a few notable qualities. In terms of expression, abstracted and geometric features such as colonnades, entablatures, and vaulting are common on the exteriors. Materiality is rich, commonly stone such as marble or travertine. Buildings are proportioned in a classical manner, having strong axes and a hierarchy in plan. Relating to Modernism's propensity towards monumentality, New Formalist designs are usually on a pedestal and have surrounding plazas with landscape or water features.
New Formalism declined by the late 1960s as Modernism did. As a more underground movement, it lacked mainstream popularity.