Check out this tower proposal designed by Portugal-based OODA Architecture in collaboration with the Spanish and American studio OOIIO for the City of Taichung. The proposal received a merit award from the Taiwan tower competition, which asked participants to developed a conceptual vision for a landmark tower to commemorate the centennial anniversary of the founding of Taiwan, R.O.C. and to celebrate the merger between Taichung County and Taichung City.
More images and more about the tower after the break.
For their submission, the firms were inspired by structure, form, materials and spirit. Combining these into a physical tower, the star-shaped skyscraper incorporate a variety of activities wrapped in a structural skin. According to the architects, the form links Taiwan´s significant cutting industry (diamonds) with the required program and some inspirational features such as the Eiffel Tower (structure and icon), the Origami (folding process and symbol generation) and Taiwan´s star-look flag (identity).
As the building is meant to serve as a landmark, the massing strongly emphasis the visual quality of the structure. It unique geometry provides a differing “perception from every corner and establishes renewable relations with the city from within the building and from the outside context.”
The building has three distinct entrances (Museum, Tower and Offices) that are defined by three separated volumetric pieces that get unified in the first common sky Lobby above and create a public sheltered space below. On the central area is positioned the main functions (such as the Museum, Conference Centre, Fitness, Sky lobbies, Retail, Food and Beverage, etc) and on the peaks and the between areas is where we can find the offices, the sightseeing zones and the complementary functions.
As seen on Bustler.
The design team: Diogo Brito, Rodrigo Vilas-Boas, Francisco Rugeroni, Joaquín Millán VIllamuelas, Alfredo Muñoz Herrero, Juan José Ortega López, and Sandra Sainz Vicente. The partners behind OODA are two young architects who spent some years working in Zaha Hadid Architects and OMA/Rem Koolhaas office.
