Glassworks. Functional and Structural Glass. Article Number One.

By Divi Logan. May 7, 2024.

Objects shine, shimmer, and gleam on walls, countertops, ovens and tables. Panes, parts of automobiles, cameras and telescopes, measuring cups, mirrors, artworks, jars and bottles made of it are in homes, businesses, hotels, schools, and offices. Some structures are sheathed in it.

The versatile material, which may be transparent, translucent, smooth and glossy is glass, and the use of it has a long, rich history.

What is Glass?

At the most basic degree, glass is made by heating a mixture of silica (or silicon dioxide), soda ash and lime (or limestone, calcium carbonate) and other ingredients (for colors, stabilizing, durability, chemical resistance) to high temperatures until it melts and begins to solidify and cool.

Glass is durable, resistant to heat and chemicals, and can be shaped and molded into various forms. It is produced in a wide range of unique compositions with distinct attributes.

1. Examples of Glass in Chicago Landmark Structures

Chicago Windows. Sullivan Center.
Banks of Chicago-style windows make up the facades of the Sullivan Center in the Chicago Loop. The Chicago window’s styling is of one large, single fixed glass pane in the center, which is flanked by two narrower sashes of the same height, each filling a structural bay. The flanking elements are double-hung sash windows with no dividing muntins. Sullivan Center: 1899
Skylight of Chicago Union Station's Great Hall
This is the entire span of the skylight over the Great Hall in Chicago Union Station. It is a masterpiece with a cast-iron frame and a new two-tier skylight system. Restoration finished: 2018. Restoration tier: 105-foot-wide x 187- foot-long protective segmented vault and five feet above the original, with aluminum framing. Style: barrel vault
Dimensions of the original skylight:
Height above the hall: 115 feet
Length: 177 feet
Square footage: 18,000
Number of sections: 13 individual 12-foot-wide x 83-foot-long segmented sections with a total of 2,068 lights of ¼-inch wire glass.

Replacements of the original lights with 9/16-inch translucent, laminated, heat-strengthened glass. The new skylight is composed of 878 individual lights of high-performance glass with a low-e coating. Companies (industrial): Linetec, Viracon, Goettsch Partners. AMTRAK (owners of the station).

2. Structural Glass: Exteriors

Structures in Chicago’s Loop demonstrate the use of structural glass. In the center is One South Dearborn (2005) (with its building sign which is also composed of glass), and on the right is the landmark Inland Steel Building (1957).
Chicago Federal Center. Chicago Loop.
The buildings of the Chicago Federal Center include the freestanding Loop Station post office and the Kluczynski Federal Building (completed 1974). This group of steel and glass structures exemplifies the minimalist approach for which Mies van der Rohe is famous. The post office (foreground) was completed in 1973. In the left background is the Dirksen Federal Building and Courthouse, completed in 1964.
Three views of the Sears (Willis) Tower in Chicago show the use of structural glass in a skyscraper. The building contains 16,000 panes of bronzed glass. It is also home to observation decks on the 103rd floor, the highest such deck in the United States. The photograph on the left was taken before the renovation of the plaza on the west side of the tower.
333 West Wacker Drive Building. Chicago, Illinois. 1983
The curved green-glass façade of 333 Wacker Drive is noted for the reflections of the Chicago River on the side shown here. On the other side the building adheres to the usual rectangular street grid. The building marks the division between North Wacker Drive and West Wacker Drive where the street makes a 90-degree turn. Completed: 1983.
250 South Wacker Drive, Jackson Boulevard Bridge, and the Gateway Center IV. Chicago, Illinois
Large panes of glass with a greenish tint perfectly reflect the raised east leaf of the Jackson Boulevard Bridge along the Chicago River’s South Branch. 250 South Wacker Drive: Built 1958. Renovation completed: 2007. Across the river on the left side of the photograph is Gateway Center IV, with its glass skin. The curved facade mirrors the curve of the Chicago River at that point. Gateway Center: 1983.

3. Structural Glass: Interiors and Curtain Walls

Modern Wing. Art Institute of Chicago.
The Modern Wing at the Art Institute of Chicago includes a double-paned glass curtain wall. The building takes on a feeling of lightness and airiness. Opened: 2009.
Modern Wing. Art Institute of Chicago.
The curtain walls of the Modern Wing at the Art Insitute of Chicago are shown here from the East Monroe Street elevation and the courtyard garden area adjacent to South Columbus Drive. Opened: 2009.

4. Functional Examples of Glassware (Crystal/Leaded Glass and Cut-glass)

Glassware with lead oxide has an early example from Mesopotamia around 3,600 years ago, and from Nippur (Sumerian), dating to 1400 BC.

Functional glass objects for residential use.
The versatility of glass is demonstrated here in a few pieces from my collection. Shown are a mirror, antique lampshade, 1/2-pint jar, drinking vessels including two antique cordials, measuring implements, and three bowls, a shallow one with a handle, a heavy cut-glass one, and a stemmed crystal bowl. Light reflects through panes, and on the desk in the background are a heavy crystal bowl and compote. Author’s collection. 7 May 2024.

Conclusion

Glass is an intriguing, versatile, and durable material that has many varieties and manufacturing compositions. It may be fragile or durable and is resistant to heat and chemicals, being melted to high temperatures and cooled until it begins to solidify. It is shaped and molded into various forms by glassblowers. It is now a ubiquitous medium, formed into windowpanes, drinking and eating vessels, measuring and cooking implements, mirrors, windshields, and lenses for cameras. In contemporary times it has been used to sheathe entire faces of skyscrapers.

Raise your imaginary glass to the skills of artisans and scientists who shaped and continue to evolve its history.

Resources

  1. “What is Glass? How Glass is Made? A Comprehensive Information 101.” Glassforum.org. https://glassforum.org/what-is-glass-how-glass-is-made/#google_vignette. Accessed 7 May 2024.
  2. Wikipedia contributors. “Glass.” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, 13 Apr. 2024. Web. 7 May. 2024.
  3. Copilot search. “Structural glass.” https://sl.bing.net/bfT04zHA9K0. 29 Feb 2024.
  4. Copilot search. “What kind of glass is use in the Sears Tower? Sent by you: What kind of glass is use in the Sears Tower?” 3 Apr. 2024. Web. 11 Apr. 2024.
  5. Wikipedia contributors. “Chicago window.” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, 25 Nov. 2023. Web. 14 Apr. 2024.
  6. Photograph of glass objects. Author’s collection. 7 May 2024.
  7. Linetec. “Chicago Union Station’s renovate Great Hall features new skylight finished by Linetec.” 8 July 2019. Chicago Union Station’s renovate Great Hall features new skylight finished by Linetec – Linetec. Accessed 14 April 2024.
  8. “300 South Riverside. Chicago.” 2024 Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat. https://www.skyscrapercenter.com/chicago/gateway-center-iv/29246/. Accessed 7 May 2024.
  9. Copilot search. “Gateway Center IV Chicago. Sent by you: Gateway Center IV Chicago.” https://sl.bing.net/fR4FxYzSUmW. 7 May 2024.
  10. Wikipedia contributors. “Lead glass.” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, 28 Mar. 2024. Web. 8 May. 2024.
  11. Copilot search. “Loop Station Post Office who designed it? Sent by you: Loop Station Post Office who designed it?” https://sl.bing.net/hJRpXWKfnXw. 11 April 2024.

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Published by Divi Logan

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