860-880 Lake Shore Drive Apartments vs Everett McKinley Dirksen U.S. Courthouse

Comparing the 860-880 Lake Shore Drive Apartments and the Everett McKinley Dirksen U.S. Courthouse is particularly interesting because they share the same skyline in Chicago, IL, and were both designed by Mies van der Rohe. However, they were completed more than 13 years apart.

This offers a unique perspective on how the architect's style and the city's architecture evolved over time.

The Everett McKinley Dirksen U.S. Courthouse is clearly the larger tower of the two, both in terms of height and number of floors. It rises to 384ft (117m) with 27 floors above ground, while the 860-880 Lake Shore Drive Apartments reaches 269ft (82m) with 26 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 860-880 Lake Shore Drive Apartments and the Everett McKinley Dirksen U.S. Courthouse were designed in line with the aesthetic conventions of the International Style style.

At the time, this style was at the height of its popularity. So Mies van der Rohe followed what was in many ways expected at the time, producing designs that fit comfortably within contemporary architectural norms rather, than breaking with convention.

The 860-880 Lake Shore Drive Apartments is primarily residential, while the Everett McKinley Dirksen U.S. Courthouse is primarily governmental.

The 860-880 Lake Shore Drive Apartments offers 248 residential units.

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 860-880 Lake Shore Drive Apartments uses a Window Wall facade, while the Everett McKinley Dirksen U.S. Courthouse uses a Curtain Wall facade.

A Window Wall facade like the one seen in the 860-880 Lake Shore Drive Apartments uses panels fitted between floor slabs, leaving slab edges visible, while a curtain-wall facade like the one seen in the Everett McKinley Dirksen U.S. Courthouse uses a lightweight glass curtain wall hung from the structure.