above> image courtesy foster + partners
above> video courtesy apple
you gotta love the architecture and design. airy, transparent, with a paper-thin carbon-fiber roof. “apple michigan avenue is about removing boundaries between inside and outside, reviving important urban connections within the city,” said jony ive, apple’s chief design officer. “it unites a historic city plaza that had been cut off from the water, giving chicago a dynamic new arena that flows effortlessly down to the river.”
the airiness, a result of a roof supported only by four columns inside and a perimeter of glass walls that range in height from 14 – 32 feet. the glass sheets are laminated together offering both structural support and seemingly – seamlessness. above> image courtesy foster + partners
if you think it looks expensive, it is. $27 million or $1,350 per square foot.
quite possibly project architect stefan behling’s best achievement was integrating the store to the newly developed riverfront. the city in recent years has invited all to come down to the river’s edge. the apple store has hands down won best concept in the category of a building to date. in contrast, just west of the new apple store, a new trump tower chicago presents a good looking, but it appears, not so inviting river’s edge landscape.
above> last september, apple’s senior vice president of retail, angela ahrendts, shows off an illustration of the company’s newest flagship store in chicago, an uber example, of open gathering places and avenues, dubbed “apple town squares.” the company will also invite creative professionals into its facilities, she says, for something called “today at apple.” image courtesy apple
at the chicago opening apple ceo tim cook reiterated that though all apple stores are meant to sell product, the philosophy is not akin to the creaky grocery store crammed with just shelves of products. it’s more like a fresh food market with a restaurant, a wine bar with baby grand piano, where some people hang out, get hungrier, and maybe buy edibles on the way out.
the former michigan avenue flagship which opened in 2003, is an example of the evolution, from at first a lot of shelves and tables selling product. but something new was added – a service/genius bar and a theatre for how-to classes. as the store evolved the service and training areas grew and replaced the shelves. whatever, the original store became unique among all michigan avenue stores, possibly all stores in downtown chicago – there were lines waiting to get in daily – i was in those lines – and the store opened one hour earlier, 9am, than most other retailers. a scary thought, maybe there are lines in other cities.
below > the new sales floor, in the foreground are boxes to sit on to watch a large video screen, further back tables for playing with new products and way, way back are shelves of product. image courtesy foster + partners
above> someone did consider putting the logo on the roof – a paper logo test – then worried it possibly marginalized the brand and architecture and removed it.
we fully endorse this philosophy, in most cases. but there’s this… it’s not what you do but how you do it. afterall, there was ample time to think about the laptop roof concept itself, with the logo maybe an afterthought, and that didn’t get anyone nervous. and there is the logo inside the building at streetlevel, nice.
an equally important philosopy – at all costs, avoid decisions that may be construed as a mistake. and counterpoint, at this writing there’s not a shoddy, half-baked component to be found on premise. DA lobbies for putting the logo back on the roof because the iconic silhouette now feels someone maybe forgot something. and now with the construction complete, yes maybe it’s a hugely cool, appropriate for many reasons, idea.
architect> partner and project architect, stefan behling of foster + partners. the firm also created apple’s mother ship headquarters in cupertino.
