Art Deco architecture began in Europe, but by 1939 there were examples in large cities on every continent and in almost every country. This is a selection of prominent buildings on each continent.

For a comprehensive list of existing buildings by country, see: List of Art Deco architecture.

Africa

Most Art Deco buildings in Africa were built during European colonial rule, and often designed by Italian, French and Portuguese architects.

Asia

Kologdam Building in Bandung, Indonesia (1920)
Tokyo Metropolitan Teien Art Museum in Tokyo, Japan (1933)
New India Assurance Building in Mumbai, India (1936)
National Diet Building in Tokyo, Japan (1936)
Ankara railway station in Ankara, Turkey (1937)
Cebu Provincial Capitol in Cebu City, Philippines (1938)
Dare House in Chennai, India (1940)
General Post Office in Bangkok, Thailand (1940)

Many Art Deco buildings in Asia were designed by European architects. But in the Philippines, local architects such as Juan Nakpil, Juan Arellano, Pablo Antonio and others were preeminent. Many Art Deco landmarks in Asia were demolished during the great economic expansion of Asia the late 20th century, but some notable enclaves of the architecture still remain, particularly in Shanghai and Mumbai.

The Indian Institute of Architects, founded in Mumbai in 1929, played a prominent role in propagating the Art Deco movement. In November 1937, this institute organised the 'Ideal Home Exhibition' held in the Town Hall in Mumbai which spanned over 12 days and attracted about one hundred thousand visitors. As a result, it was declared a success by the 'Journal of the Indian Institute of Architects'. The exhibits displayed the 'ideal', or better described as the most 'modern' arrangements for various parts of the house, paying close detail to avoid architectural blunders and present the most efficient and well-thought-out models. The exhibition focused on various elements of a home ranging from furniture, elements of interior decoration as well as radios and refrigerators using new and scientifically relevant materials and methods.^[149] Guided by their desire to emulate the west, the Indian architects were fascinated by the industrial modernity that Art Deco offered.^[149] The western elites were the first to experiment with the technologically advanced facets of Art Deco, and architects began the process of transformation by the early 1930s.^[149]

Mumbai's expanding port commerce in the 1930s resulted in the growth of educated middle class population. It also saw an increase of people migrating to Mumbai in search of job opportunities. This led to the pressing need for new developments through Land Reclamation Schemes and construction of new public and residential buildings.^[150] Parallelly, the changing political climate in the country and the aspirational quality of the Art Deco aesthetics led to a whole-hearted acceptance of the building style in the city's development. Most of the buildings from this period can be seen spread throughout the city neighbourhoods in areas such as Churchgate, Colaba, Fort, Mohammed Ali Road, Cumbala Hill, Dadar, Matunga, Bandra and Chembur.^[151]^[152]

Australia and New Zealand

Grace Building in Sydney, Australia (1930–31)
Sound Shell in Napier, New Zealand (1931)
Façade of the Castlemaine Art Museum, Australia (1931), architect Percy Meldrum, frieze by Orlando Dutton
Elmslea Chambers in Goulburn, Australia (1933)
Anzac Memorial in Sydney, Australia (1934)
Holyman House in Launceston, Tasmania, Australia (1936)
Century Building in Melbourne, Australia (1939)

Melbourne and Sydney, Australia, have several notable Art Deco buildings, including the Manchester Unity Building and the former Russell Street Police Headquarters in Melbourne, the Castlemaine Art Museum in Castlemaine, central Victoria and the Grace Building, AWA Tower and Anzac Memorial in Sydney.

Several towns in New Zealand, including Napier and Hastings were rebuilt in Art Deco style after the 1931 Hawke's Bay earthquake, and many of the buildings have been protected and restored. Napier has been nominated for UNESCO World Heritage Site status, the first cultural site in New Zealand to be nominated.^[153]^[154] Wellington has retained a sizeable number of Art Deco buildings.^[155]

North America

Verizon Building in New York City, USA (1923–1927)
Miami Art Deco District in South Beach, Florida, USA (1925–1940s)
KiMo Theater's Pueblo Deco architecture in Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA (1927)
Bullocks Wilshire in Los Angeles, California, USA (1929)
The Price Building in Quebec City, Quebec, Canada (1930)
Louisiana State Capitol in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, USA (1930–1932)
Buffalo City Hall in Buffalo, N.Y., USA (1931)
Jefferson County Courthouse in Beaumont, Texas, USA (1931)
Niagara Mohawk Building in Syracuse, N.Y., USA (1932)
Cincinnati Union Terminal in Cincinnati, Ohio, USA (1933)
Interior of the Palacio de Bellas Artes (Palace of Fine Arts) in Mexico City, Mexico (1934)
Vancouver City Hall in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada (1935)
Edificio El Moro in Mexico City, Mexico (1936)
Monumento a la Revolución in Mexico City, Mexico (1938)

In Canada, surviving Art Deco structures are mainly in the major cities; Montreal, Toronto, Hamilton, Ontario, and Vancouver. They range from public buildings like Vancouver City Hall to commercial buildings (College Park) to public works (R. C. Harris Water Treatment Plant).

In Mexico, the most imposing Art Deco example is interior of the Palacio de Bellas Artes (Palace of Fine Arts), finished in 1934 with its elaborate décor and murals. Examples of Art Deco residential architecture can be found in the Condesa district, many designed by Francisco J. Serrano.

In the United States, Art Deco buildings are found from coast to coast, in all the major cities. It was most widely used for office buildings, train stations, airport terminals, and cinemas; residential buildings are rare. During the 1920s and 1930s architects in the Southwestern United States, particularly in the US state of New Mexico, combined Pueblo Revival with Territorial Style and Art Deco to create Pueblo Deco, as seen in the KiMo Theater in Albuquerque. In the 1930s, the more austere streamline style became popular. Many buildings were demolished between 1945 and the late 1960s, but then efforts began to protect the best examples. The City of Miami Beach established the Miami Beach Architectural District to preserve the fine collection of Art Deco buildings found there.

Central America and the Caribbean

Art Deco buildings can be found throughout Central America, including in Cuba.

Bacardi Building in Havana, Cuba (1930)
Hotel Nacional de Cuba in Havana, Cuba (1930)
Lopez Serrano Building in Havana, Cuba (1932)
A rundown Art Deco building in Havana, Cuba
Plaza del Mercado de Ponce in Ponce, Puerto Rico, US (1941)

Europe

Théâtre des Champs-Élysées in Paris, France (1910–1913)
Helsinki Central Station in Helsinki, Finland (1919)
National Basilica of the Sacred Heart in Koekelberg (Brussels), Belgium (1919–1969)
Mossehaus with Art Deco elements by Erich Mendelsohn in Berlin, Germany (1921–1923)
Radio Kootwijk in Kootwijk, Netherlands (1927)
Capitol Building in Madrid's Gran Vía, Spain (1931)
Milano Centrale railway station in Milan, Italy (1931)
Éden Theatre in Lisbon, Portugal (1931)
Embassy of France in Belgrade, Serbia (1933)
Daily Express Building in Manchester, UK (1936–1939)
Palais de Tokyo, Musée d'Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris, France (1937)
Ventilation tower of the Maastunnel in Rotterdam, Netherlands (1937)^[156]
Rivoli Theater in Porto, Portugal (1937)
Mayakovskaya Station in Moscow, Russia (1938)

The architectural style first appeared in Paris with the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées (1910–13) by Auguste Perret but then spread rapidly around Europe, until examples could be found in nearly every large city, from London to Moscow. In Germany two variations of Art Deco flourished in the 1920s and 30s: The Neue Sachlichkeit style and Expressionist architecture. Notable examples include Erich Mendelsohn's Mossehaus and Schaubühne in Berlin, Fritz Höger's Chilehaus in Hamburg and his Kirche am Hohenzollernplatz in Berlin, the Anzeiger Tower [de] in Hanover and the Borsig Tower [af] in Berlin.^[157]

One of the largest Art Deco buildings in Western Europe is the National Basilica of the Sacred Heart in Koekelberg, Brussels. In 1925, architect Albert van Huffel won the Grand Prize for Architecture with his scale model of the basilica at the Exposition Internationale des Arts Décoratifs et Industriels Modernes in Paris.^[158]

Spain and Portugal have some striking examples of Art Deco buildings, particularly movie theaters. Examples in Portugal are the Capitólio Theater (1931) and the Éden Cine-Theatre (1937) in Lisbon, the Rivoli Theater (1937) and the Coliseu (1941) in Porto and the Rosa Damasceno Theater (1937) in Santarém. An example in Spain is the Cine Rialto in Valencia (1939).

During the 1930s, Art Deco had a noticeable effect on house design in the United Kingdom,^[57] as well as the design of various public buildings.^[77] Straight, white-rendered house frontages rising to flat roofs, sharply geometric door surrounds and tall windows, as well as convex-curved metal corner windows, were all characteristic of that period.^[78]^[159]^[160]

The London Underground is famous for many examples of Art Deco architecture,^[161] and there are a number of buildings in the style situated along the Golden Mile in Brentford. Also in West London is the Hoover Building, which was originally built for The Hoover Company and was converted into a superstore in the early 1990s.

Bucharest, once known as the "Little Paris" of the 19th century, engaged in a new design after World War I, redirected its inspiration towards New York City. The 1930s brought a new fashion which echoed in the cinema, theatre, dancing styles, art and architecture. Bucharest during the 1930s was marked by more and more Art Deco architecture from the bigger boulevards like Bulevardul Magheru to the private houses and smaller districts. The Telephone Palace, an early landmark of modern Bucharest, was the first skyscraper of the city. It was the tallest building between 1933 and the 1950s, with a height of 52.5 metres (172 ft). The architects were Louis Weeks and Edmond van Saanen Algi and engineer Walter Troy. The Art Deco monuments are a crucial part of the character of Bucharest since they describe and mark an important period from its history, the interbellic life (World War I–World War II). Most of the buildings from those years are prone to catastrophe, as Bucharest is located in an earthquake zone.^[162]

South America

Lacerda Elevator in Salvador, Bahia, Brazil (1930)
Kavanagh Building in Buenos Aires, Argentina (1934–1936)
Viaduto do Chá in São Paulo, Brazil (1938)
Pacaembu Stadium in São Paulo, Brazil (1940)
Palácio Duque de Caxias in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil (1941)
Central do Brasil Station in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil (1943)
Abasto Market in Buenos Aires, Argentina (c. 1945)
Entrance of the Higher University of San Andrés in La Paz, Bolivia (1946)
Altino Arantes Building in São Paulo, Brazil (1947)
Palacio Municipal and fountain in Laprida (Buenos Aires), Argentina

Art Deco in South America is especially present in countries that received a great wave of immigration in the first half of the 20th century, with notable works in their richest cities, like São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro in Brazil and Buenos Aires in Argentina. The Kavanagh Building in Buenos Aires (1934), by Sánchez, Lagos and de la Torre, was the tallest reinforced-concrete structure when it was completed and is a notable example of late Art Deco style.