As an individual with almost 0 architectural experience, I never really thought as the exterior of the Hancock tower had anything to do with the structural integrity of the building. We have something similar here in Canada in The Bow Tower, where the crisscross pattern extends the full length of the building despite the tower being shaped as a semi-circle. Very cool video!
Except, in the Bow Tower, the diagonal grid you see on the exterior is not the structure; it's just mullions in the curtain wall following the structure behind, off of which the curtain wall hangs. You can see this if you go in the lobby. (But, be careful trying to take pictures; the security seem to think anyone taking photos on their camera is a terrorist or something.)
Since moving to Chicago, I have gained a greater appreciation for architecture and urban design. I love so many things about your content! I appreciate your strong enunciation, it makes it easy for me to watch at higher speeds. I respect your ability to be both thorough and succinct. And last (but most importantly) I love how you highlight Chicago in your videos, for being such a 'world class city' we are majorly underrepresented; never leave, PLEASE!!!
I’m in total agreement. I feel Chicago can benefit from more exposure. It’s always New York City and Los Angeles. This channel is like ARCH101 all over again and I think it’s great!
Back in the 1950's one of my joys was discovering the art in architecture, and the discovery was made in Chicago! As a young musician and composer I also discovered the close kinship between architecture and music through looking at those beautiful, remarkable buildings. The two arts seem worlds apart but for me not at all after spending some productive time in Chicago's downtown. To this day I see symphonies in buildings and hear grand spaces in symphonic sound. A real joy to see some of those glorious buildings again in this video. Much thanks.
I love exposing the structure of the building even on the interior. Brace frames are one of the few steel elements not normally requiring fire proofing, so can easily become a part of the design strategy, providing delight and insight into how the building functions for both the studious and casual onbserver.
Thank you Stewart for this great video. As someone who lives in Vancouver, the architectural value of a building’s facade has almost entirely disappeared over the last 3 decades, with almost all new buildings being facades of nothing but glass. The truss tube design is elegant and interesting and I appreciate the time you’ve taken to discuss the different ways a facade can be either a part of the form or a part of the function of a building. Your elegant way of structuring these video essays creates a story that’s both entertaining and informative. Thank you!
The ultimate and most iconic "inside-out" building is the Centre Pompidou, IMO. And it was often used to illustrate this concept. It is taking the outside structure one step further by taking the services outside, too. Well worth a shout-out I think. And boy, was it controversial ...
According to Renzo Piano himself, it was an aesthetic decision that lead to this design. The building’s supporting structure is visible, but only in part. Most of it is covered with technical stuff in an ostentative way, and the plumbing, elevators and escalators, HVAC are treated like ornaments. I think that's a little different than showing and designing the supporting structure of a building.
The difference with This building and the Pompidou center is that this building actually looks aestethically good and the design and structural elements are actually interteined. Rather than making architecture out of the structural elements, Pompidou center just ignored that and leaves us with an outrageosly ugly exterior that only someone who has their eyes set on uniquenes and not beuty can admire
@Bruno Desrosiers seriously don’t hit me with that statement. The concept that beuty is subjective is a modern subject that is true, but does not uphold the entire concept of what is beuty. Yes, beuty is subjective and people think different things are beutiful but there are general ruled conserning beuty that are the same for all humans such as the apriciation of depth symmetry and perfect geometric shapes. The pompidou center has none of these quailities in mind, it only has functionality in mind and that’s why the only people who can appriciate the pompidou center are people who have an indoctrinated view of what beuty is, such as architecure students or modern artists. The general population doesn’t admire these buildings because they havent been lectured on what beuty should be and so they follow their instinct rather than a narrative their education has pulled forward. Conclussion normal people like classicist architecture. People indoctrinated in education prefer cobtemporary buildings.
As an architecture student I love it when you include the plans of the building you´re talking about, even if it´s just for a second, so I can pause and take a deeper look.
I’ve always preferred buildings with structural components as an essential part of the aesthetic. Exposed rafter ceilings, timber framed homes, etc. Appreciate this video a ton!
I’m a real fan of your channel and I’m fascinated with the role that architecture plays in society. As an art student I have a strong memory of visiting the John Hancock Tower as it it was nearing completion. I parked my brand new Mustang on a street next to the tower to get out and look at the building. When I returned back to my car it was dotted with wet cement that fell from the building. I was legally parked but, I guess, the construction workers didn’t get the message about my legal position;-)
This channel. Just now. Just this very video. Convinced me to major in structural engineering and get a minor in architecture. Thanks, I appreciate it. this video shows the art in engineering. I love it.
A more recent and perhaps ultimate example of this “exoskeleton” approach would be the Seattle Public Library by Rem Koolhaas. The encasing structure allows soaring spaces inside with free expression of the crisscrossing ramped floor inside. It creates a gentle and interesting vertical journey for the library patrons as they ascend the ramp to explore books, find a quite corner to study, or contemplate the unimpeded views of the sky or cityscape outside.
Tbh, seeing the building, even with the sensibilities I have (very anti-modernist/postmodernist architecture), I never felt it was ugly. That might be because of it's surroundings. Surrounded by something other than the glass towers of today, it might be ugly. But when juxtaposed to them, it comes across as sturdy, unassuming, and individual. Wide at the base, narrow at the top, almost like a ziggurat
Context matters a lot. That's the reason I hate the county council offices in my town. They'd look fine in the middle of a city, but they're in a residential area, and just feel wrong.
@@qwertyTRiG my favorite architecture is the "Great Camps Style" in the Adirondacks of NY. The short version of it is that in the Gilded Ages all the rich folks of NYC built vacation homes in the mountains but importing exotic materials was very expensive and impractical in the 1880s so they used local resources primarily and the end result is beautiful and perfectly matches the context of building in the middle of forested mountains. (Local stone like Potsdam Sandstone, Granite, Marble plus oak, pine, and maple wood as exposed structural elements)
I've really liked Chicago's Hancock Tower since I was a kid, and the more I understand the purpose of the X-bracing, the more it appeals to me as a frank and even kind of brutal expression of the need for wind bracing. It forms an interesting contrast with the similarly-named John Hancock Tower in Boston -- an elegant building sheathed in a smooth, nearly featureless glass curtain wall. With its thin, rhomboid-shaped plan it's a spectacular piece of architectural sculpture, but structurally it's had a lot of problems because of issues with the glass curtain wall and the excessive movement of the building in even moderate winds. When I moved to Boston for college in the 1970s, most of the facade was covered in plywood boards because the glass panels kept popping out. (People joked that it the "tallest wooden skyscraper in the world.") On the upper floors water would slosh out of the toilets onto the floor because of the wind. Occupancy of the building was delayed by years, and it took a whole lot of money to replace the glass curtain wall and add the necessary wind bracing to the interior of the building to counteract the movement. It would have been better if it had been designed properly in the first place, like its elder sister in Chicago. Once concern I have with moving so much structure to the exterior concerns what happened on 9/11 at the World Trade Center. Both towers limited the structure to the core and the outer skin leaving a huge unobstructed interior floor area, supported on light trusses. These trusses failed in the fires following the plane impacts, which led directly to the collapses. Would a more conventional gridded structural system have survived the terrorist attacks and prevented the collapse of the buildings?
@@DiegoMagengo Fair enough, although I remember when the WTC was in the planning stages these issues were part of the discussion. A plane had crashed into the Empire State Building less than 30 years before in 1945, although it was an accident due to a bone-headed pilot, not a deliberate terrorist attack, and the plane was quite small.
@@christopherstephenjenksbsg4944 that’s true, it must be brought up at some point in the process. By the way I looked up the John Hancock tower in Boston and that design sure is impressive. Hard to believe it was built in the 70s honestly, it looks like some of the buildings they’re churning out nowadays. Really cool despite the initial problems it faced.
Love 875 North Michigan... worked there a few years ago at Jack Morton on the 27th floor. We got free access to the observation deck. There was a mini-cardboard cut-out of the building in the office haha. Never got tired of the view, I miss working there now.
I feel there's an element that speaks "strength". Seeing something holding up a magnificent structure adds an element of ensuring safety under its humbling scale.
Fascinated by how you drew deep to trace the roots of this progression of a handful of ideas that came together into a realized material movement, which took many trajectories from points of synthesis, which in turn seeded more trajectories, etc. Beautiful lil' nugget of a video.
With the CCTV tower's expression of structure in relation to the architect's 'Theory of BIGNESS', where what one observes in the distance is the same as what one sees up close. The building's massive formal concept overpowers all other aspects of structure, making everything equally near or far, close or remote. Great video as always! Enjoyed so much 🙌🙌
Great video as always. Love the work. It is perfect for outsiders like me to understand these stuff. One thing though, the CCTV tower you mentioned at 11:39 is in Beijing, not in Shanghai, China.
Great video! I love the Hancock Tower and visited it when I was in Chicago in 2011. We have a sort of mini-clone here in Melbourne Australia. Now called 140 William Street it opened as BHP House in 1972. BHP was, still is, an iron ore miner, so building out of steel was a bit of a statement. Only comes in at 500 feet but it uses diagonal bracing at three points. I believe the local architects got some design input from SOM and it clearly shows.
I grew up in Chicago and when the John Hancock was completed my Mom and Dad took me to see it. I drew many pictures in art class that year as it made a big impression on me. I still like it very much.
One of the most fascinating discussions of modern building design (to me) was the Citicorp Tower in Manhattan. They built it, but then it turned out that they had not calculated wind loads coming in at the corners of the building, I believe for a 100-year windstorm. I'm a bit hazy on the details at this point, but it was a graduate student made the discovery that the building likely would not hold up to such a storm, so they planned for some retrofits, and then tricked building users out of the building for a period of time long enough to make the alterations which included interior diagonal bracing. Years ago, there was a lengthy article in the New Yorker magazine. And they completed the work just in time for just such a storm. Totally fascinating.
I just have to say it - the John Hancock building is one of the very best tower designs of the mid 20th Century - period. Having worked for SOM as an architect in the 1960's I was completely captivated by this building. The building has a visual strength and integrity far exceeding many other buildings I've seen since then. It isn't very often that a modern design comes along which successfully combines both building structure and building design to complete an absolutely convincing idea. For good reason I think it interesting that not many architects and or developers dared to copy Hancock after it was completed. The tapering form of the building might have more to do with wind loading but I think it's a stroke of geneous!
Thank you Stewart for bring the importance of structures as an achitectural element up. I have no training in achitecture yet I got a PhD in urban and regional planning. In almost every project or planning discussion the aesthetics of structures are a key element for the long term success of projects. From housing to public infraestructure form and function cannot be just the economic optmized solution. It has to consider how it improves the enviroment, fits in the context and is percieved by inhabitants. The Eiffel's brigde (Maria Pia) in Porto is a landmark embraceded as part of local identity.
I don't know if this qualifies but, I've always loved the Transamerica Tower in San Francisco. I love how the vertical elevator and stairwell shafts seem to come out of the pyramid building to frame the top of the pyramid below the spire. I love how the base is structured with a series of triangular and X beams to support the tower. The pyramid shape was used to allow more light to reach the street and park below but, the design was initially hated when it was completed. Eventually, the building became a cherished symbol of the city, like the Hancock Building.
Great video! Another building that comes to mind that shows off its structure somewhat architecturally is the Crystal Palace in London, even predating the Eiffel Tower. The way the steel and glass was put together was informed pretty much only by its structural engineering and arguably was not architectural at all, however I think it definitely pre-empted a lot of the glass and steel structures we see today.
Perhaps seeing the structure or skeleton of a building exposed would probably give an idea of "beauty is what is within oneself". Loving these videos as always Stewart :)
As an Architecture Student i got to say that i am not really qualified to talk about structural elements of buildings but for me these elements can be beautiful and have an ornamental effect to enhance a otherwise boring and flat design.
My favorite is the suspended structure, found in the Sidor offices building, Bolivar State, Venezuela; and Torres Colón, in Madrid, Spain. Quite unique structural system.
I've a friend who lived in Hudson Yards, NYC, for a year and then moved out due to the "whole vibe of it." Among New Yorkers, the Yards are getting neutral to negative reviews. When I ask why they feel this way, I usually get "It's a ghost town at night." Or, "I didn't move to NYC not to live in NYC." There are a lot of opinions about the buildings' functionality, location, and commercial potential, and contribution (or subtraction) to NYC - but it all seems like uninformed opinions and/or sales hype. What are the actual architectural merits or demerits of Hudson Yards? (Of course, the functionality and location is never separate from architecture, is it?) Thank you for your consistently fascinating and educational channel, Stewart. It feeds my brain and soul, and makes walking around the buildings on the streets of NYC a much more active and engaging experience.
When it comes to buildings that encompass structural element into part of the architectural design, I'm always a huge fan of the HSBC building in hong kong designed by Norman Foster and the Sendai Mediatheque designed by Ito Toyo.
Not sure if it counts but I was reminded of the Lloyds building in London. All of the utilities and functional components of the building are on the outside, leaving space for an amazing interior. It has its critics but it’s one of my favourite buildings.
I'm from Porto and wasn't expecting you to mention its bridge, even though I knew it was designed by Eiffel and a world record by the time of its construction. By the way, the photo you showed with no brigde is from the same river but very far from the city. Interestingly, Porto's Arrábida bridge was also the longest concrete arch in the world by the time of it's construction (mid 1960s). Having now 6 brigdes (a 7th is on its way), most of them, if not all, broke some kind of record or had something innovative by the time of their construction.
Renzo piano does this often as well where he likes to deconstruct some his buildings and I find it very interesting. One of my favorite buildings he’s done recently is the new campus for Columbia university in NYC there’s nothing particularly amazing about the project but the way the base of the building is done is really interesting and unique.
Love the videos! As a growing architecture enthusiast and Chicagoan myself, I enjoy both the content and use of local buildings for imagery and footage. Also, for the Inland Steel Building you bring up the idea of having the core structure outside the main frame. Do you think Prudential Plaza (the original) is also built in this style/idea or a precursor? I recall seeing it from the back (north view off Michigan) and noticing a large concrete and concrete block swath where elevators and mechanicals were housed.
It would be really interesting if you did a video on SOMs concrete bundled tube buildings - like One Magnificent Mile in Chicago (I live there if you’re interested in a tour)
The old picture at 11:06 makes the Hancock Tower stick out like a sore thumb and I can understand why people may not have liked it when it was first completed. Now that the city has grown up around it it feels less out of place.
One of my favourite buildings growing up in Vancouver was the Westcoast Transmission Building, which has since been turned into condos and is now called The Qube. It comprises a 13 story concrete core and the rest of the building hangs off of it with these giant straps. It's not a really tall building, but it's just so unique, particularly in place like Vancouver which is so well known for glass podium/point-tower designs.
Thank you for your videos! I really appreciate your depth of analysis and glimpse into the history of the buildings. One small thing, the CCTV building is in Beijing, not Shanghai.
It was the first video I watched from your channel but won't be the last. It was extremely interesting. 2 notes about it: - it's river Douro and not duoro; - in Lisbon you'll find a beautiful small steel tower from 1904 built to help people reaching the top of a hill. It's called elevador de santa justa and it's engineer, Poinsard, was a disciple of Eiffel Thanks!
I focus on Stewart's videos and listen to him carefully more than I do with my architecture professor. the examples given, description of towers recently due to contemporary age is really interesting, I wonder what the future holds for us architects.
150 N Riverside in downtown Chicago is one of my favorites, with an insanely narrow core and the building getting wider at the top. To prevent it from tipping over, there's a giant counterweight on the top floor- FULL OF WATER!! if the building sways one way the heaviness of the water on top it will pull the building back to equilibrium
I can think of Jean Nouvel's Tower Verre in Manhattan as a good example of an exterior structure. The advantage is that you can eliminate the inner curtain wall. Back in Chicago, the Inland Steel building on West Monroe is one of my favourite high-rise buildings. The paradox is that its exterior, clad in stainless steel, is not something that was ever manufactured by the Inland Steel Corporation.
Huge fan of showing off structure in a design! I'm a grad student doing a design/build program called Studio 804 at the University of Kansas and our design has the structure on full display. We've all found it so satisfying to be able to express the structure of a house in a beautiful way!
Really like your channel man. I have a real appreciation for these things but I'm just a roughneck on a drilling rig. You have a very pragmatic way of conveying these complex issues to people like me. And it's a nice break from all the political/cultural BS I normally watch. Thanks man.
Great video and topic. Some fine, more modern examples of this sort of thing in Europe too. Richard Rogers was a master at this: Pompidou Centre, Lloyds of London, the Cheesegrater. Then there's one of my favourite architects: Santiago Calatrava, who turns the structure into a curvaceous sculpture based on nature and things like animal skeletons.
Although these are not skyscrapers, the Alcoy Community Hall and the Oculus by Santiago Calatrava are examples of celebrating the structure. He believes that with careful planning and thought, a building that showcases "the bones" can be something that is both structural and elegant. In terms of the question, "should buildings show how they stand up?", the answer will always be, it depends. Good video! Thanks for sharing.
Considering my profile picture, it's pretty obvious I had to click on this video. There's nothing quite like Chicago's place as a time capsule for all styles of architecture.
The Leadenhall building by Rogers, Stirk, Harbour, + Partners is a personal favorite for the structural expression inside and out. Artful mastery of the elements of building.
You should really check out the Architecture of the different Country pavilions at the Dubai Expo! Its really amazing to see the differences with every Expo pavilion from the years Prior.
reading comments has been as enriching as watching your video. not a fan of chicago, frankly! yet a loyal admirer of its splendid architecture. thank you for sharing and yes, fantastic job! #eifel #porto #liberty ☺️
We have many examples like that here in Brazil, although usually not in the form of skyscrappers. But it's definite characteristic of our modernist expressions. A few examples are the Schools of Architecture of UFBA and USP universities, and the Museum of Modern Art in Rio
I'm not sure it counts in this case but the Lloyds Building in london by RSH+P with all the inner workings of the building on the outside is always fascinating and 30 St Mary Axe (The Gherkin) by Norman Foster has an iconically recognizable structure, column free, and clearly visible throughout
For me the most interesting one is Norman Foster’s HSBC building in Hong Kong. Not only does it have its unique structure on display, but the open space at ground level which serves as a community gathering space shaded from the grueling summer sun serves a vital rose in an area where every other building is either a mall or an elevator lobby at the ground level. And the atrium is pretty cool too. Honorable mention goes to the neighboring Bank of China Tower which also proudly displays its structural framework. (And in another category altogether, the Standard Chartered building on the other side is just a fascinating piece of architecture for other reasons)
Exposed structural steel members became a lot more popular in Christchurch, New Zealand, following the earthquake 11 years ago. Previously Christchurch was a very concrete, brutalist city, but a lot of that construction failed and when people built back, or repaired, they emphasised the steel cross-bracing to provide a sense of safety. The example that comes to my mind most readily is 104 Victoria Street, with the front entrance centered between two beams, probably because I walk past it on my way to work. Another that comes to mind is Warren and Mahoney's headquarters on the corner of Montreal and Cashel, which is a very stark contrast to the weighty concrete of, say, the Student Union building they designed that I spent so much time in back in the day.
My favourite is the Palacio do Itamaraty, by Oscar Niemeyer, it's beautiful arches are both the structure and a central part in the architecturual Identity
And suddenly my city - Porto 😊 and the bridge Dona Maria Pia. Thank you Stewart for mentioning it! Porto is famous for its architects. Sometimes people confuse Dona Maria Pia with the most famous bridge Don Luíz I in the downtown (Ribeira). Don Luíz bridge was actually designed by a Eiffel's collaborator, Théophile Seyrig.
One other thing.. VIDEO IDEA! Can you talk about the architecture of public transit and its inclusion in public spaces? (I'd love to have someone brag about the strengths of elevated rail in particular.. but that is the Chicago in me. :) )
I agree wholeheartedly! I grew up in NYC, and the subway system there, for all of its faults, is fascinating in both its engineering and complex history. My favorite station is one of the first: the old City Hall Station, which is not open to the public, unfortunately. With its Guastavino tile vaulting and mosaics, it's like being in the crypt of a Byzantine church!
Great vid! My only gripe is your audio mixing seems to cut the music in very loudly or very quietly at random while your voice remains consistently quiet. It can be quite distracting when the music suddenly builds up over your voice for no discernable reason.
What is the percentage of residential floor space compared to the commercial percentage of floor space in the John Hancock Tower? It appears that it is a condominium building resting on top of the commercial office space. Visually, it is one of my favorite mid century high-rise buildings and also includes the former Sears Tower.
In London "The Gherkin" 30 St Mary's Axe by Norman Foster and Ken Shuttleworth takes the diagonal bracing to the next level with no vertical members and diagonal members wrapping around it's curved exterior. It's cool thinking of it as a progression from towers like the John Hancock Tower and the pylons of Eiffel.
As an individual with almost 0 architectural experience, I never really thought as the exterior of the Hancock tower had anything to do with the structural integrity of the building. We have something similar here in Canada in The Bow Tower, where the crisscross pattern extends the full length of the building despite the tower being shaped as a semi-circle. Very cool video!
Except, in the Bow Tower, the diagonal grid you see on the exterior is not the structure; it's just mullions in the curtain wall following the structure behind, off of which the curtain wall hangs. You can see this if you go in the lobby. (But, be careful trying to take pictures; the security seem to think anyone taking photos on their camera is a terrorist or something.)
Since moving to Chicago, I have gained a greater appreciation for architecture and urban design. I love so many things about your content! I appreciate your strong enunciation, it makes it easy for me to watch at higher speeds. I respect your ability to be both thorough and succinct. And last (but most importantly) I love how you highlight Chicago in your videos, for being such a 'world class city' we are majorly underrepresented; never leave, PLEASE!!!
I’m in total agreement. I feel Chicago can benefit from more exposure. It’s always New York City and Los Angeles. This channel is like ARCH101 all over again and I think it’s great!
Back in the 1950's one of my joys was discovering the art in architecture, and the discovery was made in Chicago! As a young musician and composer I also discovered the close kinship between architecture and music through looking at those beautiful, remarkable buildings. The two arts seem worlds apart but for me not at all after spending some productive time in Chicago's downtown. To this day I see symphonies in buildings and hear grand spaces in symphonic sound. A real joy to see some of those glorious buildings again in this video. Much thanks.
Frank Lloyd Wright believed that there certainly was a kinship between music and architecture, particularily with the music of Beethoven...
I love exposing the structure of the building even on the interior. Brace frames are one of the few steel elements not normally requiring fire proofing, so can easily become a part of the design strategy, providing delight and insight into how the building functions for both the studious and casual onbserver.
Thank you Stewart for this great video. As someone who lives in Vancouver, the architectural value of a building’s facade has almost entirely disappeared over the last 3 decades, with almost all new buildings being facades of nothing but glass. The truss tube design is elegant and interesting and I appreciate the time you’ve taken to discuss the different ways a facade can be either a part of the form or a part of the function of a building. Your elegant way of structuring these video essays creates a story that’s both entertaining and informative. Thank you!
This channel is one of the only times the algorithm did me a solid.
The ultimate and most iconic "inside-out" building is the Centre Pompidou, IMO. And it was often used to illustrate this concept. It is taking the outside structure one step further by taking the services outside, too. Well worth a shout-out I think. And boy, was it controversial ...
According to Renzo Piano himself, it was an aesthetic decision that lead to this design. The building’s supporting structure is visible, but only in part. Most of it is covered with technical stuff in an ostentative way, and the plumbing, elevators and escalators, HVAC are treated like ornaments. I think that's a little different than showing and designing the supporting structure of a building.
They followed this right through to the visiting experience, where to get inside, you've got to queue up outside.
If you showed me a picture of that building without context, I would think it was under construction.
The difference with This building and the Pompidou center is that this building actually looks aestethically good and the design and structural elements are actually interteined. Rather than making architecture out of the structural elements, Pompidou center just ignored that and leaves us with an outrageosly ugly exterior that only someone who has their eyes set on uniquenes and not beuty can admire
@Bruno Desrosiers seriously don’t hit me with that statement. The concept that beuty is subjective is a modern subject that is true, but does not uphold the entire concept of what is beuty. Yes, beuty is subjective and people think different things are beutiful but there are general ruled conserning beuty that are the same for all humans such as the apriciation of depth symmetry and perfect geometric shapes. The pompidou center has none of these quailities in mind, it only has functionality in mind and that’s why the only people who can appriciate the pompidou center are people who have an indoctrinated view of what beuty is, such as architecure students or modern artists. The general population doesn’t admire these buildings because they havent been lectured on what beuty should be and so they follow their instinct rather than a narrative their education has pulled forward.
Conclussion normal people like classicist architecture. People indoctrinated in education prefer cobtemporary buildings.
As an architecture student I love it when you include the plans of the building you´re talking about, even if it´s just for a second, so I can pause and take a deeper look.
I’ve always preferred buildings with structural components as an essential part of the aesthetic. Exposed rafter ceilings, timber framed homes, etc.
Appreciate this video a ton!
I'm with you!
I’m a real fan of your channel and I’m fascinated with the role that architecture plays in society. As an art student I have a strong memory of visiting the John Hancock Tower as it it was nearing completion. I parked my brand new Mustang on a street next to the tower to get out and look at the building. When I returned back to my car it was dotted with wet cement that fell from the building. I was legally parked but, I guess, the construction workers didn’t get the message about my legal position;-)
Or maybe they did.
This channel. Just now. Just this very video. Convinced me to major in structural engineering and get a minor in architecture. Thanks, I appreciate it. this video shows the art in engineering. I love it.
You bring scholarship and passion to curating the architecture of a city you clearly love.
It's absurd how high quality your channel is
That's very kind.
Lived in Chicago for 8 years, then Paris for 4. Both are some of my favorite structures! Great comparison and history!
You, sir, have lived in two of the greatest cities in the world. How fortunate. Congratulations!
@sergiosaunier very true, I've lived in both as well.
A more recent and perhaps ultimate example of this “exoskeleton” approach would be the Seattle Public Library by Rem Koolhaas. The encasing structure allows soaring spaces inside with free expression of the crisscrossing ramped floor inside. It creates a gentle and interesting vertical journey for the library patrons as they ascend the ramp to explore books, find a quite corner to study, or contemplate the unimpeded views of the sky or cityscape outside.
Tbh, seeing the building, even with the sensibilities I have (very anti-modernist/postmodernist architecture), I never felt it was ugly.
That might be because of it's surroundings. Surrounded by something other than the glass towers of today, it might be ugly. But when juxtaposed to them, it comes across as sturdy, unassuming, and individual. Wide at the base, narrow at the top, almost like a ziggurat
Context matters a lot. That's the reason I hate the county council offices in my town. They'd look fine in the middle of a city, but they're in a residential area, and just feel wrong.
@@qwertyTRiG my favorite architecture is the "Great Camps Style" in the Adirondacks of NY. The short version of it is that in the Gilded Ages all the rich folks of NYC built vacation homes in the mountains but importing exotic materials was very expensive and impractical in the 1880s so they used local resources primarily and the end result is beautiful and perfectly matches the context of building in the middle of forested mountains. (Local stone like Potsdam Sandstone, Granite, Marble plus oak, pine, and maple wood as exposed structural elements)
I've really liked Chicago's Hancock Tower since I was a kid, and the more I understand the purpose of the X-bracing, the more it appeals to me as a frank and even kind of brutal expression of the need for wind bracing. It forms an interesting contrast with the similarly-named John Hancock Tower in Boston -- an elegant building sheathed in a smooth, nearly featureless glass curtain wall. With its thin, rhomboid-shaped plan it's a spectacular piece of architectural sculpture, but structurally it's had a lot of problems because of issues with the glass curtain wall and the excessive movement of the building in even moderate winds. When I moved to Boston for college in the 1970s, most of the facade was covered in plywood boards because the glass panels kept popping out. (People joked that it the "tallest wooden skyscraper in the world.") On the upper floors water would slosh out of the toilets onto the floor because of the wind. Occupancy of the building was delayed by years, and it took a whole lot of money to replace the glass curtain wall and add the necessary wind bracing to the interior of the building to counteract the movement. It would have been better if it had been designed properly in the first place, like its elder sister in Chicago.
Once concern I have with moving so much structure to the exterior concerns what happened on 9/11 at the World Trade Center. Both towers limited the structure to the core and the outer skin leaving a huge unobstructed interior floor area, supported on light trusses. These trusses failed in the fires following the plane impacts, which led directly to the collapses. Would a more conventional gridded structural system have survived the terrorist attacks and prevented the collapse of the buildings?
I don’t think planning for planes crashing into towers is a huge priority for the engineers and architects😶
@@DiegoMagengo Fair enough, although I remember when the WTC was in the planning stages these issues were part of the discussion. A plane had crashed into the Empire State Building less than 30 years before in 1945, although it was an accident due to a bone-headed pilot, not a deliberate terrorist attack, and the plane was quite small.
@@christopherstephenjenksbsg4944 that’s true, it must be brought up at some point in the process. By the way I looked up the John Hancock tower in Boston and that design sure is impressive. Hard to believe it was built in the 70s honestly, it looks like some of the buildings they’re churning out nowadays. Really cool despite the initial problems it faced.
@@christopherstephenjenksbsg4944 the only thing I will say is that it must be a bird’s biggest nightmare😅
Love 875 North Michigan... worked there a few years ago at Jack Morton on the 27th floor. We got free access to the observation deck. There was a mini-cardboard cut-out of the building in the office haha. Never got tired of the view, I miss working there now.
I feel there's an element that speaks "strength". Seeing something holding up a magnificent structure adds an element of ensuring safety under its humbling scale.
Another home run, Stewart. You are a great teacher.
Fascinated by how you drew deep to trace the roots of this progression of a handful of ideas that came together into a realized material movement, which took many trajectories from points of synthesis, which in turn seeded more trajectories, etc. Beautiful lil' nugget of a video.
With the CCTV tower's expression of structure in relation to the architect's 'Theory of BIGNESS', where what one observes in the distance is the same as what one sees up close. The building's massive formal concept overpowers all other aspects of structure, making everything equally near or far, close or remote. Great video as always! Enjoyed so much 🙌🙌
Great video as always. Love the work. It is perfect for outsiders like me to understand these stuff. One thing though, the CCTV tower you mentioned at 11:39 is in Beijing, not in Shanghai, China.
Yeah, I messed that up. I'll pin a comment with the correction.
Great quality video as usual. I seriously appreciate your content Stewart.
Great video! I love the Hancock Tower and visited it when I was in Chicago in 2011. We have a sort of mini-clone here in Melbourne Australia. Now called 140 William Street it opened as BHP House in 1972. BHP was, still is, an iron ore miner, so building out of steel was a bit of a statement. Only comes in at 500 feet but it uses diagonal bracing at three points. I believe the local architects got some design input from SOM and it clearly shows.
I grew up in Chicago and when the John Hancock was completed my Mom and Dad took me to see it. I drew many pictures in art class that year as it made a big impression on me. I still like it very much.
One of the most fascinating discussions of modern building design (to me) was the Citicorp Tower in Manhattan. They built it, but then it turned out that they had not calculated wind loads coming in at the corners of the building, I believe for a 100-year windstorm. I'm a bit hazy on the details at this point, but it was a graduate student made the discovery that the building likely would not hold up to such a storm, so they planned for some retrofits, and then tricked building users out of the building for a period of time long enough to make the alterations which included interior diagonal bracing. Years ago, there was a lengthy article in the New Yorker magazine. And they completed the work just in time for just such a storm. Totally fascinating.
I just have to say it - the John Hancock building is one of the very best tower designs of the mid 20th Century - period. Having worked for SOM as an architect in the 1960's I was completely captivated by this building. The building has a visual strength and integrity far exceeding many other buildings I've seen since then. It isn't very often that a modern design comes along which successfully combines both building structure and building design to complete an absolutely convincing idea. For good reason I think it interesting that not many architects and or developers dared to copy Hancock after it was completed. The tapering form of the building might have more to do with wind loading but I think it's a stroke of geneous!
Thanks Stewart, brilliant video and really enjoying the channel, many thanks!
Thank you Stewart for bring the importance of structures as an achitectural element up. I have no training in achitecture yet I got a PhD in urban and regional planning. In almost every project or planning discussion the aesthetics of structures are a key element for the long term success of projects. From housing to public infraestructure form and function cannot be just the economic optmized solution. It has to consider how it improves the enviroment, fits in the context and is percieved by inhabitants. The Eiffel's brigde (Maria Pia) in Porto is a landmark embraceded as part of local identity.
Loved this episode! I far enjoyed your explanations from this video essay more than the dull lectures back in architecture school.
Great as always, but this video struck me as one of you most enjoyable videos yet.
I don't know if this qualifies but, I've always loved the Transamerica Tower in San Francisco. I love how the vertical elevator and stairwell shafts seem to come out of the pyramid building to frame the top of the pyramid below the spire. I love how the base is structured with a series of triangular and X beams to support the tower. The pyramid shape was used to allow more light to reach the street and park below but, the design was initially hated when it was completed. Eventually, the building became a cherished symbol of the city, like the Hancock Building.
Great video! Another building that comes to mind that shows off its structure somewhat architecturally is the Crystal Palace in London, even predating the Eiffel Tower. The way the steel and glass was put together was informed pretty much only by its structural engineering and arguably was not architectural at all, however I think it definitely pre-empted a lot of the glass and steel structures we see today.
I am a big fan of Structural Expression in buildings. Great Video!
I’m really glad I found this channel. Thank you for this content, Stewart.
Perhaps seeing the structure or skeleton of a building exposed would probably give an idea of "beauty is what is within oneself". Loving these videos as always Stewart :)
ironworker/structural welder tapping in just to say i learned a lot and loved this!
Haha, I like how you keep calling it the Sears Tower.
Great videos always btw. I love the effort and research you put in to make so interesting.
Real Chicagoans still say Sears Tower. What choo talkin' bout...Willis?
He's using the original name of the buildings. Hancock Center is now called 875 North Michigan Avenue for instance.
I just like Chicagoans determination, in general, to say screw you to the rename and keep calling it what they actually know it as
As an Architecture Student i got to say that i am not really qualified to talk about structural elements of buildings but for me these elements can be beautiful and have an ornamental effect to enhance a otherwise boring and flat design.
wow! I have never seen any lively building related comment section until now. Massive thanks for bringing us together
My favorite is the suspended structure, found in the Sidor offices building, Bolivar State, Venezuela; and Torres Colón, in Madrid, Spain. Quite unique structural system.
I've a friend who lived in Hudson Yards, NYC, for a year and then moved out due to the "whole vibe of it." Among New Yorkers, the Yards are getting neutral to negative reviews. When I ask why they feel this way, I usually get "It's a ghost town at night." Or, "I didn't move to NYC not to live in NYC." There are a lot of opinions about the buildings' functionality, location, and commercial potential, and contribution (or subtraction) to NYC - but it all seems like uninformed opinions and/or sales hype. What are the actual architectural merits or demerits of Hudson Yards? (Of course, the functionality and location is never separate from architecture, is it?) Thank you for your consistently fascinating and educational channel, Stewart. It feeds my brain and soul, and makes walking around the buildings on the streets of NYC a much more active and engaging experience.
When it comes to buildings that encompass structural element into part of the architectural design, I'm always a huge fan of the HSBC building in hong kong designed by Norman Foster and the Sendai Mediatheque designed by Ito Toyo.
I can’t get over how well (and simply) the thumbnail displays the content of the video
Edit: it also just looks super fucking cool
I love your video style and presentation 👍 informative and professional!!
Not sure if it counts but I was reminded of the Lloyds building in London. All of the utilities and functional components of the building are on the outside, leaving space for an amazing interior. It has its critics but it’s one of my favourite buildings.
I loved this. Stewart Hicks and B1M are my favourites
0:28 never knew that the floors just beneath the Sky ledge deck of the Sears tower were for wireless communications equipment
The Hancock building looks really clean, idk why people wouldn't like it.
Thanks for continued thought and inspiration through architecture
Wonderful video! The Rem Koolhaas CCTV Tower is in Beijing, not Shanghai.
Oh no!
I'm from Porto and wasn't expecting you to mention its bridge, even though I knew it was designed by Eiffel and a world record by the time of its construction. By the way, the photo you showed with no brigde is from the same river but very far from the city.
Interestingly, Porto's Arrábida bridge was also the longest concrete arch in the world by the time of it's construction (mid 1960s).
Having now 6 brigdes (a 7th is on its way), most of them, if not all, broke some kind of record or had something innovative by the time of their construction.
Renzo piano does this often as well where he likes to deconstruct some his buildings and I find it very interesting. One of my favorite buildings he’s done recently is the new campus for Columbia university in NYC there’s nothing particularly amazing about the project but the way the base of the building is done is really interesting and unique.
Love the videos! As a growing architecture enthusiast and Chicagoan myself, I enjoy both the content and use of local buildings for imagery and footage.
Also, for the Inland Steel Building you bring up the idea of having the core structure outside the main frame. Do you think Prudential Plaza (the original) is also built in this style/idea or a precursor? I recall seeing it from the back (north view off Michigan) and noticing a large concrete and concrete block swath where elevators and mechanicals were housed.
It would be really interesting if you did a video on SOMs concrete bundled tube buildings - like One Magnificent Mile in Chicago (I live there if you’re interested in a tour)
The old picture at 11:06 makes the Hancock Tower stick out like a sore thumb and I can understand why people may not have liked it when it was first completed. Now that the city has grown up around it it feels less out of place.
Every day's a school day and I love it, thanks Stewart.
One of my favourite buildings growing up in Vancouver was the Westcoast Transmission Building, which has since been turned into condos and is now called The Qube. It comprises a 13 story concrete core and the rest of the building hangs off of it with these giant straps. It's not a really tall building, but it's just so unique, particularly in place like Vancouver which is so well known for glass podium/point-tower designs.
Thank you for your videos! I really appreciate your depth of analysis and glimpse into the history of the buildings. One small thing, the CCTV building is in Beijing, not Shanghai.
It was the first video I watched from your channel but won't be the last. It was extremely interesting. 2 notes about it:
- it's river Douro and not duoro;
- in Lisbon you'll find a beautiful small steel tower from 1904 built to help people reaching the top of a hill. It's called elevador de santa justa and it's engineer, Poinsard, was a disciple of Eiffel
Thanks!
Chicago is a beautiful patchwork city full of a wide variety of architectural styles
I focus on Stewart's videos and listen to him carefully more than I do with my architecture professor.
the examples given, description of towers recently due to contemporary age is really interesting, I wonder what the future holds for us architects.
150 N Riverside in downtown Chicago is one of my favorites, with an insanely narrow core and the building getting wider at the top. To prevent it from tipping over, there's a giant counterweight on the top floor- FULL OF WATER!! if the building sways one way the heaviness of the water on top it will pull the building back to equilibrium
I can think of Jean Nouvel's Tower Verre in Manhattan as a good example of an exterior structure. The advantage is that you can eliminate the inner curtain wall. Back in Chicago, the Inland Steel building on West Monroe is one of my favourite high-rise buildings. The paradox is that its exterior, clad in stainless steel, is not something that was ever manufactured by the Inland Steel Corporation.
Thank you for another excellent video …
Huge fan of showing off structure in a design! I'm a grad student doing a design/build program called Studio 804 at the University of Kansas and our design has the structure on full display. We've all found it so satisfying to be able to express the structure of a house in a beautiful way!
Excellent narration
Really like your channel man. I have a real appreciation for these things but I'm just a roughneck on a drilling rig. You have a very pragmatic way of conveying these complex issues to people like me. And it's a nice break from all the political/cultural BS I normally watch. Thanks man.
i really like the look of it, its a lot better then just flat/abstract glass towers.
At first glance, I saw the thumbnail as one building. One rather fantastic building.
love this channel!
Great video and topic. Some fine, more modern examples of this sort of thing in Europe too. Richard Rogers was a master at this: Pompidou Centre, Lloyds of London, the Cheesegrater. Then there's one of my favourite architects: Santiago Calatrava, who turns the structure into a curvaceous sculpture based on nature and things like animal skeletons.
So he’s responsible for the City of Arts and Sciences in Valencia. What an amazing complex!
Although these are not skyscrapers, the Alcoy Community Hall and the Oculus by Santiago Calatrava are examples of celebrating the structure. He believes that with careful planning and thought, a building that showcases "the bones" can be something that is both structural and elegant. In terms of the question, "should buildings show how they stand up?", the answer will always be, it depends. Good video! Thanks for sharing.
Considering my profile picture, it's pretty obvious I had to click on this video. There's nothing quite like Chicago's place as a time capsule for all styles of architecture.
Thanks a lot for this amazing video
Not really.
What is decorative now at one time was structural and reflects that.
The Leadenhall building by Rogers, Stirk, Harbour, + Partners is a personal favorite for the structural expression inside and out. Artful mastery of the elements of building.
You should really check out the Architecture of the different Country pavilions at the Dubai Expo! Its really amazing to see the differences with every Expo pavilion from the years Prior.
reading comments has been as enriching as watching your video. not a fan of chicago, frankly! yet a loyal admirer of its splendid architecture. thank you for sharing and yes, fantastic job! #eifel #porto #liberty ☺️
We have many examples like that here in Brazil, although usually not in the form of skyscrappers. But it's definite characteristic of our modernist expressions.
A few examples are the Schools of Architecture of UFBA and USP universities, and the Museum of Modern Art in Rio
I'm not sure it counts in this case but the Lloyds Building in london by RSH+P with all the inner workings of the building on the outside is always fascinating and 30 St Mary Axe (The Gherkin) by Norman Foster has an iconically recognizable structure, column free, and clearly visible throughout
For me the most interesting one is Norman Foster’s HSBC building in Hong Kong. Not only does it have its unique structure on display, but the open space at ground level which serves as a community gathering space shaded from the grueling summer sun serves a vital rose in an area where every other building is either a mall or an elevator lobby at the ground level. And the atrium is pretty cool too.
Honorable mention goes to the neighboring Bank of China Tower which also proudly displays its structural framework. (And in another category altogether, the Standard Chartered building on the other side is just a fascinating piece of architecture for other reasons)
Its nice to learn this video those iconic building build..
Great video!
Exposed structural steel members became a lot more popular in Christchurch, New Zealand, following the earthquake 11 years ago. Previously Christchurch was a very concrete, brutalist city, but a lot of that construction failed and when people built back, or repaired, they emphasised the steel cross-bracing to provide a sense of safety.
The example that comes to my mind most readily is 104 Victoria Street, with the front entrance centered between two beams, probably because I walk past it on my way to work. Another that comes to mind is Warren and Mahoney's headquarters on the corner of Montreal and Cashel, which is a very stark contrast to the weighty concrete of, say, the Student Union building they designed that I spent so much time in back in the day.
My favourite is the Palacio do Itamaraty, by Oscar Niemeyer, it's beautiful arches are both the structure and a central part in the architecturual Identity
And suddenly my city - Porto 😊 and the bridge Dona Maria Pia.
Thank you Stewart for mentioning it! Porto is famous for its architects.
Sometimes people confuse Dona Maria Pia with the most famous bridge Don Luíz I in the downtown (Ribeira). Don Luíz bridge was actually designed by a Eiffel's collaborator, Théophile Seyrig.
Yes, I got very confused in my research! They look so much alike...
It's innactive now though
But there's another "normal" Eiffel bridge a bit up north over the river Lima
Great videos … thanks !
Oh yeah, visible structural bracing in front of spectacular views really gets me going. I guess this was the right channel for me 😆
1:14 the signature room, nice all you can eat during the weekends 😋
Stewart，your videos are awesome . A little remark, CCTV building is in Beijing not in Shanghai.
Masterfully Done
Nice work 👌👌👌
333 W Wacker is a fave because it is so contextual in a totally new way
One other thing.. VIDEO IDEA! Can you talk about the architecture of public transit and its inclusion in public spaces? (I'd love to have someone brag about the strengths of elevated rail in particular.. but that is the Chicago in me. :) )
I agree wholeheartedly! I grew up in NYC, and the subway system there, for all of its faults, is fascinating in both its engineering and complex history. My favorite station is one of the first: the old City Hall Station, which is not open to the public, unfortunately. With its Guastavino tile vaulting and mosaics, it's like being in the crypt of a Byzantine church!
Great vid! My only gripe is your audio mixing seems to cut the music in very loudly or very quietly at random while your voice remains consistently quiet. It can be quite distracting when the music suddenly builds up over your voice for no discernable reason.
How can I find the distribution of iron (weight) down the Eiffel Tower or any skyscraper? The ET didn't have to support lots of concrete.
What is the percentage of residential floor space compared to the commercial percentage of floor space in the John Hancock Tower? It appears that it is a condominium building resting on top of the commercial office space. Visually, it is one of my favorite mid century high-rise buildings and also includes the former Sears Tower.
I think my favorite functional exterior design would have to be the Twin Towers. It's just such a basic yet exquisite design
In London "The Gherkin" 30 St Mary's Axe by Norman Foster and Ken Shuttleworth takes the diagonal bracing to the next level with no vertical members and diagonal members wrapping around it's curved exterior. It's cool thinking of it as a progression from towers like the John Hancock Tower and the pylons of Eiffel.