Completed in 2009, this 82-story tower near the Chicago River was the first skyscraper by Jeanne Gang and Studio Gang. When it opened, it was the tallest building in the world designed by a woman, and the largest project ever awarded to an American firm led by a woman.
To give residents views between the surrounding towers, Gang stretched the balconies out by as much as 12 feet, varying the shape of every concrete floor slab. Together they give the facade a rippling, wave-like look. Gang drew inspiration from the layered limestone outcrops found around the Great Lakes. The tower holds a hotel, rental apartments and condominiums, and a large terrace above its base has gardens, pools and a running track.
Aqua won the Emporis Skyscraper Award as the skyscraper of the year in 2009. In 2020 Gang's nearby St. Regis tower took its title as the tallest building by a woman.
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