Across the river to the north and west you will see the massive Merchandise Mart. Designed by Alfred P. Shaw for the architecture firm Graham, Anderson, Probst & White, the Merchandise Mart is one of Chicago’s many Art Deco buildings that reflects the optimism of the 1920s. The steel-framed structure is clad in limestone, terra cotta and bronze and its ornamentation displays many of the style’s popular motifs. The recessed vertical windows with dark spandrels emphasize the building’s verticality and balance out its horizontal mass. Rows of decorative chevrons (zigzags) and diagonal towers at each corner of the building are common motifs used during the Art Deco era.It was one of the first buildings in the city to be built over railway air rights. The Merchandise Mart occupies over 4 million square feet (approximately 372,000 square meters) or the equivalent of two and a half city blocks. Upon its completion in 1930, it was the largest building in the world and served as Marshall Field’s wholesale warehouse where retailers could buy stock. The idea was to unite sales of furniture, fabric and other decorative materials under one roof. However, it wasn’t the financial success investors expected. The Great Depression forced Field & Company out of the wholesale market.In the 1940s, the building was sold to a group headed by Joseph P. Kennedy for about a third of its original cost.Today, it’s still a designer showcase venue. More than one quarter of the building is leased by tech companies, including tech startup incubator 1871, and Motorola Mobility. The Chicago tech startup scene is the second largest in the countryPhoto Chicago (ILL), Near North Side, Merchandise Mart, 1930 by (vincent desjardins) is licensed under CC BY 2.0