Ste Marie "reimagines Chicago's corporate landscape" at The Bell
Canadian studio Ste Marie has crafted interiors for amenity spaces within a renovated 1960s tower in Chicago, which echo the "glamour and confidence of the mid-century office".
Recently overhauled by SCB and Onni Group to welcome new office tenants, the 32-storey building at 225 West Randolph Street in Chicago's Loop was originally constructed in 1966 as the headquarters of the Illinois Bell Telephone Company.
"Conceived in the language of New Formalism, its cantilevered tower, marble curtain walls, and reflective glass embodied the city's corporate confidence of the era, a time when ambition, visibility, and material presence defined business culture," said Ste Marie.
At The Bell, over 100,000 square feet (9,290 square metres) of amenity interiors were designed by Ste Marie, which took cues from mid-century modernism and aimed at "reframing the corporate tower as a layered world shaped by hospitality, atmosphere, and identity."
"The project was approached as a continuous interior landscape, designed to connect lobby, restaurant, lounges, coworking, wellness, and terraces into a single narrative that extends from street to skyline," said the Vancouver-based studio.
The mid-century aesthetic is amplified through the various amenity spaces through layers of reflective metals, statement lighting and custom large-scale artworks influenced by the golden age of American advertising.
Elements including backlit timber panels, brass pendants and linear fixtures emphasise the building's proportion, while geometric furniture and patterns reference the work of designers Italian designers such as Gio Ponti and Ettore Sottsass.
In the street-level lobby, the building's original terrazzo flooring and Verde Guatemala marble are combined with mid-century-style art, textiles and rugs.
A 200-seat bistro and bar named Solette connects the lobby and the public realm, and features polished brass and reflective metal accents against custom banquettes and walnut millwork.
Lounges, co-working areas and meeting spaces are integrated across the tower's office floors, along with library and games rooms that "reference the social character of the mid-century office, where business and leisure once overlapped".
Facilities, including sports courts and wellness and fitness studios, are lined with wood and travertine, continuing the interior style into these spaces.
The tower's upper floors are occupied by the multi-level Clubhouse, which is linked by an undulating marble staircase.
Interior lounge and bar areas connect to landscaped cabanas and terraces overlooking the Chicago skyline, while the Apartment provides a more intimate club-like environment for private gatherings.
"The Bell is an endeavour of cultural revival, a reimaging of Chicago's corporate landscape to integrate hospitality with a focus on connection, collaboration, restoration and play," said Ste Marie. "Rooted in an iconic era of American design, the renewed Bell carries its legacy forward within the life of the contemporary workplace."
The studio was founded in 2011 by principal and creative director Craig Stanghetta, and has completed a variety of commercial and hospitality interiors across Canada.
These range from a trio of restaurants in an Edmonton residential tower, to a Toronto luggage store and a Vancouver cocktail bar.
The photography is by Ema Peter.
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