Over forty years after completion, the 875 North Michigan Avenue has established itself as one of the world’s most recognized skyscrapers and an iconic example of late twentieth century Chicago design, construction, and engineering. The building’s structural, programmatic, and architectural innovations combine to create a design that is heralded for its elegant simplicity.

As one of the world’s first mixed-use tall building projects, the John Hancock Center design was influential in its internal organization. The complex programmatic design placed commercial space on a sub-level concourse and the first five levels. This was followed by levels of parking, office, residential, and finally dining, observation, and broadcasting facilities.

The architecture of the tower is informed by its expressive structural system and gently sloping façades. This innovative form was designed to efficiently accommodate the variety of uses contained in the building. The gentle inward slope creates optimally-sized floor plans for both the lower parking and office levels and the higher residential floors. Additionally, the tapered form significantly reduces wind loads, allowing for a reduction in the size of structural members. For Chicago’s busy streetscape, the building’s shape increases the visual verticality of the building; adding perceived height to an already impressively tall tower.

The architectural form of the 875 North Michigan Avenue represents a radical departure from established aesthetics of the time. Initially, critics labeled the building as too industrial, but over time it has come to symbolize the gutsy tradition of structural expression in Chicago. It is often characterized as super-rational, logical, and a representation of the machine age of architecture. It exhibits its true structure much in the tradition of bridge construction. These qualities are at the heart of why the building has endured in the minds of so many.