2 minute read
X FACTORS
Clockwise from top: One of many custom artworks throughout 800 Fulton Market, a multi-tenant office building in Chicago by Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, is a Kate Lynn Lewis mural, which creates a focal point in the employee-only amenities area. Cantilevered over the terrazzo-floored lobby, the concrete mezzanine level’s glass railing juxtaposes with exposed concrete and brick structural elements. A nylon-rope wall installation is a subtle nod to the rope-bound barrels in the property’s former incarnation as a fish market. Exposed structural steel braces balance the elevator core on the opposite side of the building. A custom marble floor inlay defines a lobby lounge.
JULIE MICHIELS
BRIAN LEE
futureofdesign
x factors
Offering amenities galore, Skidmore, Owings & Merrill’s 800 Fulton Market in Chicago is gaining traction with pandemic-weary companies, including John Deere, that are returning to the office. Originally conceived as a point of differentiation in a competitive market, the 500,000-squarefoot tower’s laser-sharp focus on health and wellness took on even more relevance when it became one of the first new mixed-use buildings to open in the Windy City amidst the pandemic.
In addition to offering a fitness center, bike storage, and cutting-edge technologies that monitor air quality and occupancy, the 19-story brick, glass, and steel structure boasts large, light-filled spaces with tall exposed concrete ceilings, operable windows, and access to landscaped terraces. “There’s a stronger connection to nature, and the air quality is great,” SOM consulting partner Brian Lee says.
In deference to the neighborhood’s low-key character, the building’s upper floors gradually step back from a brick-clad three-story base, creating tiered elevations not visible from the sidewalk. There’s nothing modest, however, about the series of exposed structural steel X-bracing crisscrossing a soaring bank of windows on the south-facing elevation. Designed to expand and contract with changes in temperature, “It’s a beautiful piece of engineering,” Lee says.
The firm’s engineers proved equally invaluable in realizing the steelsupported mezzanine that cantilevers over the three-story lobby. A spot to mingle, it also fosters a sense of intimacy in the lounge below it, where tailored furnishings are grouped in various configurations atop a graphic white marble inlay in the dark terrazzo flooring, all bordered by greeneryfilled steel planters. “It’s like an urban living room,” SOM senior associate principal Julie Michiels says. “Collaboration has always been our secret sauce and these elements are a testament to that.” —Tate Gunnerson
