Tall towers in Chicago from different decades Photograph: lynnapple/GuardianWitness
‘They still have that slightly Space 1999 feel about them’ - Marina City, Chicago
I took this photo during a three month sabbatical spent across Japan and America. Chicago was our final port of call before flying home, and the architecture we saw there was an unexpected surprise and a delight. I hadn’t realised the ‘corncob’ towers were even in Chicago, though I recognised them from Wilco’s “Yankee, Hotel Foxtrot” album cover. I took the photo from the Chicago river as we sailed past on an architecture tour boat. The guide explained how they were part of a wonderful utopian idea to have homes, parking, shops, an auditorium, offices and a marina all in one place to encourage Chicagoans to move back downtown. Hence their name Marina Towers.
They were designed by Bertrand Goldberg and still have that slightly Space 1999 feel about them - built in 1962, when concrete was seen as the overlord of building materials, and high rise living deemed glamorous and exciting. They still have a touch of that space age glamour about them today. It’s their shape that fascinates me. That and the fact all the cars are parked with their noses jutting out almost over the river. I wondered if any had ever toppled out of their parking bay. Cassie Whittell
‘Reaching effortlessly for the sky’ - The W. R. Grace Building, Manhattan
The Grace building just caught my eye as we were walking past on our way to Bryant Park for a coffee. It was designed by American architect Gordon Bunshaft and completed in 1974. The dictionary definition of grace seemed to fit the soaring nature of the front edifice on a sunny day in Manhattan. Very beautiful. Angus Reid
‘In a blue hue’ - The John Hancock Tower, Boston
I’ve always loved clean, modernist buildings and was struck by the clean lines of this famous Boston landmark, which was originally called the John Hancock Tower (and is still called “the Hancock”) but is officially now called 200 Clarendon. It was designed by American architect Henry N. Cobb and finished in 1976. Because of its parallelogram shape, from this angle it looks to have no depth, but that’s an illusion. In my view it’s a masterpiece which, like the Louvre pyramid, sits well with the older buildings around it. Tim Pindar
‘Straight off the Jetsons’ - The Theme Building, LAX
My wife is from southern California so it’s through her that I became interested in mid-century design. She grew up in a classic mid-century house, designed by Cliff May as part of a project to house military veterans and personnel after the war. That these houses could be designed by an acclaimed architect, yet produced on a scale and to a budget that made them affordable for average middle class families, is one of the reasons I think the style works so well.
The second reason why I like mid-century design is its simplicity. Unnecessary detail is excluded, leaving a pure and unpretentious balance of form and function. I think this break with traditional, more ornate aesthetics, is really exciting.
Finally, good mid-century design achieves harmony with its surroundings. Rooms are spacious and open to the outdoors, maximising the use of natural light that’s so abundant in California. Wood is used extensively, and the buildings are low and unobtrusive.
The Theme Building at LA airport opened in 1961 and is many visitors’ first sight of California after they touch down. Stunningly bold, but also delicate, it looks futuristic even today, and something straight out of the Jetsons. James King
‘In a setting where you least expect it’ - Huntington Beach Library, California
In the Californian seaside city of Huntington Beach lies the Huntington Beach Public Library and Cultural Center. The Richard and Dion Neutra designed facility opened in 1975 and was expanded by Huntington Beach architects Anthony and Langford in the mid-90s. While it is governed by the City of Huntington Beach, it relies heavily on volunteers donating their time to running charitable events and operating the gift shop for beach goers and visitors. I found it a fascinating piece of modernist architecture in a setting where you least expect it. Brian Moore
‘The aesthetics really please me’ - Palm Springs, southern California
I’m originally from Lisbon and was on holiday in Palm Springs for two days on a road trip through California. Being a devoted modernism fan, I visited all the classified buildings in Palm Springs and Los Angeles. What really fascinates me is the modern utopia and its exoticisms and the way this results in an invention of an identity. The aesthetics of these buildings and designs really please me. Francisca Sousa
‘An absolutely stunning tower’ - The Seagram Building, Manhattan, New York City
This is a shot I took this summer of the iconic Seagram Building in NYC. It was designed by German-American architect Ludwig Mies van der Rohe and was completed in 1958. It’s an absolutely stunning tower. Jenna McKnight
‘An elegant concrete brutalist building’ - Milwaukee Art Museum and War Memorial
I’m a structural engineer and a fan of the modernist and brutalist styles. This museum is a great example of both from an architect with imagination and flair, with Finnish architect Eero Saarinen responsible for the War Memorial design. The Milwaukee Art Museum was formed when the Milwaukee Art Institute and Layton Art Gallery merged their collections in 1957 and moved into Saarinen’s War Memorial. What is fantastic about the building is that each of the four wings is supported on only two columns each. If they were not connected to each other around a quadrant, they would fall over backwards. The sense of balance and weight is tangible.
Internally the use of shallow stairs and deep dark rooms with low ceilings is powerful. Where there are windows, the delivery of light and vista, looking out over the expanse of Lake Michigan to an infinite horizon, is magnificent. The external stairs are fine constructions, equally light and heavy - concrete with little support - and the overall sensation is to be in a place intended to store and show art, not to vie with it. It’s a lesson in design elegance. Malcolm Brady
‘The old and the modernist just a few streets apart’ - Charlotte, North Carolina
Our son has just started at UNCG, the University of North Carolina Greensboro, for a year. While visiting I was struck by the juxtaposition of the old and new in the city, and the fact that the old buildings were only a few streets away from the modern skyscrapers. Charlotte had a good public transport system with trams, and even some free buses, as did other towns we visited in North Carolina. Lynne Strutt
‘The march of the modern’ - Boston, Massachusetts
I was interested in taking a picture of the Old North Church as I had spotted it between the buildings while walking around Boston, but I just couldn’t get a good viewpoint. When we took a ferry across the bay, it gave a great viewpoint for showing the modern buildings looming over the church as well as the older buildings near the waterfront.
I had a few minutes to capture the picture showing the church, which would most probably have been the tallest building in the area, contrasted with the looming modern tower blocks. The fact that the church is white helped the image no end, as it would have been lost in what is a very busy image otherwise. Kurt Skeels
‘ I love the use the building makes of concrete and wood’ - Broad Stage, Santa Monica, CA
I’m a London-based actor. In January 2016 I toured the US with the West End production of “1984,” the first leg of which was a five week run in at the Broad Stage in Santa Monica. The theatre was built in 2008, with money received from the philanthropist Eli Broad, and is attached to a performing arts college, enabling cooperation between the two organisations. I love the use the building makes of concrete and wood. The auditorium and foyer make similar use of them. Simon Coates
‘I spend a lot of time wandering the streets of the city’ - South Wacker, Chicago
I’m originally from Massachusetts so I grew up and lived much of my adult life near Boston with its blend of old and new architecture that grew in height - from the 18th century Old North Church steeple to the 1915 Custom House Tower to the 60-story John Hancock building built in the 1970s. Now I live in the mountains of North Carolina in a small city of 7,000, where the tallest building rises to four-stories.
Chicago is my second favorite US city, after my native Boston. Whenever I visit, I spend a lot of time wandering the streets of the city fascinated by what I call the “canyon effect” of skyscrapers. In the photo the flat-surfaced building on the left is the 108-story Sears Tower. The step-like silhouettes to the right are the tops of lower buildings across the street (South Wacker). The building in the center is 200 South Wacker and is home to a number of businesses. Compared to other buildings in the city it’s rather diminutive. Pam Blevins
