Best Chicago Architecture Stops

This guide traces the story of Chicago architecture for design fans and curious visitors, from Loop skyscrapers to Frank Lloyd Wright's Prairie-style work. The stops cluster in the Loop and along the river at Michigan Avenue, with the Robie House on the list and two Wright landmarks in suburban Oak Park.

The Rookery hides a two-story skylit light court remodeled by Wright behind its heavy masonry facade. The Chicago Cultural Center, the former central library, has mosaic-covered stairways and a 38-foot Tiffany dome, with free admission. Willis Tower Skydeck sits 1,353 feet up, where The Ledge glass boxes hang over Wacker Drive. In Oak Park, Unity Temple was one of the first major public buildings in exposed concrete. Start at the Chicago Architecture Center, whose giant city model sets up everything else, and go to Skydeck on a clear late afternoon.