More interesting Chicago architecture

I took a look at the photos and really couldn't find a connection to the Pantheon. How are you seeing that?

The view to the sky...



a google image of the Rome Pantheon via kevino.net, built primarily by Hadrian back in (whatever).

I didn't look that closely at Turrell's building, but the one in Rome is actually open to the sky, rain comes down through that opening, and there are drainholes directly below it...

From today's Chicago Tribune, page 4

I just caught that about Renzo Piano's bridge, Walter. Interesting...


Here's an article on Chicago architecture in today's SF Chronicle by John King -
HERE







A clip from the article --

Chicago's architectural razzmatazz
New or old, skyscrapers reflect city's brash and playful character
John King, Chronicle Urban Design Writer
Sunday, July 30, 2006


The seven-block stroll from the Washington Block to the Contemporaine condominium complex offers a crash course in architectural history, Chicago style.

The corner of Wells and Washington streets is where the Washington Block rose in 1873 after the citywide conflagration that everyone now agrees was not started by Mrs. Leary's cow. A plaque on the wall proclaims the handsome structure and its four stories of sturdy limestone to be a landmark; the 7-Eleven on the ground floor proclaims it to be part of the workaday life of the Loop, Chicago's ever-bustling core.

Walk north on Wells, and you're underneath what gives the Loop its name, the rugged metal trellis that supports an elevated railway for commuters and spits down water and grit when trains rumble overhead. You cross the Chicago River -- pause to gape at the skyscraping clutter of modern boxes and Art Deco crowns that adorns a million postcards -- and then amble down into a warehouse district of aged brick and stone that now houses lofts or bistros or furniture stores.

All of which feels cozy until, at Grand Avenue, the Contemporaine greets you with a jolt: no limestone, no brick -- just monochromatic concrete and glass with a four-story base and 11 stories of condominiums set to one side like an off-kilter stack of packing crates. The muscular concrete frame juts up at the end of each floor to carve terraces from air; on the base, glass walls reveal the garage inside as though the cars were on display.

The Washington Block is 133 years old; the Contemporaine is so new it received an award this summer from the American Institute of Architects. Yet they make fitting bookends, because they share a common trait. They're brash and nonchalant at once -- just like the city itself.
end of quote -
See link above for more description...

A new high rise for Chicago - something a bit different:

link here -
Visionary architect fuses imagination, common sense, by John King in SF Chronicle






a second photo from another project of her's (there are more photos) discussed in the article -




clip about the high rise, from article -

The final project shown was Aqua, the 82-story tower Gang has designed for a block just north of Millennium Park, the wondrous new urban playground along Michigan Avenue. While it will stand among a dozen similarly scaled behemoths -- this is Chicago, after all -- Aqua is sure to attract notice: The balconies will swell out and pull back with tidal grace, as though waves were rippling across the facade. With no two floors exactly alike.

Whimsical and indulgent? Not at all. The undulations may be reminiscent of weathered limestone -- Gang's analogy -- but they serve a purpose. The undulating balconies will reach out as far as 12 feet, and the most pronounced ripples will be in spots that grab unexpected views of nearby landmarks.

Gang also hopes the Aqua's ever-shifting silhouette will pay dividends to the public at large. It becomes a show for passers-by, a new dimension to a dense city.

"We want to give something to the person who's a pedestrian, acknowledge that their viewpoint is different, privilege them in some ways," Gang said, adding, with dry candor, "that's not something you talk about with the developer."

There's movement toward making the Pilsen area an art colony as well as manufacturing. I gather some of it already is, from what one of the Chicago a2kers said around the time of the a2k 2006 Chicago get together.

Here's a good article on it that also has a map and images - Chicago Business