Heightened Awareness: An Architectural Guide to Chicago
Soho House, House Notes, January 2019
Chicago is not known as a city of architecture for nothing – Lynn Osmond, president of Chicago Architecture Center, shares five iconic buildings from the skyline.
One of the best ways to explore Chicago’s eclectic architectural landscape, once the winter chill wears off, is from a boat tour of the Chicago river. To get you inspired, Lynn Osmond, the President and CEO of the Chicago Architecture Center, has compiled a short list of her favorite landmarks along the water.
1. 150 North Riverside
‘Designed in 2017 by Goettsch Partners, this award-winning building has been described by architects as being “like a ballerina…muscular, but on point.” Put in the simplest terms, it’s a core-supported structure that squeezes 1.2 million sq ft into an 85ft-wide site that was previously thought to be unbuildable. Its location between railroad tracks and the river dictates its unusual shape, which flares out as it rises up past the eighth of its 54 storeys.’
2. The Merchandise Mart
‘This Art Deco building was designed in 1930 by Graham Anderson Probst and White for Marshall Field as a warehouse and rental space for retailers – it features more than 8.5 miles of corridors. In the late 20th century it evolved into a hub for designers and, today, it’s reinvented again as a tech hub calling itself theMART. On most nights, you can view a permanent large scale lighting installation – Art on theMART – on the structure’s exterior.’
3. Marina City
‘This round twin-tower concrete complex, designed by Bertrand Goldberg, is much loved by Chicagoans; the residential mixed-use buildings are affectionately known by locals as the “corncobs”. Built in the early 1960s, Goldberg’s vision embraced the Bauhaus philosophy of functionality – at a time when people were fleeing downtown, he worked to draw the middle class to the city by providing them with a safe residential, recreational and commercial experience.’
4. The New Chicago Architecture Center
‘Located at 111 E Wacker, the Chicago Architecture Center is in the last building designed by the office of Mies van der Rohe. It’s a great place to start exploring the city of architecture, whether through taking a tour, joining a lecture, viewing the exhibits or visiting the CAC’s design store. Within the Center you’ll also find the Chicago Gallery, featuring a large scale, digitally enhanced model of the city, as well as the soaring Skyscraper Gallery, which tells the story of the “race to the top”.’
5. Vista Tower
‘Designed by Soho House member Jeanne Gang, the city’s new Vista Tower is due to be completed in 2020. At 1,200ft-tall, it’s the largest skyscraper to date that has been designed by a woman and the third-tallest building in Chicago. The three adjoined towers – which will form a mixed-use building that includes a hotel and residential condominiums – feature a very pronounced vertical stepped profile, which Gang says was inspired by the crystalline form of fluorite.’