SOM (Skidmore, Owings & Merrill)

SOM (Skidmore, Owings & Merrill) is an international architecture, engineering, and urban planning firm founded in 1936 by Louis Skidmore, Nathaniel Owings, and John Merrill. The firm is known for high-profile projects in cities worldwide, collaboration with engineering firms, developers, and government agencies, and shaping modernist and high-rise design through landmark buildings, urban plans, and interdisciplinary practices. SOM's portfolio spans corporate headquarters, skyscrapers, airports, cultural institutions, and mixed-use developments across North America, Europe, Asia, and the Middle East.

History

SOM traces roots to the 1930s Chicago scene alongside Chicago School (architecture), engaging contemporaries such as Frank Lloyd Wright, Mies van der Rohe, and firms like Holabird & Root and Adler & Sullivan during the interwar period. In the postwar era SOM worked with clients including General Electric, Sears, Roebuck and Company, and Union Carbide, expanding amid the growth of New York City and Chicago corporate towers. The firm participated in federal and municipal commissions influenced by programs under administrations such as Franklin D. Roosevelt and Dwight D. Eisenhower, collaborating with agencies like the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey and institutions like Princeton University. During the late 20th century SOM engaged in international projects tied to clients including British Airways, HSBC, and governments of United Arab Emirates, China, and Singapore. Key periods include modernist breakthroughs parallel to works by Le Corbusier, responses to oil-era construction in the Middle East alongside Aramco projects, and late-20th-century globalization marked by ties to firms such as Foster + Partners and Gensler.

Notable Works

SOM's portfolio includes skyscrapers and urban projects internationally. Signature high-rises include towers that reshaped skylines like those associated with John Hancock Center, Willis Tower, One World Trade Center, Burj Khalifa context projects, and headquarters comparable in profile to Seagram Building and Chrysler Building influences. Major civic and cultural projects include airports like O'Hare International Airport expansions, museum and university commissions for Museum of Modern Art, Harvard University, and Yale University campus work. Urban plans and mixed-use developments include masterplans in Chicago, New York City, Hong Kong, Shanghai, Dubai, and London. SOM collaborated on financial district landmarks connected to HSBC Tower (Hong Kong), corporate campuses tied to IBM, and redevelopment schemes related to Battery Park City and Canary Wharf. Transportation and infrastructure projects include terminals at JFK International Airport, transit-oriented developments aligning with Metropolitan Transportation Authority initiatives, and work adjacent to projects by Skanska and Bechtel.

Architectural Philosophy and Design Approach

SOM's approach synthesizes modernist precedents from figures such as Le Corbusier, Walter Gropius, and Mies van der Rohe with engineering advances linked to Eero Saarinen and firms like Arup. The practice emphasizes structural clarity seen in partnerships with structural engineers akin to Fazlur Rahman Khan's tubular systems and material innovations resonant with projects by SOM alumni who worked alongside clients such as Bank of America and contractors like Turner Construction Company. Sustainability and technological integration reflect engagement with standards and organizations such as U.S. Green Building Council and collaborations on façades referencing research from institutions like Massachusetts Institute of Technology and University of California, Berkeley. Design methods incorporate urbanist principles informed by studies comparable to work by Jane Jacobs and planning precedents from Robert Moses-era dialogues, while adapting to region-specific contexts including collaborations with authorities in Saudi Arabia and China.

Organizational Structure and Key Personnel

SOM operates through studios in major cities including Chicago, New York City, San Francisco, Los Angeles, London, Hong Kong, Shanghai, and Dubai. Leadership historically included founders Louis Skidmore, Nathaniel Owings, and John Merrill, with prominent partners and designers such as Gordon Bunshaft, Bruce Graham, and Fazlur Rahman Khan shaping engineering and architectural directions. Later figures associated with the firm overlap with contemporaries like Toshiko Mori, Norman Foster-era dialogues, and professionals who have moved between firms such as Santiago Calatrava-affiliated engineers. SOM's multi-disciplinary teams often coordinate with consultants including SOM engineers, contractors like Skanska and Turner Construction Company, and private developers such as Tishman Speyer and Hines. The firm maintains research groups, sustainability directors, and project managers with professional ties to institutions including Columbia University, University of Pennsylvania, and professional bodies like the American Institute of Architects.

Awards and Recognition

SOM and its partners have received accolades comparable to major industry honors including AIA Gold Medal associations through figures such as Gordon Bunshaft, prizes in competitions related to the Pritzker Architecture Prize landscape, and awards from organizations like the American Institute of Architects and RIBA. Projects have been recognized in lists by publications such as Architectural Record and Dezeen, and through civic honors from municipalities including City of Chicago and New York City landmarks programs. SOM-associated engineers and architects have been lauded by institutions such as National Academy of Design and foundations awarding design excellence and preservation awards tied to major works.

Category:Architecture firms Category:Companies based in Chicago