ABSTRACT
While smaller scale cantilevers have been used in buildings throughout the history of architecture, large scale dramatic cantilevers are relatively new. Traditional building materials, such as stone and wood, have critical limitations to produce large cantilevers. When large cantilevers are designed for buildings, they almost always remain as cantilevers. Large iron/steel cantilevers emerged in architecture in the late 19th century not as horizontal cantilevers but as vertical cantilevers, including the early tall buildings in Chicago and New York. The chapter presents the concept of horizontal cantilevers employed for a significant portion of a building. It focuses on efficient proportioning of symmetrical and asymmetrical cantilevers. After that, cantilevered buildings of various configurations are presented, such as one-sided cantilevers, two-sided cantilevers, merged cantilevers and stacked multiple cantilevers. Lightness is one of the most important themes of modern architecture and architects have pursued various design ideas to achieve it.
