Crain Communications Building in Chicago, Illinois

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One of Chicago's signature skyscrapers, what the Smurfit-Stone building lacks in height, it more than makes up for in style. Its gleaming white exterior is accented with dark pinstripes of windows. Its orientation embraces Lake Michigan just a few hundred yards away, while at the same time it's characteristic slanted roof mimics, mocks, or yearns to be part of the sailboat crowd in the nearby Chicago Harbor. The Citicorp Center in New York and other skyscrapers have experimented with slanted roofs. What makes the Smurfit-Stone building special is the orientation of the slant. The architects didn't merely take a square and cut a wedge out of it like a children's block. They cut it on an angle, using a simple subtractive motion to create a diamond shape in the sky. Closer examination reveals that it isn't even a simple diamond, but rather two nearly identical triangles, but that is a detail lost on most observers. What they delight in is the notion that the building is still not done inventing itself. That it is growing with a leading angle like a massive lily sprouting on the lakeshore. Others fail to see the beauty and whimsy intrinsic to this building. Instead, they see it as an affront to the other classic Chicago architecture on Michigan Avenue. But if not for those buildings that stand out, would not the Avenue's marble cliff seem that much more ordinary and under appreciated? Quick Facts Construction start: 1983 Construction finish: 1984 Designed by: A. Epstein and Sons Type: Skyscraper Stories: 41 Maximum Height: 575 feet / 175 meters Statistics Rentable floor space: 625,205 square feet. Timeline 2010: This building's name was changed from Smurfit-Stone Building to 150 North Michigan Avenue. 2011: Smurfit-Stone moved out of this building after being bought by a company in Georgia. March, 2012: The building name was changed to Crain Communications Building. Notes The building that used to be on this site was the John Crerar Library. The 14-story building was erected in 1920 and designed by Holabird and Roche. One of the bogus "facts" sometimes presented by Chicago tour guides is that this building's sloping roof was designed to keep it's shadow from falling on a beach. This is incorrect. There isn't a beach anywhere near this building. There was a controversy over a building on Lake Shore Drive casting a shadow on the Ohio Street Beach in 2006, but that building was erected anyway with no alterations to its plan. The top five floors of this building are empty and are not included in its official floor count. (Credit; Chicago Architecture)   This object is part of "Scan The World". Scan the World is a non-profit initiative introduced by MyMiniFactory, through which we are creating a digital archive of fully 3D printable sculptures, artworks and landmarks from across the globe for the public to access for free. Scan the World is an open source, community effort, if you have interesting items around you and would like to contribute, email [email protected] to find out how you can help.Scanned : Photogrammetry (Processed using Agisoft PhotoScan)

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jkurstin22

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