THE BUILDING
Originally named the John Hancock Center, this mixed-use skyscraper became the second tallest building in the world when it was completed in 1969. It pioneered the use of a tubular system in skyscraper construction that has been used in numerous other skyscrapers ever since. The rectangular tube of this building has a grid of beams and columns on its perimeter. Diagonal braces on the exterior walls give the tube extra strength. The tapered shape was intended to provide additional structural stability against wind forces.
THE MODEL
SCALE
1/230
PIECE COUNT
21379
HEIGHT
78 IN.
This was probably one of my most difficult digital builds so far. There are a couple of things that make this a challenge to build with LEGO – the tapered shape of the building and the X-bracing on the exterior of the building. I used half stud offsets and over 20 distinct sections in the model to recreate the taper. There is still some jaggedness that is unavoidable with LEGO. The X-braces were an even bigger challenge and I ended up using plates attached to the face of the building and arranged in a stair-stepped pattern to approximate them. Obviously, the diagonal braces are a lot thicker than they need to be but again not something I can avoid with LEGO.