General Life Insurance Building

Philip Johnson (Johnson/Burgee)
1974-77

	The front facade Located across a plaza from Louis Sullivan's Wainwright Building, this corporate headquarters is in a prominent location. The plan is a square bisected diagonally with one resulting triangular section lifted up. A huge cylinder--the lobby--is inserted in the center.
Views of the front
The entrance with the cylindrical lobby area
A corner Various textures enhance the building. The glass curtain wall (sometimes called "plaid"), the red brick, and the stark black metal columns, both inside and outside, add variety to the surface treatments.
Views of the interior with the ceiling rising over 100 feet

The bridges across the lobby area to offices, the dramatic elevator shaft, the sculptural staircase, and the elevator walled with glass.

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