Tuesday, October 26, 2010

50 Strange Buildings of the World

1. The Crooked House (Sopot, Poland)

Construction of the building started in in January 2003 and in December 2003 it was finished. House architecture is based on Jan Marcin Szancer (famous Polish artist and child books illustrator) and Per Dahlberg (Swedish painter living in Sopot) pictures and paintings.

The Crooked House

 

2. Forest Spiral – Hundertwasser Building (Darmstadt, Germany)

The Hundertwasser house “Waldspirale” (”Forest Spiral”) was built in Darmstadt between 1998 and 2000. Friedensreich Hundertwasser, the famous Austrian architect and painter, is widely renowned for his revolutionary, colourful architectural designs which incorporate irregular, organic forms, e.g. onion-shaped domes.
The structure with 105 apartments wraps around a landscaped courtyard with a running stream. Up in the turret at the southeast corner, there is a restaurant, including a cocktail bar.

Forest Spiral - Hundertwasser Building (Darmstadt, Germany)

 

3. The Torre Galatea Figueras (Spain)

The Torre Galatea Figueras (Spain)

 

4. Ferdinand Cheval Palace a.k.a Ideal Palace (France)

Ferdinand Cheval Palace a.k.a Ideal Palace (France)

 

5. The Basket Building (Ohio, United States)

The Longaberger Basket Company building in Newark, Ohio might just be a strangest office building in the world. The 180,000-square-foot building, a replica of the company’s famous market basket, cost $30 million and took two years to complete. Many experts tried to persuade Dave Longaberger to alter his plans, but he wanted an exact replica of the real thing.

The Basket Building (Ohio, United States)

 

6. Kansas City Public Library (Missouri, United States)

This project, located in the heart of Kansas City, represents one of the pioneer projects behind the revitalization of downtown.
The people of Kansas City were asked to help pick highly influential books that represent Kansas City. Those titles were included as ‘bookbindings’ in the innovative design of the parking garage exterior, to inspire people to utilize the downtown Central Library.

Kansas City Public Library (Missouri, United States)

 

7. Wonderworks (Pigeon Forge, TN, United States)

Wonderworks (Florida, United States)

 

8. Habitat 67 (Montreal, Canada)

Expo 67, one of the world’s largest universal expositions was held in Montreal. Housing was one of the main themes of Expo 67.
The cube is the base, the mean and the finality of Habitat 67. In its material  sense, the cube is a symbol of stability. As for its mystic meaning, the cube is symbol of wisdom, truth, moral perfection, at the origin itself of our civilization.
354 cubes of a magnificent grey-beige build up one on the other to form 146 residences nestled between sky and earth, between city and river, between greenery and light.

Habitat 67 (Montreal, Canada)

 

9. Cubic Houses (Rotterdam, Netherlands)

The original idea of these cubic houses came about in the 1970s. Piet Blom has developed a couple of these cubic houses that were built in Helmond.
The city of Rotterdam asked him to design housing on top of a pedestrian bridge and he decided to use the cubic houses idea. The concept behind these houses is that he tries to create a forest by each cube representing an abstract tree; therefore the whole village becomes a forest.

Cubic Houses (Rotterdam, Netherlands) 

10. Hang Nga Guesthouse a.k.a Crazy House (Vietnam)

The house is owned by the daughter of the ex-president of Vietnam, who studied architecture in Moscow.
It does not comply with any convention about house building, has unexpected twists and turns, roofs and rooms. It looks like a fairy tale castle, it has enormous “animals” like a giraffe and a spider, no window is rectangular or round, and it can be visited like a museum.

Hang Nga Guesthouse a.k.a Crazy House (Vietnam) 

11. Chapel in the Rock (Arizona, United States)

Chapel in the Rock (Arizona, United States) 

12. Dancing Building (Prague, Czech Republic)

Dancing Building (Prague, Czech Republic) 

13. Calakmul building a.k.a La Lavadora a.k.a The Washing Mashine (Mexico, Mexico)

Calakmul building a.k.a La Lavadora a.k.a The Washing Mashine (Mexico, Mexico) 

14. Kettle House (Texas, United States)

Kettle House (Texas, United States) 

15. Manchester Civil Justice Centre (Manchester, UK)

Manchester Civil Justice Centre (Manchester, UK) 

16. Nakagin Capsule Tower (Tokyo, Japan)

Nakagin Capsule Tower (Tokyo, Japan) 

17. Mind House (Barcelona, Spain)

Mind House (Barcelona, Spain)

 

18. Stone House (Guimarães, Portugal)

Stone House (Guimarães, Portugal)

 

19. Shoe House (Pennsylvania, United States)

Shoe House (Pennsylvania, United States)

 

20. Weird House in Alps

Weird House in Alps

 

21. The Ufo House (Sanjhih, Taiwan)

The Ufo House (Sanjhih, Taiwan)

 

22. The Hole House (Texas, United States)

The Hole House (Texas, United States)

 

23. Ryugyong Hotel (Pyongyang, North Korea)

Ryugyong Hotel (Pyongyang, North Korea)

 

24. The National Library (Minsk, Belarus)

The National Library (Minsk, Belarus)

 

25. Grand Lisboa (Macao)

Grand Lisboa (Macao)

 

26. Wall House (Groningen, Netherlands)

Wall House (Groningen, Netherlands)

 

27. Guggenheim Museum (Bilbao, Spain)

Guggenheim Museum (Bilbao, Spain)

 

28. Bahá’í House of Worship a.k.a Lotus Temple (Delhi, India)

Bahá'í House of Worship a.k.a Lotus Temple (Delhi, India)

 

29. Container City (London, UK)

Container City (London, UK)

 

30. Erwin Wurm: House Attack (Viena, Austria)

Erwin Wurm: House Attack (Viena, Austria)

 

31. Wooden Gagster House (Archangelsk, Russia)

Wooden Gagster House (Archangelsk, Russia)

 

32. Air Force Academy Chapel (Colorado, United States)

Air Force Academy Chapel (Colorado, United States)

 

33. Solar Furnace (Odeillo, France)

Solar Furnace (Odeillo, France)

 

34. Dome House (Florida, United States)

Dome House (Florida, United States)

 

35. Beijing National Stadium (Beijing, China)

Beijing National Stadium (Beijing, China)

 

36. Fashion Show Mall (Las Vegas, United States)

Fashion Show Mall (Las Vegas, United States)

 

37. Luxor Hotel & Casino (Las Vegas, United States)

Luxor Hotel & Casino (Las Vegas, United States)

 

38. Zenith Europe (Strasbourg, France)

Zenith Europe (Strasbourg, France)


39. Civic Center (Santa Monica)

Civic Center (Santa Monica)


40. Mammy’s Cupboard (Natchez, MS, United States)

Mammy's Cupboard (Natchez, MS, United States)


41. Pickle Barrel House (Grand Marais, Michigan, United States)

Pickle Barrel House (Grand Marais, Michigan, United States)


42. The Egg (Empire State Plaza, Albany, New York, United States)

The Egg (Empire State Plaza, Albany, New York, United States)


43. Gherkin Building (London, UK)

Gherkin Building (London, UK)


44. Nord LB building (Hannover, Germany)

Nord LB building (Hannover, Germany)


45. Lloyd’s building (London, UK)

Lloyd’s building (London, UK)


46. “Druzhba Holiday Center Hall (Yalta, Ukraine)

“Druzhba Holiday Center Hall (Yalta, Ukraine)


47. Fuji television building (Tokyo, Japan)

Fuji television building (Tokyo, Japan)


48. UCSD Geisel Library (San Diego, California, United States)

UCSD Geisel Library (San Diego, California, United States)


49. Ripley’s Building (Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada)

Ripley's Building (Ontario, Canada)


50. The Bank of Asia a.k.a Robot Building (Bangkok, Thailand)

The Bank of Asia a.k.a Robot Building (Bangkok, Thailand)

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