OMA recently revealed new details on the Norra Tornen twin towers -- formerly titled Tors Torn -- since they won the competition in 2013. The distinguishly faceted 100-meter towers, which are named Helix and Innovation, are being designed to be the third tallest twin skyscrapers in the Hagastaden neighborhood of Stockholm. The mixed-use buildings will consist of private residential apartments, a bar and exhibition space, and public amenities...The project is scheduled to break ground in 2015. — bustler.net
24 Comments
Very nice.
Inspired by Safdie's Habitat no doubt.
nice.
Let's see how this fleshes out in reality.
For example the oversize fixed mullionless windows ...
from what I can tell the facade skin looks like some really bad 70's rough aggregate social housing material, is that what they're going for here?
that looks like 8 hours of work by one intern...
I would like to see the trendy data design research diagrams justifying the stacking - thanks.
I would I have liked if there was a change of scale at the ground. It may have been nice kust to visually differentiate the larger public spaces from the residential scale. From that first view of the street I'm not much of a fan of the way it just stops at the ground.
I kinda like the fluted rough concrete.
++ shivuy, v. good observation.
Scaled texture is one of the nice things about it.
that's either corrugated cardboard or bad 70's pebble filled concrete.
OMA seems bored and derivative at this point--like every corporation, they were dynamic at the S,M,L, and hopelessly cynical and soulless at the XL. What happened? Kunsthal, IIT, Seattle Public Library were great--the recent output not so much.
SHoPs pre-fab modular housing at Barclays Center is a more interesting case study for metabolism than a poor man's rehash of Habitat 67.
I would like to see the trendy data design research diagrams justifying the stacking - thanks. Funny, but at least they tried to wow you back then with a process of some kind. Now its just--heres a rendering that looks kind of like a poor man's Bjarke Ingels Group.
The units look like they will be nice places to live.
But I agree that the ground plane looks miserable - like something from some 1970's brutalist college dorm. I love how architects presenting projects like this show these big, sterile concrete wasteland spaces adjoining the buildings, and then they photoshop in shiny, happy people living shiny, happy lives there. You just know that nobody is going to spend much time in that plaza. It's almost like they use photoshop to convince themselves otherwise.
Ha! Lightperson, you are right. It's BIG without the optimism. That's a bad recipe.
OMA should change it's name to SDA
Sculptural Dysfunctional Architecture
Lightperson - I was slightly joking, but yeah what happened?
Like many firms that grow too large, the principles often downsize on purpose to get back to doing what they felt was architecture.
Its a nice design and the rough texture, with whatever Paul Rudolph associations it inspires, is a well-timed shift away from the usual metal cladding.
And the idea of a wasteland at ground level is just as much of a fantasy as the rendering full of slim attractive people. Although, I have to admit, a hip neighborhood in Stockholm near an OMA-designed apartment building probably does its fair share of well groomed, fashionable people. http://www.thesartorialist.com/tag/stockholm/
no the wasteland is true. I've been to Stockholm a few times, and been to the social housing areas, granted it was February last time, but the wasteland scenario is absolutely possible....it's Modernism meeting the ground in space - failure mostly.
It's not so much the wasteland scenario, but the fact the building does not change at the street level is a serious issue.
This is why the renderings are an 8 hour intern project. There is a lot more consideration in the ground level design than 30 floors of copy paste stacking.
and Rudolph sucks. I mentioned this in thwoomps post, and since only like 10 people pay attention I'll go ahead and tell you who stole a students design once and won an international competition as he talked the student out of his design....
Olaf,
You are offering up a lot of urban design cliches. And its pretty clear that Koolhaas has set out to avoid those very same cliches.
After this gets built, we'll be able to test some of these theories out. If you're right, this will become a miserable hellscape.
Obviously you have some very strong preferences, but I disagree with you about Paul Rudolph, modernism and probably many other things. I can't really respond to the design-stealing accusation.
I like modernism, good modernism, but Paul Rudolph? Find me a good project by him? Even the down the street view is funny. No base, does the basement look the same?
ODN, look at Rudolph's early houses around Florida, they're amazing. Also the towers in Singapore and Lippo Centre in Hong Kong. I admit they're what you might call a heavy taste, but worth enjoying. Nothing about the way this abruptly meets the ground suggests the strangely layered spaces Rudolph used as entryways to his buildings.
Sounds like Stockholm needs what it can get anyway. http://nyti.ms/1GnuQH5
OMA looks to be indulging Rem's taste for kitsch lately. I missed the 70's the first time so seems fun to me.
What -- Brutalism is "out" again ? Boy, that was a short window . . .
Remember, this project is composed of distinguishly faceted 100-meter towers ! I like the simplicity of the meeting with the ground; I can't picture a happier outcome by placing this visually heavy collection of cubes on pilots, nor would a solid base present a friendlier face to the pedestrian. No ?
What's wrong with a strong idea that arrives in a flash and is then carried out with rigorous consistency ? Isn't that what all our master makers have shown us ?
Reminds me of a large jenga game. Wonder how they plan on keeping these things from leaking.
56 Leonard by H&DeM does it better. Stacking while being modern...
How about the Capsule Hotel in Tokyo, 1972.
Visited Lippo Centre prior to realizing it was Rudolph....none of his stuff ever got me excited.....maybe if the put planters in front of the cubes it would meet the sidewalk better?.......those cubes are apartment rooms, what are they at ground level? Bike rooms? Mail rooms? Form follow form, I really need to see those trendy diagrams to understand why the intern simply used the Array command to finish designing a building in 8 hours or less....even their own rendering indicates bad dentist office with those silly vertical blinds....
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