860–880 Lake Shore Drive Apartments

{{Infobox NRHP

| name = Buildings at 860–880 Lake Shore Drive

| designated_other1_name = Chicago Landmark

| designated_other1_date = June 10, 1996

| designated_other1_abbr = CL

| designated_other1_link = Chicago Landmark

| designated_other1_color = #aaccff

| image = 860-880 Lake Shore Drive.jpg

| caption = 860–880 Lake Shore Drive

| location = 860–880 N. Lake Shore Drive Chicago, Illinois

| coordinates = {{coord|41|53|55|N|87|37|7|W|display=inline,title}}

| locmapin = United States Chicago Central#Illinois#USA

| built = {{Start date|1949}}

| architect = Ludwig Mies van der Rohe

| architecture = International Style

| added = August 28, 1980

| area = {{convert|1.2|acre}}

| refnum = 80001344{{NRISref|version=2010a}}

}}

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. Construction began in 1949 and the project was completed in 1951. The towers were added to the National Register of Historic Places on August 28, 1980, and were designated as Chicago Landmarks on June 10, 1996.{{cite web|url=http://www.ci.chi.il.us/Landmarks/numbers/860880LSD.html |title=860–880 Lake Shore Drive |publisher=City of Chicago Department of Planning and Development, Landmarks Division |year=2003 |access-date=May 14, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070503170038/http://www.ci.chi.il.us/Landmarks/numbers/860880LSD.html |archive-date=May 3, 2007 |url-status=dead }} 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 Herbert Greenwald, and the Sumner S. Sollitt Company.{{cite web|url=http://www.emporis.com/application/?nav=building&lng=3&id=860lakeshoredrive-chicago-il-usa|archive-url=https://archive.today/20130122015120/http://www.emporis.com/application/?nav=building&lng=3&id=860lakeshoredrive-chicago-il-usa|url-status=usurped|archive-date=January 22, 2013|title=860 Lake Shore Drive, Chicago – 116852 – EMPORIS|first=Emporis|last=GmbH|website=Emporis}} 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 for the project, turned down by lenders like Baird & Warner, who considered the design scheme to be too extreme.Handley, John. "Looking Forward-Is Chicago shifting into a modern mode?" Chicago Tribune June 2, 2002: Real Estate 1. 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. 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.{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/learning/general/onthisday/bday/0327.html|title=Mies van der Rohe Dies at 83; Leader of Modern Architecture|author=ALDEN WHITMAN|date=August 19, 1969|access-date=July 9, 2014|work=The New York Times}} Since Mies was a master of minimalist composition, his principle was "less is more" as it is demonstrated in his self-proclaimed "skin and bones" architecture."Mies and the Mastodon." New Republic August 6, 2001: 25–30.

The structural engineer for the project was Georgia Louise Harris Brown, 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

File:860 and 900 Lake Shore Drive.jpg

This building, like many of his Chicago high-rise structures, caused controversy in the pure minimalist community due to its mullions.{{Citation needed|date=January 2011}} Mies is hailed as the father of "less is more"; however, 860–880 Lake Shore Drive is covered in non-functional I-beam 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".Puente, Moises. "Conversations With Mies" p31. New York, Princeton Architectural Press, 2008. 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.

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 (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 of Chicago were commissioned to renovate the historical towers. Teaming up with them were the preservation architects, Harboe Architects and the forensic and structural analysis firm, Wiss, Janney, Elstner Associates, Inc. They were directed to fix prior renovations which took away from the historical accuracy of the towers. Architects were assigned to restore the distorted lighting scheme with original translucent glass, replace the deteriorating travertine plaza, which connects the two towers, and exchange for stones with more historical precision.{{cite web|url=http://www.aia.org/aiarchitect/thisweek08/0307/0307b_lakeshore.cfm|title=Moderisms's siren song, restored|publisher=AIArchitect|year=2008|access-date=March 27, 2008}}

Recognition

File:Streeterville portion of Lake Shore Drive.jpg]]

File:860-880 Lake Shore Drive (2).jpg

File:880 Lake Shore Drive 01.jpg

File:860-880 Lake Shore Drive (3).jpg

The buildings were finished in 1951 and were featured in a 1957 article in Life Magazine on Mies.{{cite web|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=rkEEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA60|title=Emergence of a Master Architect|publisher=LIFE Magazine|year=1957|access-date=March 29, 2017}}
In 1960, the buildings were designated as a Chicago Architectural Landmark by the Chicago Commission on Architectural Landmarks, a precursor to the modern Commission on Chicago Landmarks. Each building's lobby includes a metallic plaque in honor of this designation.{{Cite web |title=860-880 Lake Shore Drive Building Historical Marker |url=https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=267080 |access-date=2025-02-26 |website=www.hmdb.org |language=en}}{{Cite web |title=860-880 Lake Shore Drive Building Historical Marker |url=https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=267074 |access-date=2025-02-26 |website=www.hmdb.org |language=en}}
In 1996, they became the first buildings designed by Mies van der Rohe to receive Chicago Landmark status from the modern Commission on Chicago Landmarks.{{Cite web|title=Chicago Architecture Center|url=https://www.architecture.org/learn/resources/buildings-of-chicago/building/860880-north-lake-shore-drive/|access-date=September 14, 2021|website=www.architecture.org|language=en}} A square plaque in honor of this designation is on a railing near the 860 building.{{Cite web |title=860-880 Lake Shore Drive Historical Marker |url=https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=256440 |access-date=2025-02-26 |website=www.hmdb.org |language=en}}
The glass towers have been on the National Register of Historic Places since 1980.
In June 2005, the United States Postal Service 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".{{cite web|url=http://www.usps.com/communications/news/stamps/2004/sr04_076.htm|title=The 2008 Commemorative Stamp Program|publisher=USPS|year=2004|access-date=March 27, 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080325102515/http://www.usps.com/communications/news/stamps/2004/sr04_076.htm|archive-date=March 25, 2008|url-status=dead}}
In celebration of the 2018 Illinois Bicentennial, 860–880 Lake Shore Drive was selected as one of the Illinois 200 Great Places {{cite news|last=Waldinger|first=Mike|title=The proud history of architecture in Illinois|url=https://springfieldbusinessjournal.com/2018/01/the-proud-history-of-architecture-in-illinois/|access-date=January 30, 2018|newspaper=Springfield Business Journal|date=January 30, 2018}} by the American Institute of Architects 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.{{cite web|url=http://www.architectureweek.com/2006/0503/culture_1-2.html|title=Mies on Lake Shore Drive|publisher=ArchitectureWeekdate|year=2004|access-date=March 27, 2008| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20080304121919/http://www.architectureweek.com/2006/0503/culture_1-2.html| archive-date= March 4, 2008 | url-status= live}}

References

External links

[http://www.860880lakeshoredrive.com/ 860–880 Lake Shore Drive website (Official site of 860–880 Owner/Tenants and Trust)]
[https://web.archive.org/web/20051029172217/http://www.cityofchicago.org/Landmarks/numbers/860880LSD.html Chicago Landmarks]

Category:1940s architecture in the United States

Category:1951 establishments in Illinois

Category:Apartment buildings in Chicago

Category:Chicago Landmarks

Category:Cooperatives based in Illinois

Category:Housing cooperatives in the United States

Category:International style architecture in Illinois

Lake Shore Drive Apartments

Category:Modernist architecture in Illinois

Category:Residential buildings completed in 1951

Category:Residential buildings on the National Register of Historic Places in Chicago

Category:Residential skyscrapers in Chicago

Category:Twin towers