Sizing up Architecture

The Aqua

225 North Columbus Drive

Gang assembles an altogether amazing abstraction

As one walks toward Lakeshore East, things begin to take a bizarre turn for the better. There among many typically boxy high-rise buildings sits a creation near-extraterrestrial in comparison. Eighty-two stories of shining glass seem to have sprouted modish plumes that ripple precociously about their frame. Humbly taking things in at street level, it’s as if a forest giant has been sterilized and transplanted into the city, complete with its airy hangers-on.

After such visual elation, the name – bestowed by East’s developers – becomes a bit passé but still retains a lovely feel on the tongue. Likewise charming is the woman behind it all. Architect Jeanne Gang has in her very first skyscraping project, combined several unique elements into Aqua and also continued to prove a la the Oscars that there is nothing stopping women from excelling and challenging the norms of any male-dominated profession. This complex residential building was deemed the 2009 Skyscraper of the Year, earning her, the rest of Studio Gang and even Chicago some serious credentials.

Aside from pure aesthetics, certainly what assists Aqua in garnering attention are its ecologically-minded features. The site and PETA boast windows less likely to harm birds for one. The same wavy cement balconies that so draw the eye are specifically designed to soften possible incoming avian collisions and help shade residents from the sun as well. Systems are also in place to both collect and process rainwater and reduce urban heat-island (UHI) tendencies. And to top it all off, there’s a veritable secret garden at the base of the tower – or rather a private terrace. The 80,000-some square feet here include gardens, swimming facilities and jogging tracks. With all this, it’s almost no surprise that this area is to be the largest green roof in the city to date.

A pupil of venerable Dutch architect and Harvard professor Rem Koolhaas, Gang has clearly mastered one aspect of her science and craft – that form follows function. It does so seamlessly in this case, as anyone looking at Aqua would be astonished to discover that there’s even more beyond its must-have-a-picture quality. A diamond present in rough commercial enterprise, Aqua promises that things can be more than the sum of their parts – that wondrous beauty can also sometimes conceal a greater purpose still.

That said, it’s only a shame that this subtle message goes considerably unheard by the public. Stifled by the conventions of surrounding structures, the building’s potential is needlessly squandered, especially on those who would appreciate it most – not the affluence pouring in and out of its lobby doors but the people who would get some joy or inspiration out of witnessing an urban colossus that sways in familiar breezes.