Dekton Corner

444 N Orleans Offices in Chicago.

Right in the heart of Chicago, barely a ten-minute walk from City Hall, is 444 N Orleans, a recently refurbished building with a privileged location. The particularly striking 444 N Orleans is distinctive thanks to an impressive corner fully clad in Dekton, in large-format slabs with an innovative and daring design, in contrast with the classic brick which can be seen across most of the city. The snow and the humidity push the materials on external surfaces which are constantly exposed, particularly facades, to the limit. There are few materials that can resist it without losing their properties, including their color. It was in this context that the architects of 444 N Orleans came across Dekton, Cosentino’s ultracompact surface able to withstand major thermal variations, highly humid environments and high UV insulation.

To provide a cover for the corner of 444 N Orleans, an elegant color was sought that would directly bring to mind the city’s natural surroundings, on the shores of vast Lake Michigan, which is usually frozen over in winter. With its white tones and greyish veining, Aura 15 is evocative of the whimsical patterns and images which form on the lake during the harshness of winter. Stone System, a company with perfect knowledge of Cosentino’s materials, installed this facade. In order to achieve 444 N Orleans, it was decided that a ventilated facade would be used because, among other reasons, of the properties it offers to the building in terms of thermal and acoustic insulation.

The effect of the large-scale Dekton pieces in Aura 15 is enhanced by the facade pattern, a continuous vein matching from slab to slab, in contrast with the rough texture provided by traditional brick.