Turning Torso

HSB Turning Torso is a skyscraper in Malmö, Sweden, designed by the award-winning Spanish architect Santiago Calatrava. Via Wikipedia:

It uses nine five-story cubes that twist as it rises; the top-most segment is twisted ninety degrees clockwise with respect to the ground floor. One reason for the building of Turning Torso was to reestablish a recognizable skyline for Malmö since the removal of the Kockums Crane in 2002.

(Photos above by Meltingfire, mr_reynolds, Ndesh and paralecitam. See more on Flickr.)

One of Santiago's other equally impressive designs, the Chicago Spire supertall skyscraper, will become North America's tallest structure and the world's tallest all residential building when completed in 2010.

I've now discovered that I came across two other Santiago structures (that I'm aware of) while backpacking around Western Europe: Ciutat de les Arts i les Ciències (City of Arts and Sciences) in Valencia, and the Puente del Alamillo (Alamillo Bridge) in Seville, Spain. Really photogenic architecture.

I wouldn't say no to any of these buildings replacing the Athlone Power Station that dominates Cape Town's outer skyline - the future of which remains uncertain. Maybe something to complement the Athlone stadium and, err, the rest of the Cape Flats (aka. "apartheid's dumping ground"). Just imagine the view!

Ah, and to balance out the Green Point Stadium currently under construction - of which I'm not a fan. Cape Town's own giant toilet bowl. Or maybe it should be nicknamed "The Ashtray", to fit in with the The Pepper Pots and Table Mountain theme. Or is that the "Tampon Towers". Hmmm... then that would make the stadium the... nah, nevermind.