Two International Place Building vs 190 South LaSalle Street

Comparing the Two International Place Building and the 190 South LaSalle Street is an interesting exercise, because even though they are located in different cities (Boston, MA and Chicago, IL), both were designed by Johnson/Burgee Architects and finished within within 5 years of each other. This gives us the chance to see how the same architect's ideas were expressed in different urban contexts almost simultaneously.

The 190 South LaSalle Street is clearly the larger tower of the two, both in terms of height and number of floors. It rises to 574ft (175m) with 40 floors above ground, while the Two International Place Building reaches 538ft (164m) with 35 floors above ground.

Of course, each project may have faced different briefs or regulatory constraints, which we don't really know about and could also explain the outcome.

Both the Two International Place Building and the 190 South LaSalle Street were designed in line with the aesthetic conventions of the Postmodernism style.

The Two International Place Building was designed at a moment when the Postmodernism style was already in decline, making it more of a lingering expression of the movement. In contrast, the 190 South LaSalle Street style was already in decline, making it more of a lingering expression of the movement. In contrast, the 190 South LaSalle Street was built when the style still carried greater cultural weight.

Both the Two International Place Building and the 190 South LaSalle Street were designed to serve as commercial towers, and that has remained their main use since their completion, serving similar roles in the urban fabric.

The 190 South LaSalle Street also provides 55 parking spaces.

The two towers rely on different structural systems, reflecting distinct engineering strategies.

The Two International Place Building uses a Framed Tube In Tube structural system, which combines a strong central core with a perimeter tube of columns, while the 190 South LaSalle Street uses a Frame system, that relies on a regular grid of columns and beams to sustain its weight.

Yet, when it comes to their facade, they both employed the same solution, a Modular facade.

A modular facade is made of prefabricated panels, sometimes resembling stone or masonry, combined with smaller windows. It provides variety while maintaining efficiency in installation.