Canadian studio Saint Marie created the interiors for the amenity spaces in a renovated 1960s tower in Chicago. This reflects the “charm and confidence of a mid-century office.”
The 32-story building at 225 West Randolph Street in Chicago’s Loop, which was recently completely renovated by SCB and Onni Group to welcome new office tenants, was originally constructed in 1966 as the headquarters for the Illinois Bell Telephone Company.
“Conceived in the language of New Formalism, its cantilevered towers, marble curtain walls and reflective glass embody the city’s corporate confidence at a time when ambition, visibility and material presence defined business culture,” said Saint-Marie.
At The Bell, more than 100,000 square feet (9,290 square meters) of amenity interiors were designed by St. Marie. The design took cues from mid-century modernism and aimed to “reimagine the corporate tower as a layered world shaped by hospitality, atmosphere and identity.”
“This project was approached as a continuous interior landscape designed to connect the lobby, restaurant, lounge, coworking, wellness, and terrace into a single narrative that extends from street to skyline,” says the Vancouver-based studio.
The mid-century aesthetic is amplified through a variety of amenity spaces through layers of reflective metal, statement lighting, and custom large-scale artwork influenced by the Golden Age of American Advertising.
Elements such as backlit wood panels, brass pendants, and linear fixtures emphasize the building’s proportions, while geometric furniture and patterns reference the work of Italian designers such as Gio Ponti and Ettore Sottsass.
In the street-level lobby, the building’s original terrazzo floors and Verde Guatemalan marble are combined with midcentury-style art, textiles, and rugs.
A 200-seat bistro and bar, named Soletto, connects the lobby to the public areas and features custom banquettes, walnut work, and polished brass and reflective metal accents.
Lounges, co-working areas and meeting spaces are integrated throughout the tower’s office floors, with a library and game room “reflecting the social character of the mid-century office where business and leisure once overlapped.”
The interior style continues in these spaces, with wood and travertine used in facilities such as sports courts and wellness and fitness studios.
The upper floors of the tower house a multi-level clubhouse connected by an undulating marble staircase.
An interior lounge and bar area opens to a beautiful cabana and terrace overlooking the Chicago skyline, giving the apartment a more intimate club-like environment for private gatherings.
“The Bell is a cultural renaissance effort, a reimagining of Chicago’s corporate landscape that integrates hospitality with an emphasis on connection, collaboration, restoration and play,” St. Marie said. “Rooted in an iconic era of American design, the revamped Bell continues that tradition in the modern 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.
They range from three restaurants in a residential high-rise in Edmonton to a luggage store in Toronto and a cocktail bar in Vancouver.
Photographed by Emma Peter.
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