345 California Center vs 383 Madison Avenue Building

Comparing the 345 California Center and the 383 Madison Avenue Building is compelling because they were both designed by Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, yet they stand in different cities (San Francisco, CA and New York, NY), and were completed a decade apart.

What this will allow us to see, is how the same firm's approach adapted to different places in different periods of time.

These two towers present an interesting contrast in their proportions. The 383 Madison Avenue Building rises higher at 755ft (230m), while the 345 California Center reaches 620ft (189m). However, the 345 California Center accommodates more floors with 48 levels above ground, compared to 47 floors in the 383 Madison Avenue Building.

This suggests different approaches to interior space design. The 383 Madison Avenue Building has an average floor-to-floor height of approximately 4.9m, while the 345 California Center has more compact floors averaging around 3.9m each. The taller building's more generous floor heights might indicate grander interior spaces, higher ceilings, or different programmatic requirements.

These different proportions likely reflect the specific needs each building was designed to serve, whether driven by zoning regulations, client requirements, or the intended use of the spaces within. The contrast shows how architects can achieve different spatial experiences even when working with similar overall building scales.

The 345 California Center was designed in the Postmodernism style, while the 383 Madison Avenue Building reflects the principles of Contemporary.

At the time of their completion, both styles were well established. This makes the comparison especially interesting, because both buildings represent a dominant aesthetic at a particular point in time.

The 345 California Center follows a mixed-use model, combining commercial and hotel. In contrast, the 383 Madison Avenue Building has remained primarily commercial.

The 345 California Center incorporates a 5-star hotel with 155 rooms. More information is available at the official website.

The 345 California Center also provides 180 parking spaces.

Both towers share the same structural solution, a Frame system.

A frame structure uses a grid of columns and beams to carry the building's loads. This frees the walls from structural duties, allowing for flexible floor plans and larger windows.

However, when it comes to the facade, both buildings use different approaches. The 345 California Center uses a Window Wall facade, while the 383 Madison Avenue Building uses a Modular facade.

A Window Wall facade like the one seen in the 345 California Center uses panels fitted between floor slabs, leaving slab edges visible, while a modular facade like the one seen in the 383 Madison Avenue Building employs prefabricated panels, often mixing solid surfaces with smaller windows.