Scenes from the Day
Gail Fenske, Professor of Architecture, Roger Williams University, speaks about the various candidates put forward as the “first skyscraper” within history of modern architecture.
Geoffrey Baer, Producer & Program Host, WTTW, chairs the session “First Skyscrapers, Part I.”
Mir M. Ali, Professor Emeritus, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, talks about the Home Insurance Building in Chicago and why it qualifies as the first skyscraper.
Gerald Larson, Professor Emeritus of Architecture, University of Cincinnati, discusses why he believes the Home Insurance Building in Chicago was not actually the world’s first skyscraper.
Thomas Leslie, Morrill Professor in Architecture, Iowa State University, examines the first two tall buildings that matched a frame “entirely of iron” with an “envelope” supporting only themselves.
Pauline Saliga, Executive Director, Society of Architectural Historians, chairs the session “First Skyscrapers, Part II.”
Gerard Peet, Urban and Regional Planning Lecturer, Rotterdam University of Applied Sciences, presents an inventory of “first skyscrapers” in different regions of the world.
Jhennifer Amundson, O'More College of Architecture, Art and Design Dean, Belmont University, talks about the Jayne Building in Philadelphia providing the world’s first observation deck open to the public.
Beyhan Karahan, Principal Beyhan Karahan & Associates Architects, highlights the Park Row Building in New York and how it paved the way for future large office towers.
Christopher Wilson, Architecture and Design Historian, Ringling College of Art and Design, shares his thoughts on the Wainwright Building in St. Louis and how it embraced its tallness with a seamless design.
Benjamin L. Ross, Historic Preservation Specialist, RATIO Architects, provides insight on the Fagin Building in St. Louis and it being the “first” glass curtain wall skyscraper.
Attendees of the First Skyscrapers | Skyscraper Firsts Symposium listen intently to the day’s presentations.
Presenters in the symposium answer questions from delegates during the Q&A portion.
Virginia Bonicatto, Researcher, Universidad Nacional de La Plata asks a question to the First Skyscrapers | Skyscraper Firsts Symposium presenters.
Delegates took a break from the engaging presentations to enjoy a tasty lunch.
Richard Pulling, Executive Consultant, Otis Elevator Company, chairs the session “Skyscraper Firsts.”
Lucien Wedzikowski, High Rise Director, Otis Elevator Company, explains how double-deck elevator technology has spread across the globe and made handling building traffic more efficient.
Lee Gray, Senior Associate Dean of Arts + Architecture, University of North Carolina at Charlotte, talks about how roped hydraulic elevators were specifically designed to meet the needs of tall buildings in the later half of the twentieth century.
Ken Demuth, Partner, Pappageorge Haymes Partners, discusses how modern business office towers, such the Old Colony Building in Chicago, pushed the limits of design to achieve ever-increasing scale, efficiency, and innovation.
Darrin VonStein, Architectural Historian, Darrin VonStein, relays how architects and engineers in Chicago and New York embraced the technological and structural advances afforded by skeletal construction which would allow skyscrapers to reach unprecedented heights.
Andrew Gleeson, Lecturer, Iowa State University, testifies how 860–880 Lake Shore Drive in Chicago is the Prime Object skyscraper, where all roads before and after lead to its glass front door.
Darrin VonStein, Architectural Historian, Darrin VonStein, responds to questions during the session’s Q&A portion.
Benjamin Flowers, Professor, The Ohio State University; Donald Friedman, President, Old Structures Engineering; Carol Willis, President, The Skyscraper Museum; Reed Kroloff, Dean of Architecture, Illinois Institute of Technology; and Pauline Saliga, Executive Director, Society of Architectural Historians participate in the panel discussion “Reflections on Criteria for First Skyscrapers,” chaired by Antony Wood, Chief Executive Officer, Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat.
Markus Jetter, Head of Research & Innovation Center Rottweil, thyssenkrupp, asks a question to the panel of esteemed academics and historians.
Delegates snap photos from stories above the ground during the Vista Tower construction tour as part of the Chicago off-site program, “Creating Connections.”
Delegates of the CTBUH 10th World Congress take pictures of the city before embarking on the off-site program, Activating an Urban Riverfront, which includes a guided boat tour along the Chicago River.
Ernest Wong, Principal, Site Design Group, answers a question during the Q&A following presentations on the Chicago River during the Chicago off-site “Activating an Urban Riverfront.”
Zurich Esposito (left), Executive Vice President, AIA chairs the Chicago off-site program that explored the redevelopment of the Chicago River corridor.
Assistant Commissioner for the City of Chicago, Cynthia Roubik, listens during the Q&A portion of the Chicago off-site focusing on the Chicago River at the CTBUH 10th World Congress. To her right sit fellow presenters Ernest Wong, Principal, Site Design Group, and Ann Thompson, Senior Vice President, Architecture and Design at Related Midwest.
Delegates on the walk to the boat tour along the Chicago river, as part of the Chicago off-site program “Activating an Urban Riverfront.”
Delegates enjoy the view from the Chicago River boat tour, as part of an off-site program on riverside development.
Attendees of the off-site program “Activating an Urban Riverfront” took in misty views of Chicago’s downtown area during a boat tour along the river.
At the Vista Tower off-site program, “Creating Connections,” kindly hosted by Magellan Development Group, delegates heard from the team that shaped Vista’s programmatic elements and aesthetic concept, and then put on hard hats and safety vests for a building tour.
Todd Wendell, Vice President of Architecture & Design, Magellan Development Group, discusses how Vista Tower will create unprecedented urban connections and enhance public access to the Chicago River.
The Vista Tower off-site program, Charles Hasbrouck, Director, bKL Architecture leads delegates on an in-depth construction tour as part of the CTBUH 10th World Congress.
Thorsten Johann, Design Principal at Studio Gang, discusses how Vista Tower will create unprecedented urban connections and enhance public access to the Chicago River.
Attendees of the off-site program “Creating Connections,” head towards Vista Tower for an exclusive construction tour during the first snowfall of the season. Upon completion, Vista Tower (Studio Gang) is set to be the tallest building designed by a woman-led architecture firm.
The construction tour of Chicago’s most celebrated new skyscraper, Vista Tower, offers unparalleled views of the city and Lake Michigan.
Delegates stream into the lobby at 150 North Riverside, where the off-site program, “Rising on the Riverside: Overcoming Site Challenges, Improving the Public Realm” explores two graceful office buildings that use extraordinary engineering techniques to create a public right-of-way for the city’s Riverwalk system.
The CTBUH 10th World Congress Off-Site Program at 150 North Riverside and 110 North Wacker is kindly sponsored by Howard Hughes and Riverside Development.
Scott Seyer, Principal, Goettsch Partners; Program Chair, Chris Payne Senior Construction Manager, Riverside Investment & Development, and Erik Harris, Senior Associate, Goettsch, address participants at the 150 North Riverside and 110 North Wacker off-site program.
Joachim Schuessler Principal, Goettsch Partners presents “Running the River: 150 North Riverside + 110 North Wacker” during the CTBUH 10th World Congress.
Scott Seyer, Principal, Goettsch Partners takes delegates on a tour of two projects on opposite banks of the Chicago River—the recently-completed 150 North Riverside and the under-construction 110 North Wacker Drive.
Rob Chmielowski, Senior Principal at Magnusson Klemencic Associates presents “150 North Riverside: Elevated, Anchored, and Tuned” during the off-site program at the CTBUH 10th World Congress.
Delegates follow Dave Weihing, Senior Principal, Thornton Tomasetti on a construction tour of 110 North Wacker Drive, Chicago's tallest office building in 30 years.
At 875 North Michigan Avenue, delegates toured the world’s first mixed-use supertall and visited its mechanical floor, as part of the off-site programs during the CTBUH 10th World Congress.
Delegates of the CTBUH 10th World Congress explore the striking interior of LondonHouse Chicago during the off-site program, “Adaptive Reuse for Tall Buildings.”
Leonard Koroski, Principal, Goettsch Partners presents “LondonHouse Chicago: Birth and Rebirth – A Story of Preservation, Adaptive Reuse and Expansion” during the CTBUH 10th World Congress.
David Nickell, Principal, TGRWA discusses renovating a Chicago landmark at the LondonHouse off-site program.
Project Superintendents, Pat Kerrigan and Mike Gabel W.E. O`Neil Construction Co. discuss building at the bustling Chicago intersection where LondonHouse was developed during an off-site program at the CTBUH 10th World Congress.
Keith Cestare, Director of Operations, LondonHouse Chicago, leads an in-depth tour of LondonHouse after presentations take place during the off-site program, “Adaptive Reuse for Tall Buildings,”, kindly hosted by Oxford Capital Group.
William Baker, Partner, Skidmore, Owings & Merrill LLP and Patricia Agrela, Architectural Designer, Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, present at the CTBUH 10th World Congress off-site program, “Explore the World’s First Mixed-Use Supertall” at 875 North Michigan Avenue (formerly John Hancock Center).
At 875 North Michigan Avenue, delegates explore one of the most iconic buildings on the Chicago skyline, during an off-site comprised of presentations and tours, which was kindly organized by Skidmore, Owings & Merrill LLP.
View from the 36th floor of 875 N Michigan, where presentations on the world’s first mixed-use supertall building were held during the Chicago off-site programs portion of the CTBUH 10th World Congress.
Delegates enjoy the tilt ride—part of the viewing experience at 875 N Michigan during the off-site program “The World’s First Mixed-Use Supertall.”
Delegates arrive at the landmark Wrigley Building to attend the off-site program “Transforming a 1920’s Icon for the Next Century.”
Tim Wolfe, Principal, Interior Design Director at Perkins+Will presents “Adding a Modern Office into the Wrigley Building” at the CTBUH 10th World Congress.
Delegates enjoy coffee and take in the surrounding views at the iconic Wrigley Building during the Chicago off-site program, "Transforming a 1920s icon for the next Century."