KPF's Ziraat Bank Headquarters in Istanbul Tops Out

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Designed by Kohn Pedersen Fox Associates (KPF), the Ziraat Bank Headquarters towers in Istanbul have topped out. The project is expected to become the centerpiece of the new Istanbul International Financial Centre (IIFF), and will incorporate the bank’s headquarters, commercial office spaces, retail spaces on the ground floor, and underground parking.

The towers' design draws upon Istanbul's cultural heritage and historic architecture in a modernized context. The buildings' curved profile, along with the podium, pay homage to the Tughra, a traditional Ottoman calligraphic signature. Both buildings are designed as separate but interconnected structures through the unifying podium. The common entrance includes an eight-storey atrium with a pebble-like form of the Ziraat Bank’s auditorium and conference center. 

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The towers rise up to 40 and 46 storeys, and have been designed to promote employee comfort and wellbeing. Amenities include prayer rooms, naturally ventilated areas, and balcony break out spaces with greenery. Double-height atria were incorporated in the design to create different working environments that encourage social interaction across floors. Bridges are also implemented, crossing the atrium at multiple levels to create visual and physical links.

Louvers of various sizes are added to the facades to allow high-levels of natural daylight whilst reducing glare and preventing excessive solar gain. Unlike the simple treatment of the tower facades, the podium is designed with a rich pattern of flat arches and vertical fins that ornament the ground level. 

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KPF have recently unveiled plans for a new skyscraper in Midtown Manhattan. The 320-metre high office tower at 343 Madison Avenue features a series of receding volumes that leave a way to gardens and terraces at different levels. Once completed, the project will also create an important new transit entrance to the Long Island Rail Road and the Grand Central Complex.