Completed in 1975, Pennzoil Place consists of two 36-story trapezoidal towers of dark bronze glass and aluminum, which are separated by a ten-foot-wide spatial void and connected by a 115-foot-high, glass atrium. The architectural design was the creation of Philip Johnson. In formulating the design, Philip Johnson responded to directives from J. Hugh Liedtke, Chairman of the Pennzoil Company for a building that was dignified in appearance but not box-shaped. Gerald D. Hines Interests, the developer, wanted a building that could provide a distinctive identity for more than one major tenant. Therefore the idea for two buildings rather than one was born and imposed upon them reflective symmetry and a 45-degree geometry; making it considered significant in architectural circles for breaking the modernist glass box made popular by followers of Ludwig Mies van der Rohe and for introducing the era of postmodernism.

Pennzoil Place was named "Building of the Year" in 1975 by famed New York Times architecture critic Ada Louise Huxtable due to the dramatic sculptural silhouette it added to the Houston skyline.  And as the ownership has invested heavily in the future, the building continues to garner awards.  Pennzoil Place won the 2014 Digie Award for the "Most Intelligent Office Building" and was recently announced as a finalist in Houston's Urban Land Institute's Eighth Annual Development of Distinction Awards.