AD looks at seven new gravity-defying buildings
dam-images-architecture-2014-09-skyscrapers-new-skyscrapers-01-8-chifley.jpg
Bright red, X-shaped steel structural braces mark the sides of 8 Chifley, a 35-story tower in Sydney, which was designed for a local real-estate company by London’s Rogers Stirk Harbour + Partners and local firm Lippmann Partnership.
dam-images-architecture-2014-09-skyscrapers-new-skyscrapers-02-8-chifley.jpg
Massive steel girders demarcate a five-story-high public plaza at 8 Chifley’s base.
dam-images-architecture-2014-09-skyscrapers-new-skyscrapers-03-cayan-tower.jpg
Spiraling some 1,000 feet over Dubai, __Cayan Tower—__devised by SOM for a real-estate investment and development concern—twists a full 90-degrees from base to crown, reducing solar heat gain and increasing wind resistance.
dam-images-architecture-2014-09-skyscrapers-new-skyscrapers-04-cayan-tower.jpg
A close-up of the façade of Cayan Tower showcases the building’s sculptural silhouette.
dam-images-architecture-2014-09-skyscrapers-new-skyscrapers-05-vienna-dc-tower-i.jpg
Vienna’s new tallest building (measuring roughly 820 feet high) is DC Tower I, the first of two planned structures by Paris-based architect Dominique Perrault, and Perrault’s first realized structure in Donau City. The multiuse development will include residences, office buildings, and event venues. The glass-and-steel tower looks out onto the Danube River.
dam-images-architecture-2014-09-skyscrapers-new-skyscrapers-06-vienna-dc-tower-i.jpg
The DC Tower I features a hotel, a restaurant, and office space.
dam-images-architecture-2014-09-skyscrapers-new-skyscrapers-07-jockey-club-innovation-tower.jpg
At Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Zaha Hadid Architects applied its trademark dynamism to a new center in the institution’s School of Design and Jockey Club Design Institute for Social Innovation. Named the Jockey Club Innovation Tower and rising 15 stories, the concrete, steel, and glass edifice is shaped like a ship’s prow, encompassing classrooms, lecture halls, and other instructional spaces.
dam-images-architecture-2014-09-skyscrapers-new-skyscrapers-09-leadenhall-building.jpg
Cheekily nicknamed the Cheese Grater by locals for its form, which recalls the kitchen implement, this 50-story tapered office tower by Rogers Stirk Harbour + Partners is the Leadenhall Building, one of the latest additions to London’s fast-growing skyline.
dam-images-architecture-2014-09-skyscrapers-new-skyscrapers-08-jockey-club-innovation-tower.jpg
At the Jockey Club Innovation Tower, sun streams into the circulation areas through a band of windows that snakes over a stairwell and along a side of the building.
dam-images-architecture-2014-09-skyscrapers-new-skyscrapers-10-leadenhall-building.jpg
In addition to 46 stories of offices, the Leadenhall Building includes gallery and retail spaces. The tower’s public plaza and entrance are shown here.
dam-images-architecture-2014-09-skyscrapers-new-skyscrapers-11-one-central-park.jpg
Lush living walls—created by botanist Patrick Blanc—grace the façade of this offbeat residential complex in Sydney, designed by Paris-based Ateliers Jean Nouvel. Comprising two structures that include apartments, offices, and retail space, One Central Park also features a daring cantilevered section that houses 38 high-end apartments.
dam-images-architecture-2014-09-skyscrapers-new-skyscrapers-13-sheraton-huzhou-hot-spring-resort.jpg
MAD Architects devised this horseshoe-shaped tower for the Sheraton Huzhou Hot Spring Resort in Huzhou, China, shown here reflected in Lake Taihu. Composed of two structures that curve to meet each other, forming a distinctive arch, the complex encompasses 321 spacious guest rooms, including 50 suites and 39 villas, all with private balconies.
dam-images-architecture-2014-09-skyscrapers-new-skyscrapers-12-one-central-park.jpg
At One Central Park, a verdant terrace provides a perch from which to survey the surrounding city.
dam-images-architecture-2014-09-skyscrapers-new-skyscrapers-14-sheraton-huzhou-hot-spring-resort.jpg
Another view of the enigmatic Sheraton Huzhou Hot Spring Resort complex.