Turning Torso

[Steven_Draker]

I had my eye on the Turning Torso for quite some time, but today was my first opportunity to check it out, up close and personal. The architect who designed the building is Santiago Calatrava whom you may know as the designer and architect of the Milwaukee Art Museum, Denver International Airport, the Railroad Stations in Zürich and Liège, several bridges in Barcelona, Buenos Aires to name just a few.

 

http://www.calatrava.com

 

http://img600.imageshack.us/img600/6839/tt8n.jpg

 

http://img825.imageshack.us/img825/3297/tt3oq.jpg

 

http://img843.imageshack.us/img843/7408/tt1v.jpg

 

http://img820.imageshack.us/img820/2623/tt5a.jpg

 

 

"HSB Turning Torso is the tallest skyscraper in Sweden and the Nordic countries, situated in Malmö, Sweden, located on the Swedish side of the Öresund strait. Upon completion, it was the tallest building in Scandinavia. Now the third tallest residential building in Europe, after the 264‑metre (866 ft) Triumph Palace in Moscow and the 212‑metre Sky Tower in Wrocław. A similar, taller skyscraper featuring a 90° twist is the Infinity Tower, currently under construction in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Prior to the construction of Turning Torso, the 86‑metre (282 ft) Kronprinsen had been the city's tallest building. It was designed by the Spanish architect Santiago Calatrava and officially opened on 27 August 2005. The tower reaches a height of 190 metres (623 feet) with 54 stories.

 

The vision of HSB Turning Torso is based on a sculpture called Twisting Torso. The sculpture is a white marble piece based on the form of a twisting human being, created by Santiago Calatrava, a trained sculptor, architect and engineer.

In 1999, HSB Malmö’s former Managing Director, Johnny Örbäck, saw the sculpture in a brochure which presented Calatrava in connection with his contribution to the architectural competition for the Öresund Bridge. It was on this occasion that Johnny Örbäck got the idea to build HSB Turning Torso. Shortly thereafter he traveled to Zurich to meet with Calatrava and ask him to design a residential building based on the idea of a structure of twisting cubes."

[Bosguy]

Thanks Steven. Incredible piece of architecture. I can't even begin to estimate the costs to construct it

 

Boston Bill

[cany10011]

Steven, thank you for sharing. I love Calatrava's work. Met him once at a book signing for an architect friend. Looking forward to his design of the bird-like World Trade Center's PATH station hub in new york (when and if it gets completed)....according to an article, it is already way over budget and that is with major cuts to the initial design

 

 

http://ny.curbed.com/tags/wtc-path-station

[+ Topseed]

A clarification: Calatrava has designed an expansion of the Denver airport. The main building was the work of Curt Fentress.

[justaguy]

This summer I spent a week in Copenhagen. I had planned a day trip to Malmö but ended up going to a university town a little farther up. Now I wish I’d figured out a way to do both.

 

The pics are great. Steven, did you take them?

[Poolboy21409]

One of my grandparents was born in Malmo. Havent been there but this seems pretty progressive for probably the 6th largest city in Sweden.

 

Steven you get to see a lot nice pieces of art ......and ass in your travels. :-)

[Steven_Draker]

I had planned a day trip to Malmö but ended up going to a university town a little farther up.

 

That would be the University town of Lund. Choosing between Malmö (Sweden's 3rd largest city) and Lund - it's like choosing between visiting Brussels and Brugge. A hard choice when you can visit both in a couple of days.

[Steven_Draker]

A clarification: Calatrava has designed an expansion of the Denver airport. The main building was the work of Curt Fentress.

 

Thanks for this clarification, Topseed.

[Steven_Draker]

Looking forward to his design of the bird-like World Trade Center's PATH station hub in new york (when and if it gets completed)....according to an article, it is already way over budget and that is with major cuts to the initial design

 

 

http://ny.curbed.com/tags/wtc-path-station

 

Thanks for posting this link, cany10011. I haven't heard about this Calatrava's project in NYC and the article provided an interesting read.

[justaguy]

Yes, I went to Lund. I enjoyed the cathedral and the university atmosphere of the smaller city as a break from the big city life of Copenhagen. But I'm keeping this building in mind for the next time I'm in the region.