Adrian Smith was a consulting design partner in the Chicago office of Skidmore, Owings and Merrill LLP (SOM). His career at SOM spanned more than 30 years and includes a term as the firm's chief executive officer, and as chairman of the SOM Foundation. Projects under his direction have won more than 90 awards for design excellence, and have been built in many locations around the world. He is now regarded as one of the world's foremost exponents of the 'supertall' building and related state-of-the-art systems and technologies. He is a strong proponent of urban continuity and believes that in order to achieve it, a building must establish a connection to the fabric, climate, geology and culture of the city and restore the hierarchical balance between the public and private realms. This unprecedented monograph is an exhaustive digest of the work of a contemporary master architect who has had a profound influence on the fabric of the international built environment.
When it comes to important buildings, Adrian Smith and SOM have provided us a beacon by which to steer. In these pages, Adrian Smith illuminates, showing us how to engage, energize and inspire students , architects and clients to do and to be their very best.