The Aqua

In a city like Chicago, the architectural landscape is highly important. Aesthetics become critical and anything that leans towards the ugly tends to be the bad end of the joke. For example, like calling the new Soldier Field a space saucer. Putting up a modern styled skyscraper poses the problem of having to conflict against the neoclassical buildings that fill the downtown area. However, Jeanne Gang and her team at Studio Gang Architects were able to create an impressive award winning structure that stretches the boundaries of what a building should look like.

The Aqua Tower, found at the 200 N Columbus block, was built in three years and after completion, was an immediately recognized by the architectural community. It won the Emporis Skyscraper Award in 2009 for skyscraper of the year and was in the running for various others. It was also the largest project ever awarded to a firm led by an American woman.

What made the Aqua so special was the daring approach Gang implemented. The building itself is a glass structure, and from a distance would have seemed to be a pure Herculite tower had it not been for the creativity of the balconies. Inspired by limestone protrusions that can be found around the Great Lakes, the balconies are stacked in an almost random array that engulf the glass core. The effect makes it seem like waves come crashing down the sides of the building. These random outstretches of stone, that can sometimes extend up to twelve feet from the frame, also go in and out creating that same wavy sensation going around.

Unfortunately, the things that make the Aqua a great skyscraper also contribute to the pitfalls that Gang stumbled in to. Unlike buildings with similar aquatic names in the Lakeshore East neighborhood like the Tides and the Shoreham, the Aqua is the only one that ventures off in a creative manner for the exterior. The other towers are very conventional and uniform. As years have gone by, Aqua can seem silly where it was placed. The allure of such a structure has dwindled as time keeps rolling on and those beautiful waves lose their eye-catching sparkle.

Another issue is that Gang seemed timid with her idea. The Aqua from afar does not appear to be anything more than a solid structure with weird lighting issue. The light glistening off the glass is not uniform, being broken up by the balconies and looking awkward. There's little visual appeal until the viewer can get closer. Then the true form of the Aqua pops out but it's far more intriguing in photographs than in reality. Certain angles are much more interesting to look up at than others and the wave effect can really only be seen in a few spots.

While there are many downsides to having a design like the one chosen, it still holds its ground as a magnificent work of art. It is easy to tell that the design team worked long and hard to come up with the exact planning of sizes and locations of the balconies to create a splendid rush of water tumbling to the ground. At the end of the day though they could have studied Antonio Gaudi's Casa Mila in Barcelona, Spain and learned some valuable lessons at creating the wave effect, as well as ways to incorporate such an odd looking building into a landscape cluttered by standardized skyscrapers.

Is the Aqua overrated? Probably. It might not be deserving of the skyscraper of the year, especially when taking into consideration that many of the functional assets of the building were hurt by the aesthetics. It doesn't take long to realize how much valuable usable area was consumed by dead space when realizing that if the balconies were rectangles, there would be an enormous increase in size to the balconies. But to claim that it's not gorgeous might be a little ludicrous.

Maybe if Gang went crazy and designed something only Santiago Calatrava would think up, the Aqua would be regarded as one of Chicago greats such as the Chicago Cultural Center. At the end of the day though, had the Aqua been nothing more than a regular building, it wouldn't have even made a dent in the community. It's beautiful, and sadly there's no such thing as a perfect building. For what it's worth, the Aqua is a fine building that stands proud along the banks of the river.