333 West Wacker

333 West Wacker Drive. Just an address. No name.

Here is the problem: pretty much every skyscraper in Chicago has a name. Take Sears (or Willis) Tower, Aqua, Prudential, Wrigley, Marina City. A building, a personality, a name.

333 West Wacker has a charming personality. It is not a rectangular building like the others, it is a curved green glass tower with a profile of a quarter slice of a pie. It is located on a bend of the Chicago River on an awkward triangle plot. A possible problem which was perceived as an opportunity. The architects designed a graceful arch of the facade which hugs the river’s curve. The skin of greenish mirrored glass reflects the constantly changing sky, clouds, water and light on the buildings across the river. A giant movie theater screen in the heart of Chicago.

How come such a beautiful building as 333 West Wacker is just an address? No name.

Well, actually, in local folklore it has a name. It is called the Ferris Bueller Building. Because it is the building where Ferris Bueller’s father had an office in the movie.

A playful name for a building with an unconventional personality much like Ferris Bueller himself.

“Life moves pretty fast. If you don’t stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it.”

I tell myself these Ferris Bueller’s words every time I walk by his building.