In my humble opinion, Aqua is undoubtedly the building of the decade in Chicago. At first, I don’t think I was such a fan. I “got” it, I understood what it was trying to be and do. Unfortunately, the building loses a good deal of it’s cachet the further away the viewer is. But up close, it is remarkably more engaging. So much so that I felt like I was getting vertigo from looking up at it from the ground for so long. I wish it were located somewhere not so isolated, but at the same time, there is a nice, functioning architectural amusement park thing going on in River East.
One of the things that drives me away from architecture is all of the theoretical and political hand wringing, chin stroking, and general what-iffing. Aqua could be a lot of different things. But as architecture, no matter how timeless or permanent, is still a marker of time and place. And for what this building is, where it is, and who made it – it is wholly exceptional. Let us not forget that it is situated spitting distance from what was supposed to be one of the defining buildings of the 21st century – Santiago Calatrava’s Chicago Spire – that will likely never be built, and is marked only by a colossal hole in the ground. And in terms of real life, breathtaking, innovative design, Aqua excels.
So despite the fact that this is a building that’s been written about and photographed endlessly, being near it means you can’t help but take your camera out and start shooting away. It’s that good.
Noble - I have a friend that lives here. It is amazing looking up from the ground near the building. Mirage pools seem to appear and disappear.