860–880 Lake Shore Drive is a twin pair of glass-and-steel apartment towers on N.
Lake Shore Drive along
Lake Michigan in the
Streeterville neighborhood of Chicago,
Illinois
Illinois ( ) is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolitan areas include, Peoria and Rockf ...
. Construction began in 1949 and the project was completed in 1951. The towers were added to the
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...
on August 28, 1980, and were designated as
Chicago Landmarks on June 10, 1996. The 26-floor, 254-ft (82 m) tall towers were designed by the architect
Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, and dubbed the "Glass House" apartments. Construction was by the Chicago
real estate developer
Real estate development, or property development, is a business process, encompassing activities that range from the renovation and re- lease of existing buildings to the purchase of raw land and the sale of developed land or parcels to othe ...
Herbert Greenwald Herbert Greenwald (August 16, 1915 – February 3, 1959) was a Chicago real estate developer who utilized Ludwig Mies van der Rohe as the design architect for several landmark modern residential buildings.
Personal life
Herbert "Squiff" Greenwald ...
, and the Sumner S. Sollitt Company. The design principles were copied extensively and are now considered characteristic of the modern
International Style as well as essential for the development of modern
high-tech architecture.
The towers were not entirely admired at the time they were built, yet they went on to be the prototype for steel and glass skyscrapers worldwide. Initially, it was difficult to acquire
financing
Funding is the act of providing resources to finance a need, program, or project. While this is usually in the form of money, it can also take the form of effort or time from an organization or company. Generally, this word is used when a firm use ...
for the project, turned down by lenders like
Baird & Warner, who considered the design scheme to be too extreme. 860–880 Lake Shore Drive Apartments embody a Modernistic tone with their verticality, grids of steel and glass
curtain walls (a hallmark of Mies' skyscrapers), and complete lack of
ornamentation
An ornament is something used for decoration.
Ornament may also refer to:
Decoration
*Ornament (art), any purely decorative element in architecture and the decorative arts
*Biological ornament, a characteristic of animals that appear to serve on ...
. Tenants had to accept the neutral gray curtains that were uniform throughout the buildings; no other curtains or blinds were permitted lest they mar the external appearance.
Since Mies was a master of
minimalist
In visual arts, music and other media, minimalism is an art movement that began in post– World War II in Western art, most strongly with American visual arts in the 1960s and early 1970s. Prominent artists associated with minimalism include Do ...
composition, his principle was "
less is more" as it is demonstrated in his self-proclaimed "skin and bones"
architecture
Architecture is the art and technique of designing and building, as distinguished from the skills associated with construction. It is both the process and the product of sketching, conceiving, planning, designing, and constructing building ...
.
The structural engineer for the project was
Georgia Louise Harris Brown
Georgia Louise Harris Brown (June 12, 1918 – September 21, 1999), is considered to be the second African American woman to become a licensed architect in the United States. She was also the first black woman to earn a degree in architecture from ...
, who was the first African American to receive an architecture degree from the University of Kansas, and the second African American woman to receive an architecture license in the United States.
Controversy
This building, like many of his Chicago high-rise structures, caused controversy in the pure minimalist community due to its
mullions
A mullion is a vertical element that forms a division between units of a window or screen, or is used decoratively. It is also often used as a division between double doors. When dividing adjacent window units its primary purpose is a rigid supp ...
. Mies is hailed as the father of "
less is more"; however, 860–880 Lake Shore Drive is covered in non-functional
I-beam
An I-beam, also known as H-beam (for universal column, UC), w-beam (for "wide flange"), universal beam (UB), rolled steel joist (RSJ), or double-T (especially in Polish, Bulgarian, Spanish, Italian and German), is a beam with an or -shape ...
mullions. Mies explains how the mullions do not violate his less is more philosophy in a 1960 interview: "To me structure is something like logic. It is the best way to do things and express them". The mullions on his buildings reflect the inner structure and therefore give truth to the aesthetic of the building. The idea of truth in architecture aligns with the aesthetic and principles of the
international style as taught at the
Bauhaus
The Staatliches Bauhaus (), commonly known as the Bauhaus (), was a German art school operational from 1919 to 1933 that combined crafts and the fine arts.Oxford Dictionary of Art and Artists (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 4th edn., 20 ...
.
Although the 860-880 buildings were the first high-rises to look like they were sheathed with a
curtain wall, they in fact were not, because the windows were attached to the structure, not to the decorative-only mullions. It was van der Rohe's
900-910 North Lake Shore
900 910 North Lake Shore are a pair of glass and steel buildings, perpendicular to one another, designed by architect Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, in the Streeterville neighborhood of Chicago. Completed in 1956, they marked the refinement of Mies' ...
(aka Esplanade Apartments) just to the north that were the first high-rises to actually have an uninterrupted glass/aluminum curtain wall, although not the first with a curtain wall.
Renovations
Krueck and Sexton Architects
Krueck Sexton Partners (formerly Krueck + Sexton Architects) is an architecture practice in Chicago, Illinois, United States, founded by Ron Krueck and Mark Sexton in 1979. Tom Jacobs was named the third principal in 2011 and now serves as one of ...
of Chicago were commissioned to
renovate
Renovation (also called remodeling) is the process of improving broken, damaged, or outdated structures. Renovations are typically done on either commercial or residential buildings. Additionally, renovation can refer to making something new, ...
the historical towers. Teaming up with them were the preservation architects,
Harboe Architects Harboe may refer to:
People
* Ludvig Harboe, Danish bishop
* Rasmus Harboe, Danish sculptor
* Felipe Harboe
Felipe Harboe Bascuñán (born 20 July 1972 in Eindhoven, Netherlands) is a Dutch-born Chilean politician from the Party for Democracy a ...
and the forensic and structural analysis firm,
Wiss, Janney, Elstner Associates, Inc. They were directed to fix prior
renovations
Renovation (also called remodeling) is the process of improving broken, damaged, or outdated structures. Renovations are typically done on either commercial or residential buildings. Additionally, renovation can refer to making something new, ...
which took away from the historical accuracy of the towers.
Architects
An architect is a person who plans, designs and oversees the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to provide services in connection with the design of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the buildings that h ...
were assigned to restore the distorted lighting scheme with original
translucent
In the field of optics, transparency (also called pellucidity or diaphaneity) is the physical property of allowing light to pass through the material without appreciable scattering of light. On a macroscopic scale (one in which the dimensions ...
glass, replace the deteriorating
travertine
Travertine ( ) is a form of terrestrial limestone deposited around mineral springs, especially hot springs. It often has a fibrous or concentric appearance and exists in white, tan, cream-colored, and even rusty varieties. It is formed by a p ...
plaza
A town square (or square, plaza, public square, city square, urban square, or ''piazza'') is an open public space, commonly found in the heart of a traditional town but not necessarily a true geometric square, used for community gatherings. ...
, which connects the two towers, and exchange for stones with more historical precision.
Recognition
* The buildings were finished in 1951 and were featured in a 1957 article in
Life Magazine on Mies.
* In 1996 they became the first buildings designed by Mies van der Rohe to receive
Chicago Landmark Status.
* The glass towers have been on the National Register of Historic Places since 1980.
[
* In June 2005, the ]United States Postal Service
The United States Postal Service (USPS), also known as the Post Office, U.S. Mail, or Postal Service, is an independent agency of the executive branch of the United States federal government responsible for providing postal service in the U ...
included the towers in the commemorative stamp program, Masterworks of Modern Architecture, wherein they were listed as one of the "12 outstanding examples of modern buildings".
* In celebration of the 2018 Illinois Bicentennial, 860-880 Lake Shore Drive was selected as one of the Illinois 200 Great Places by the American Institute of Architects
The American Institute of Architects (AIA) is a professional organization for architects in the United States. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., the AIA offers education, government advocacy, community redevelopment, and public outreach to su ...
Illinois component (AIA Illinois).
Figures and statistics
* The twin towers are 26 stories high.
* The buildings are 46 feet apart.
* The steel skeletal frames rest on a 21-foot grid and are uniform in their design.
* The building was originally designed for 860 to contain 90 three bedroom apartments and 880 to hold 158 one bedroom apartments. Many of the units have been combined to enlarge living spaces.
Zoned schools
Residents are zoned to Chicago Public Schools
Chicago Public Schools (CPS), officially classified as City of Chicago School District #299 for funding and districting reasons, in Chicago, Illinois, is the third-largest school district in the United States, after New York and Los Angeles.
...
. Residents are zoned to Ogden School and Wells Community Academy High School
William H. Wells Community Academy High School (commonly known as Wells High School) is public 4-year high school located in the West Town neighborhood on the Near Northwest Side of Chicago, Illinois, United States. Wells is a part of the Chic ...
.[West/Central/South High Schools]
." Chicago Public Schools. Retrieved on September 17, 2009.
References
External links
Emporis
Article and photos by a+t architecture publishers
IIT Mies Society page on 860–880 Lake Shore Drive
860–880 Lake Shore Drive website (Official site of 860-880 Owner/Tenants and Trust)
''The Glass House, 860-880 Lake Shore Drive, A Home for Gracious Living''
(1957 brochure)
''Chicago's "Glass Houses:" Restoring the Recent Past at 860-880 Lake Shore Drive''
(2009 article)
Illinois Great Places
860-880 Lake Shore Drive
Society of Architectural Historians SAH ARCHIPEDIA entry on 860-880 Lake Shore Drive
{{DEFAULTSORT:860-880 Lake Shore Drive Apartments
Chicago Landmarks
Lake Shore Drive Apartments
Apartment buildings in Chicago
Housing cooperatives in the United States
Residential buildings completed in 1951
Residential buildings on the National Register of Historic Places in Chicago
Residential skyscrapers in Chicago
Twin towers
1940s architecture in the United States
International style architecture in Illinois
Modernist architecture in Illinois
1951 establishments in Illinois