One Atlantic Center
Atlanta, USA

HEIGHT: 250m/820 feet
FLOORS: 50 floors
COMPLETION: 1987
ARCHITECT: Heery International and Johnson/Burgee Architects.

also known as IBM Tower

This elegant 50-story skyscraper in Upper Midtown Atlanta is clad in pink granite. According to the AIA Guide to the Architecture of Atlanta, the copper pyramidal top was inspired by H. H. Richardson's Trinity Church in Boston while the proportions were influenced by Hood and Howell's Chicago Tribune Tower. Other historicist details include the modified Gothic elements at the roof (the finial at the junction of shaft and roof and the gilded crockets on the pyramidal top) and elaborate base with arched windows, "Gothic" balustrade, and corbels.

http://mywebpage.netscape.com/rotpics01/oneatlcen01.jpeg

http://www.bluffton.edu/~sullivanm/atlanta/johnsonburgee2/distant2.jpg

http://www.bluffton.edu/~sullivanm/atlanta/johnsonburgee2/up2.jpg

http://mywebpage.netscape.com/rotpics01/oneatlcen02.jpeg

http://www3.telus.net/eddyelmer/Arch/atlant2.jpg

http://www.bluffton.edu/~sullivanm/atlanta/johnsonburgee2/corner.jpg

http://mywebpage.netscape.com/rotpics01/oneatlcen03.jpeg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v427/rotpics03/atlanta14.jpg

Don't like this one...it just looks old and dreary.

4/10

very yucky for its age . . . 4.5/10

tut tut,

5/10

It`s great!:)

9.5/10

Somewhat plain, but the top does something for it.

6/10

It looks like it's a old building. I really like it. When Alanta's skyline fills in this will be one of the gems peering up top of the others.

too, straight!

8.5/10

I like this one! It looks very stylish and classical..sort of like a toy building.

A not entirely successful attempt at historicism. 6.5.

I agree with Sunni that it is too straight, but this is still one of my favorites. The proportions are OK but the detailing is great. It works really well at street level too. Overall a very sophisticated design. 9/10

A complete rip-off of NY/Chicago design. Too little, too late. To understand this building all you have to do is read "A Man in Full".

That said, I appreciate the effort. It looks great in person. It's so camp it's fulfilling somehow for midtown Atl. Would've been a great retro-condo project in NY or Chicago. For me it somehow defines Atlanta's aspirations.

7.5/10

6/10 quite beautiful.....

8.5/10

don't know how to describe it!

Wow... Some of you guys are way out there with your assessments... I guess it's a cultural thing...

This building is considered by alot of American architectural critics to be one of the greatest highrises fo the late 20th century. I can't help but agree, especially after seeing it in person. Post Modernism may tend to be a bit superficial and rely too much on making a building emulate historical contexts, but this si a great looking building in any era, and it will age very well.

9.0/10

On my way to Jacksonville in 99 I was able to see this one. I like this one too.

9.5/10

7.5/10 I like how it looks old but it really isnt, top looks nice

I like it but I still like Detroit's One Detroit Center better (also designed by Johnson/Burgee). Maybe the One Atlantic Center might have fit better in Detroit.

Oh, BTW, here is the One Detroit Center. I had to get my Detroit plug somwhere in here didn't I? :)
http://www.skyscraperpicture.com/detroit07.JPG

7/10

8/10. Not one of my favorite Atlanta buildings.

Hello Bland! 5/10

Actually, it's one of Atlanta's better buildings. Jason said much of what I thought, so I'll leave it at that. If you don't see it, well, you don't see it. 8.5.

I am not much for how it looks so I gave it a 7.0/10

One of my favs. 9.5/10

It looks good with the pointy midtown skyline, and once the area fills in a bit, will shine.

Neo-classical detailing in a building that is pretty new will ensure it ages well. Everyone calls this the IBM building because, as legend has it, IBM was set to occupy it but backed out.

I rate it a 6.5. It's classic, modern and fits well with the surrounding skyline, but it also illicits a lot of yawns at street level (no retail, no windows, just a wasteland of concrete and, to boot, one time the security guards ran me off of their little park/fountain area for "non professional" behavior because I took a brief nap on the bench after I had finished my lunch).

probably my favorite in Atlanta, the ornate detailing on the facade works very well especially at street level...the top looks great & reminds me of the older towers in lower Manhattan...a very classic looking building...8.5/10

8.5/10 - It has good height, the spandrels and mullions contrast nicely with the darker glass, and I like the chamfered walls of the tower, along with the detail around the roof and the base.
I might have added some small setbacks or indentations to the tower, and handled the roof itself a bit differently...

Better pics of One Atlantic Center. Those others are just awful! Here are pics of Midtown that show One Atlantic in all it's beauty.

http://delivery.gettyimages.com/comp/ab68307.jpg?x=x&dasite=GETTYIMAGES&dareq=00081D181C0C194F3631345F1103454B4351445F425F

http://delivery.gettyimages.com/comp/ca13136.jpg?x=x&dasite=GETTYIMAGES&dareq=0307021B4C2723345C021242435040455C534D

great pictures Mark.

I love this building, but its not my favorite in Atlanta. If the forum would let me vote, i would give it a 9.0 out of 10

http://mywebpages.comcast.net/rlinger/Georgia/Atlanta/Midtown/ibm12.jpg


http://mywebpages.comcast.net/rlinger/Georgia/Atlanta/Midtown/ibm1.jpg http://mywebpages.comcast.net/rlinger/Georgia/Atlanta/Midtown/ibm2.jpg http://mywebpages.comcast.net/rlinger/Georgia/Atlanta/Midtown/ibm3.jpg http://mywebpages.comcast.net/rlinger/Georgia/Atlanta/Midtown/ibm4.jpg http://mywebpages.comcast.net/rlinger/Georgia/Atlanta/Midtown/ibm6.jpg http://mywebpages.comcast.net/rlinger/Georgia/Atlanta/Midtown/ibm7.jpg

its good but i dont like it 6.5

This is one elegant tower!The lightning fits well in that believe.
8.5/10

9.5 I'm a sucker for art deco... and I welcome the revival of art deco style today... this is a very beautiful building with a superb top...

This is my favorite skyscraper! i like it soo much. when ur up close it looks very detailed, pictures dont even explain!!!

Looks like a church tower, to deal with that, maybe they could place a propellor on top (if it's also known as IBM-building) ?

I'll call it "Chathedral de IBM"!!!!....8.5/10

7/10

One of my favorites in Atlanta.

Boring! I guess it fits well in Atlanta's skyline because of it's wlel lit top at night..

7/10

8.5/10 The best of the Atl pointy's IMO. A tribute to the classic NY style.

2

........ .......... ......... ........ what is that? ...... ........ ..........

Looks like a new oldie. I love it more now that it was Atlantic Center Plaza beside it.

does anyone have a pic. of the very top if the tower where the spire is??

Originally posted by james2390
does anyone have a pic. of the very top if the tower where the spire is??

http://pro.corbis.com/images/watermark/67/10573120/KF006315.jpg

http://pro.corbis.com/images/watermark/67/10573752/KF001630.jpg

http://pro.corbis.com/images/watermark/67/10573531/KF001624.jpg

http://pro.corbis.com/images/watermark/67/10573751/KF001622.jpg

Hope this works. :)

holy crap! those are awesome! where do they get those from, lol

Nice tower, the top is awsome! 8/10

6/10

8.5/10...Classic, a landmark they just don't build them like this anymore.

9.5/10
The base and the top of the tower are both wonderful. I like the large rounded windows at the bottom of the building - unusual and very nice.
:)

9.5

awesome!

Looks great
9.5/10

5.5/10 ! :)

8/10 Majestic!

I think its a very handsome building, but I always though it looked very short for its actual height. When I spent time in atlanta I thought it was a pretty tall building, but not in the top 100. I don't know why. Does anyone else think this about the building?

7.5/10

Originally posted by jeffbaltimore

I think its a very handsome building, but I always though it looked very short for its actual height. When I spent time in atlanta I thought it was a pretty tall building, but not in the top 100. I don't know why. Does anyone else think this about the building?

7.5/10

i always thought it was about the same height that it is, it is fastly moving out of the top 100 from all the new buildings

Not a bad looking building from afar, but get close...what's that little gold-looking thing on top? Why is it there? It's too small to appreciate from distance and if you're speeding by on a freeway, who would notice it?

All-in-all, a 6 / 10

I like the tower.
Every time I'm in Atlanta, it catches my eye more than alot of the other towers, believe it or not.
:) :cool:

yeah yeah all the bad things have been said........but any city (outside of Chicago, NY) should consider themselves lucky to have such a tower.........tackingly handsome! :D

9/10

I think I figured out why it looks short to me. Each one of the "
windows" is actually three stores, but my eye tells me that each window is 1 story. At least that is what I think explains it.

6.5/10


I don't like it much.

8/10

6.5/10
Looks very ordinary, has a simple crown. The design is okay.

The stone on the facade is very nice. The pictures seem to make it look shorter than it is.

9/10

Originally posted by UrbanDesigner

Not a bad looking building from afar, but get close...what's that little gold-looking thing on top? Why is it there? It's too small to appreciate from distance and if you're speeding by on a freeway, who would notice it?

All-in-all, a 6 / 10

skyscrapers arent built so u can see the from freeways

The top part is nice, old design 4,5/10

8/10

The design is built to resemble Chicago Tribune Tower and Trinity Church in Boston.
Tribune Tower:
http://www.bluffton.edu/homepages/facstaff/sullivanm/hood/tribtop.jpg
Trinity Church:
http://www.bluffton.edu/homepages/facstaff/sullivanm/bostonrich/tower.jpg
When you combind the two add add some modern touches you get One Atlantic Center:)

6/10....Nothing special. Another cheap rip-off of the classic NYC scrapers..

6

i wonder how long it tood for john portman to design the various facade details on this one. 1 atlanic have a cathedral look to it...like a modern-day woolworth.

9/10

Wow, who took those new pictures? Those are some of the best I have ever seen of this building!

8 the Facade needs work.

8.5/10

wow nice tower. Its unusual because it is such a pencil, but it looks great. The top and the architectural detailing are phenomonal. The vertical divisions of the windows adds something extra. I dislike the very bottom. It is not pedestrian friendly and looks odd, like some giant, stretched version of a '20s mansion or something. If it wasnt for that, this would be truly great building.

Nice proportions, and facade details. The way that the windows are grouped reduces the scale of the building. 8/10

Not a big fan. 6.

Exuberant retro kitsch... me like! 8.5/10

I like it just a bit. 5/10

i can get along with this one! 7.5

8/10
It has that old-fashioned look about it which I like. The top of the building is wonderful.

7/10

7.5/10. Atlantic Center is well-built with the old school look to it. Points off for the entrances; makes it look like 1AC was built right on top of it. I like the holy crown to it and the cathedral facade of the building as well. At least their crown makes it better than its unfinished neighbor to the south, BofA.

10/10 great

8.5

It shore has a purty mouth... Yep, one of my favorite atl towers, well, there aren't many that I like anyways - so one of the few atl towers I like.

Whats going on with atlantic center 3?

5/10

10/10

I did some construction work on the 33rd floor a few summers ago. it was really cool. Early in the morning, i'd look out the windows over the foggy Atlanta skyline, quite a sight

Whats going on with atlantic center 3?
It might be cancelled, or on hold. I have seen some renderings but I was quite dissapointed that it's style doesn't mock the original One Atlantic Center's. It was just some glassy abstract tower. Still nice though.

9.5

I really like it. Classic design and some nice detail. Good height and has that timeless element to it. Atlanta could use more like this one ;)

7/10
Although it does look withered, it looks very commanding at night. ;)

I like it. Those little spires on top are a gothic detail... I forget what you call them. But neat to see gothic in a tall scraper.

Post-modern neo gothic, No thank you. 6.5/10

This may be an architecturally amazing building, but its greates contribution was that it created Midtown in Atlanta. There weren't any tall buildings in Midtown before One Atlantic came along. Now Midtown contends with Downtown for Skyscrapers.

It looks to dreary indeed, but the design is 'okey'. 6.5/10

7.5

／( ^｡^)／ BAD ＼(^｡^)＼

Bad in photos, but beautiful when seen in person. I know personally. I give it a 9.5/10. :okay:

8/10

nice but it should be waaay taller 7/10

Hmm. The base looks good. The crown looks a bit fake by day, but very good by night. Apart from this it's rather awful. How can they say the inspiration is from Tribune Tower ??? Tribune Tower beats this anytime.
Well, the crown lighting saves it.
5.

Its OK.

Hmm. The base looks good. The crown looks a bit fake by day, but very good by night. Apart from this it's rather awful. How can they say the inspiration is from Tribune Tower ??? Tribune Tower beats this anytime.
Well, the crown lighting saves it.
5.
Look at the facade and base. There are definately some similarities. The top's inspiration was the Trinity Church in Boston.

what an awful way of trying to build something "historic". But hey, it still doesn't look like a complete disaster, so 6/10 for that ;)

8/10

5/10

The facade pattern is boring and ruins the verticality that the "real" Art Deco towers used to have.

I gave it an 8.5.
I like it, I just wish its colors were a little more striking.

6/10.

Looks short and a bit "I want to look expensive but I look cheap". 6.5

Generally I don't like this kind of "neo-historic" buildings, but this one isn't that bad ;) 6,5/10

9/10

Nice, a seven

A dull post-modern building.

6/10.

Classic design, stylish scraper i like it! 8/10

7/10

6...

Nah.. 7/10

Not too keen on the style of this one. 5/10.

Superb. 9/10.

8/10

8.5/10

very nice. 8.5/10

4,5/10

cool building 9/10

7/10

Whats with the gothic arichtecture in the 80's. Not bad but a little out of date 7.0

6.5/10 not very original, but it's still nice

Oh I get it. 8/10

WOW, am I the only one that rates this building a strong 10? I personally think it's among the 5 best towers in America. When you see it in person, across Peachtree a few blocks, it looks REGAL. It stands out proud and strong in Atlanta's skyline. It looks to me like a beacon calling to the past, when architecture MEANT SOMETHING!

WOW, am I the only one that rates this building a strong 10? I personally think it's among the 5 best towers in America. When you see it in person, across Peachtree a few blocks, it looks REGAL. It stands out proud and strong in Atlanta's skyline. It looks to me like a beacon calling to the past, when architecture MEANT SOMETHING!

Exactly what I think, and it's my favorite tower in the world, along with Chicago's Tribune Tower of course.

6/10 ;)

nice... 8/10

this one in 1987?!

6/10

6/10. Not liking this much.

With pyramid 9, without it 6. It reminds me of the Tribune Tower [ it achieved it's purpose ]. 9/10

8.5/10... I saw this one in the summer & it looks great! (especially when lit)

6/10.

6.5/10

postmodernizm... 6/10

7.5/10

5/10 nothing special

sophisticated and classy. a high class high rise. but although i think it does stay this side of the bland line, it does come close to it. it can be considered boring.

9/10

6/10

7/10

4,5/10

Looks Classy

nice 6/10.

Uhh... this looks a lot like the Cleveland one. I guess these were done all over during the PoMo craze. It is a 7 in my books.

5/10 dont have to explain it

9/10 dont have to explain it ;)

Philip Johnson is my idol!! 10/10

good classic design, looks good 8/10

8/10 :D

7.5/10. Nice colors, Nice top. Could use some lower setbacks though as it is a little bit to boxy until the top. Still a very nice building.

8.5

8/10 should be taller

10/10. It's PoMo and in Atlanta.. no more needs to be said.

I really like it. 9.5

8/10

solid, elegant design.

it looks like it was built in the 1039s but i dont mind it 6/10

6/10

8/10

looks 25 years mor than it age and 75m smaller than it height 6.5/10

3/10

8/10:)

6/10.

8/10

6/10

7/10

Borin atl has too many pointy tip buildings

8 / 10

very elegant. wish it were taller.

9/10

now this one I like a good bit
9/10

9.5 / 10

Fits in well with the Atlanta skyline as a few of the skyscrapers there have crowns and this one seems to blend in. For some strange reason it kinda reminds me of the Jin Mao Center in Shaghai mainly from the last pic with the detail at the top. A much smaller version though obviously.

9.5 / 10

A beauty.

9 /10

5/10 nice at night though.

5/10 nice at night though.

why 5 / 10? you gave 6 / 10 to a worse design in China.

9 / 10 from me.

7.5

Nicely proportioned but looks very fake.

ONce you get closer it lacks detail.

6/10

only 4,5/10 :(

9 / 10

now that's a handsome building.

6/10

Nice,

8/10

8/10

8.5/10

a bit cheesy 4/10

Ah this one is ugly! A 3 out of 10.

6/10

i like it!!! 9/10...not to sure about the color though...

9 - okayish.

4.5/10

its alright 7/10

ok 8/10

good one 8/10

6/10

8/10

9.5/10

8/10

I hate this PO-MO crap.

6.5 from me!

Not bad 6.5/10

6/10

7/10

9/10

5/10

Nothing too special. 8/10

a bit too anachronic
5/10

PoMo masterpiece. 10/10. Deserves nothing less.

8/10

I like classic building. 8/10 4 this building!

nice top.

5.
boring

Nothing special to me.

7/10

6/10

3/10

5/10

Very boring and bland. 5/10

A bit chunky.

6.5

Sorry double post.

PoMo masterpiece. 10/10. Deserves nothing less.


For sure!

9/10 i like :)

looks old but beautifull 8/10

6/10

8.5/10
Very nice crown, but boring color!!!!:bash:

6/10

9/10

8.5/10

9

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2128/2484608964_9497dcab9e.jpg?v=0
http://www.flickr.com/photos/mattsal/2484608964/

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3064/2737883396_f1367a61a9.jpg?v=0
http://www.flickr.com/photos/twcollins/2737883396/

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/16/20623375_f900cf9ff2.jpg?v=0
http://www.flickr.com/photos/mccord/20623375/

7/10

8/10

7,5/10

7/10

7.5/10

Very beautiful and lovely !

9.0/10

9. Very good building. Regards.

8.5/10

8/10

7.5/10

Badly proportioned wedding cake tower that's missing a base but comes complete with a fake victorian crown. An utter failure. 4

8/10

8.5

Postmodernist towers can look exhilarating and elegant, but this one is just dull. 4/10

ugly and old 5/10

9.5/10

5.5/10

7/10

7/10

6/10

8/10

6.5/10

5/10

7.5/10

8/10

It's so-so from afar, but when I walked right up to it and looked at the details, I was impressed. Intricate details aren't visible from afar.