600 N. FAIRBANKS

Multiple architectural styles jut upward, each appearing to joust with each other for prominence in this wonderful city scape view from 600 N. Fairbanks #2809, Chicago IL. This photo, taken by Fred Scovell of the Scovell+Sabatini Team of Rubloff Residential Properties, is from a 28th floor balcony at Helmut Jahn's acclaimed new glass tower

In essence, 600 North Fairbanks recapitulates the age-old formula of the skyscraper as a three-part building with a clearly articulated base, middle and top. The base consists of a high-ceilinged, light-washed lobby and 11 floors of parking, the middle houses 24 floors of apartments, and the top holds four floors of penthouses and an amenity floor (with lap pool, fitness center and sun deck). What sets the building apart, however, is the way Jahn plays with this convention, creating a persuasive essay in minimalism.Windows on the north and south sides consist of large sheets of extra-wide, floor-to-ceiling glass that are unencumbered by the clutter of mullions, air-conditioning units or operable windows. The concrete floor slabs are just eight inches thick, due to Jahn's use of post-tensioning cables rather than old-fashioned steel reinforcing bars. He expresses the slabs on the facade with narrow bands of extruded aluminum. Concrete columns are recessed behind the glass.As a result, 600 North Fairbanks looks remarkably crisp and transparent, though its see-through quality invariably will be compromised as more people move in. If Mies' 860-880 high-rises are skin and bones buildings, clearly expressing their structural frames, this is every bit a skin building. And due to the presence of extra-thick glass, the skin is mirror-smooth, beautifully reflecting the sky, the clouds and nearby structures. That's a welcome shift from the fun-house mirror distortions of other high-rises.