Capital Gate in Dubai
This
540-foot-tall tower in Abu Dhabi is known as Capital Gate and was
developed by the Abu Dhabi National Exhibitions Company. It was
designed by RMIM. The quite unusual tower was a nominee in the
Middle East & Africa region.
It was built with an 18-degree westward lean, holding the Guinness
World Record for the "world's furthest leaning manmade tower."
"The building's form represents a swirling spiral of sand. The
curved canopy, known as the 'Splash,' which runs over the adjoining
grandstand and rises up on one side of the building, creates a
wave-like effect while shading the facade....The floor plates change
shape and orientation to created the distinctive overhang moving from
"curved triangular" to "curved rectangular," while increasing in
overall size and migrating from east to west as they progress up the
tower. The building has a completely asymmetric shape - no two
rooms at the same and all 12,500 panes of glass on the facade are a
different size. A diagrid structural system was utilitized in
which all 8,259 steel diagrid members are of different thicknesses,
length and orientation and each of the 822 diagrid nodes are of a
different size and angular configuration."
Net Center in
Padova, Italy
With
its red sunshades and flaring design, this tower, which is known as the
Net Center, is one of the book's most dramatic. It was developed
by Progetto Acciaio and the architect was LVL Architettura. It is
located in an outskirt region on the eastern side of Padova...called
San Lazarro.
New
Center in Padova, Italy, different view
The
plan calls for trapezoidal
shapes at the bottom and top with the plans changing at every
level.
The tower has reflecting pools on two sides and is surrounded by four
buildngs including a 140-foot-room hotel beneath offices, two two-rise
structures and a pavilion.
Aldar
Headquarters in Abu Dhabi
This
vertically circular tower is 361 feet tall and was developed by Aldar
Properties and designed by M7 Architects.
The
Guangzhou
International Finance Center
The
Guangzhou Interntiional Finance Center became China's fourth tallest
and the world's ninth tallest at the time of its completion. It
was
the council's winner in the Asia and Australasia regions. It is
1,419
feet high and has developed by Yue Xiu Group. Wilkinson Eyre was
the
architect.
The
tower's three facades form a curved triangular tower whose highest
point is a helicopter landing pad, which hovers over the central
atrium. The tower has office space on floors 2 through 67 and a
Four
Seasons hotel and an observation area. The tower is slightly
wider about a third of the way up.
Capital City in Moscow
Part
of a three-building complex, it has two residential towers, the
996-foot-high Moscow Tower and the 844-foot-high. The project was
developed by the Capital Group and designed by NBBJ. It was a
nominee for best tall building in Europe. The project's towers are
stacked glass boxes with elegant and refined patterning that are
enhanced by the slight "twisting" of the boxes. Construction of the Moscow Tower
was completed in 2008 when it surpassed the Naberezhnaya Tower as the
tallest in Europe. The complex was completed in 2009 and the
Moscow Tower was exceeded in height in 2012 by The Shard in London.
Sky
Tower in Abu Dhabi, the United Arab Emirates
"Sky Tower is the taller of two towers that rise alongside the
monumental portico of The Gate project like welcoming orches (Sun Tower
being the other)" in Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates, the book
stated.
The entire complex was erected by Sorouh Real Estate Development and
designed by Arquitectonica, the architectural firm based in Miami.
These two towers, elliptical in plan, adjoin The Gate, a three-legged
project with an enormous rooftop skydeck, modeled somewhat after Moshe
Safdie's famous Marina Sands project in Singapore.
These two, slim towers are exceedingly elegant with the gray, tiny
polka-dot fenestration and very thin, protruding vertical piers that
boldly and dramatically but subtely interrupt the lovely facades like
clefts from a Lucio Fontana panting.
The council's book notes that "the facades of the towers are adorned
with a series of crystals that sparkle in the sunlight."
RivieraTwinStar in
Shanghai
The
50-story Riviera TwinStar towers in Shanghai were developed by Shanghai
Rui Ming RE Co. (JV of CITIC Pacific Group and China State Shipping
Corporation). A "finalist" in the Asia and Australasia region, it
was designed by Arquitectonica. Each tower houses a
different bank company. The book notes that "the facing inner
curves
are lit at night to emphasize the distinctive shape and monumental
scale of the space," adding that "their nautical symmetry conveys
memories of the ships that were once launched from the site's now
relocated Shanghai Shipyards."
Etihad
Towers in Abu Dhabi
Etihad
Towers is a mixed-use development located on the prestigious coastline
of Khalidyah, composed of five towers ranging from 49 to 76 stories
above a five-level podium. The towers contain a mix of office and
residential space as well as a five-star hotel and a retail mall.
The project was a "nominee" for best tall building in the Middle East
& Africa.
This
project differs from other projects in the region because of its unique
planning process, in which all key project components were introduced
from the very outset. In addition, the project owner, project manager,
consultants, contractor, facility manager, hotel operator, district
cooling services provider, bank/financier and real estate/property
manager were each involved from the initial planning stages, thus
allowing for a continuous flow of communication and an ability to
manage the expectations of all parties concerned in an effective and
timely manner.
The
towers are located opposite the Emirates
Palace hotel and feature offices, apartments and a hotel.
Towers 2 and 5 topped out in November 2010.
A
year later, in November 2011, the Jumeirah at Etihad
Towers Hotel which belongs to Jumeirah
Group was opened in Tower 1. Tori No Su Japanese restaurant
opened within the hotel in 2012. The adjacent Tower 2 is (as of
December 2012) the tallest building on Abu Dhabi island and the second
tallest in Abu Dhabi after Sky
Tower on Al
Reem Island. Tower 2 has an observation deck in the 75th floor
which is accessible from the hotel via a lower level linking podium.
Bella Sky Towers in
Copenhagen
The
two Bella Sky Towers in Copenhagen lean 15 degrees to each side and the
top 10 floors shift horizontally. It was developed by Bella
Center A/S and designed by 3XN A/S. The towers are connected at
the top floor by a skybridge and the project has 814 hotel rooms.
They are a nominee for best
tall building project in Europe.
Crown Metropol in
Melbourne
"Planned
in a loose 'S'-shaped
form," the book notes, "the design of Crown Metropol breaks free from
conventional boutique hotel typologies to explore the contemporary
redefinition of an urban retreat." The project in Melbourne was
developed by Crown Limited and designed by Bates Smart Pty, Ltd.
Facade detail of
Crown Metropol in Melbourne
"Planned
in a loose 'S'-shaped form," the book notes, "the design of Crown
Metropol breaks free from conventional boutique hotel typologies to
explore the contemporary redefinition of an urban retreat." The
project in Melbourne was developed by Crown Limited and designed by
Bates Smart Pty, Ltd.
"The cladding strategy," the book continued, "seeks to enhance the
sinuous 'S' curve via the accentuation of the dropped shadows and
pockets of reflection found withint the twisting polished form via the
use of dark colored, delicatedly trimmed aluminum fins which cluster
together in a diagonal pattern across the west facade. The
individually crafter units emerge in and out of the shadow gap between
the glass panels in an incredibly simple detail that builds a sense of
surprise, dynamic shift and changing appearance when approaching the
hotel from different sides, and leads to an overall sensuous appearance
to the building."
The Troika in
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
The
Troika is a 689-foot-high, residential project consisting of three
uneven towers in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. It was developed by
Bandar Raya Development Berhad and designed by Foster &
Partners. The towers have skybridges are the 24th floor and
slender shear concrete walls that rise a bit about the tops of the
building.
Haeundae I' Park in
Busan, South Korea
Haeundae
I' Park is a multi-building complex in Busan, South Korea, that was a
"nominee" in the Asia & Australasia region. It was by the
Hyundai
Development Company and designed by Studio Daniel Liebeskind.
The
complex consists of three high-rise residential buildings, a nine-story
office building and a three-story retail building. The book notes
that
"the curvilinear geometry of the buildings plays with concepts of
traditional Korean architecture, often derived from natural beauty such
as the grace of an ocean wave."
Woodward's
W43 in Vancouver
Woodward's
W43 in Vancouver was a "nominee" in the Americas region. The
401-foot-high building was developed by the W Redevelopment Group and
designed by Henriquez Partners. The book notes that the
building's very attractive steel screens evoke "the steel construction
method used in Vancouver in the early 20th Century."
The council awarded its Lynn
S. Beedle Award for Lifetime Achievement to Adrian Smith, a parner with
Gordon Gill. They were the architects of Burj Khalifa in Dubai
that was erected as the world's tallest building in 2010.
