John Hancock Tower
[1] Designed by Henry N. Cobb of the firm I. M. Pei & Partners, it was completed in 1976, and has held the title as the tallest building in New England ever since.[1] In 2015, the lease belonging to the John Hancock Mutual Life Insurance Company, for which the skyscraper was named, expired, and it was renamed to its address at 200 Clarendon Street.The highly-reflective window glass is tinted slightly blue, which results in the tower having only a subtle contrast with the sky on a clear day.A major concern of the architects while designing the tower was its proximity to Boston's Trinity Church, a prominent National Historic Landmark.The shifting soils damaged utility lines, the sidewalk pavement, and nearby buildings—including the historic Trinity Church across St. James Avenue.[11] According to engineers Matthys Levy and Mario Salvadori, the replacement also inspired jokes that the Hancock Tower was the "world's tallest wooden building.[13] As described by Robert Campbell, architecture critic for The Boston Globe: Two 300-ton weights sit at opposite ends of the 58th floor of the Hancock.The dampers are free to move a few feet relative to the floor.According to Campbell, engineers discovered that—despite the mass damper—the building could have fallen over under a certain kind of wind loading.[2] About a year after the falling windows problem was resolved, American novelist John Updike wrote in a story,[13] Now I am aware of loving only the Hancock Tower, which has had its missing pane restored and is again perfect, unoccupied, changeably blue, taking upon itself the insubstantial shapes of clouds, their porcelain gauze, their adamant dreaming.[citation needed] In September 2015, the French photographer and artist JR created a 150-by-86-foot (46 by 26 m) tall mural of a man wearing shorts, between the 44th and 50th floors of the building.According to the property manager, the mural was the final piece in a three-part series of temporary public art projects at the building.
John Hancock CenterJohn Hancock BuildingCharles RiverBostonMassachusettsCoordinatesBoston PropertiesHenry N. CobbskyscraperBack BayBoston, MassachusettsI. M. Pei & PartnersNew EnglandJohn Hancock Mutual Life Insurance CompanyFort Point, BostonJohn HancockDeclaration of IndependenceMinimalismspandrelmullionsparallelogramBoston's Trinity ChurchNational Historic LandmarkAmerican Institute of ArchitectsTwenty-five Year Awardengineeringarchitecturalexcavationretaining wallsTrinity Churchreflective glasswind tunnelthermal stressesPrudential TowerCopley SquareBoston CommonMassachusetts TurnpikeLogan International AirportartistsHinghamBuilding #19plywoodlumber yardMario Salvadorimotion sicknesstuned mass damperRobert CampbellSeptember 11, 2001, terrorist attacksforeclosureauctionconsortiumJohn Hancock InsuranceManulife Financial CorporationTorontoblue hourJohn UpdikeFringeChelseashortspublic artGodzillaKing GhidorahList of tallest buildings by U.S. stateList of tallest buildings in BostonThe Boston GlobeSalvadori, MarioThe New York TimesBloomberg BusinessWeekAssociated PressYahoo!StructuraeTallest Building in BostonSkyscrapers75 State Street100 Federal Street100 Summer Street111 Huntington Avenue125 High Street145 High Street28 State Street33 Arch Street500 Boylston Street60 State StreetAmes BuildingAvalon North StationBerkeley BuildingBoston City HallCustom House TowerExchange PlaceFederal Reserve Bank BuildingFour Seasons Hotel & Private Residences, One Dalton StreetHarbor Towers IHarbor Towers IIKeystone BuildingLandmark CenterLiberty HotelCharles Street JailLiberty Mutual TowerMassachusetts Eye and EarMcCormack BuildingMillennium Place Tower IMillennium Place Tower IIMillennium TowerNational Emerging Infectious Diseases LaboratoriesOmni Parker HouseOne Beacon StreetOne Boston PlaceOne Devonshire PlaceOne Federal StreetOne Financial CenterOne International PlaceOne Lincoln StreetOne Post Office SquarePierce BostonRowes WharfRussia WharfSaltonstall BuildingState Street Bank BuildingTwo International PlaceUnited Shoe Machinery Corporation BuildingWinthrop CenterBulfinch CrossingSouth Station Tower101 Clarendon StreetAquarium DevelopmentTrans National Place