What happened to deco Bonwit Teller? Trump Tower trends online as White House demolition sparks outrage

The internet has exploded in anger over a viral photo of the East Wing of the White House being demolished for a new 90,000-square-foot ballroom. This has stirred up painful memories of a contentious demolition led by Donald Trump decades ago, involving the historic Bonwit Teller building in Manhattan.

He had made the promise of saving its Art Deco treasures for the Metropolitan Museum of Art, which never happened.

The current backlash began when images of contractors removing sections of the East Wing surfaced on social media earlier this week. Many detractors have compared the situation to the 1980 Trump redevelopment of the Bonwit Teller department store site on Fifth Avenue in New York City, where Trump built Trump Tower.

Remember when Trump ‘destroyed’ the Art Deco Friezes on the Bonwit Teller building when he was building Trump Tower in New York?

He promised to preserve them and gift them to The Met.

He lied. In the same way he lied about the White House.

He DESTROYED history.

U.S. history.. pic.twitter.com/ai5zOQ9Agk

— Donaldo 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 (@Stornoway_Cove) October 21, 2025

The building, built in 1929 and designed by the same architects who built Grand Central Terminal, drew attention for its architecture and its ties to modern art. Window displays were once created here by now-famous artists like Salvador Dalí, Jasper Johns, Robert Rauschenberg, and Andy Warhol, making Bonwit Teller an unexpected breeding ground of avant-garde art. 

Upon purchasing the property in 1979, Trump committed to donating two large limestone Art Deco friezes and a bronze grille from the building's façade to the Metropolitan Museum of Art, but that promise went unfulfilled.

It was reported that, during the demolition, workers destroyed the sculptures with jackhammers and blowtorches, to the point that it all became rubble. Trump later defended the decision, citing cost and safety considerations because the delays to construction would have been too burdensome.

More about the recent construction taking place inside the White House

According to the White House, the recent construction project, funded through private donations, would include a large ballroom capable of accommodating up to 1,000 guests.

Preservation groups, including the National Trust for Historic Preservation, have urged the project to be paused until it moves through a formal public review process. The groups argue that demolition could result in a permanent loss of the historic aspect of the presidential residence.

The Trump Tower Grand Ballroom takes shape on the White House East Wing… 💪😂 pic.twitter.com/oEgbt7q9xx

— Richard Moody (@hdcat1) October 22, 2025

Now, after more than 40 years, the similarities between the Bonwit Teller demolition and the current controversy around the East Wing have rekindled public discussion on Trump’s record on preservation.

On social media, users have shared old headlines about the Art Deco friezes, comparing the 1980s New York project to the present remodel of perhaps one of America's most iconic buildings.

The White House maintains that the new ballroom, said to be built with a $200 million private donation, won’t impact the main residence and that historic materials from the East Wing are being saved under National Park Service oversight. Still, critics argue that the administration should have listened to the public input before demolishing part of the 83-year-old structure.