Architecture

Sydney high-rise offers fresh angle ... and a new twist

Sydney high-rise offers fresh angle ... and a new twist
Quay Quarter Tower in Sydney, Australia, will feature a twisted, angled façade
Quay Quarter Tower in Sydney, Australia, will feature a twisted, angled façade
View 3 Images
Quay Quarter Tower in Sydney, Australia, will feature a twisted, angled façade
1/3
Quay Quarter Tower in Sydney, Australia, will feature a twisted, angled façade
Quay Quarter Tower will be split into five different sections
2/3
Quay Quarter Tower will be split into five different sections
Quay Quarter Tower will be situated close to the Sydney Opera House
3/3
Quay Quarter Tower will be situated close to the Sydney Opera House
View gallery - 3 images

Traditional block high-rises generally only afford residents views of the building opposite. A new building in Sydney, Australia, however, is designed to provide more interesting views for those inside. Quay Quarter Tower comprises five stacked rotated sections that allow residents to see much more.

Project architect UXN has designed a number of innovative high-rises previously, including Grove Towers in Mumbai, India, that will clean the surrounding air when completed. More similar to the Quay Quarter Tower project is the company's Bella Sky Hotel design in Copenhagen, Denmark, the two towers of which lean away from each other at an angle of 15 degrees.

Quay Quarter Tower will be split into five different sections
Quay Quarter Tower will be split into five different sections

Though Quay Quarter Tower does not lean at a vertical angle, it is split into five sections that are rotated laterally and, therefore, protrude at various angles. The sections are not each rotated in full – they appear more as though one corner or other has been stretched, pulling the section out of its square or rectangular form to give more of an extruded shape.

According to 3XN, the sectioned composition of the building serves another purpose. By creating natural separations between parts of the tower, it is hoped that they will foster a more intimate, self-contained environments that encourage residents to "connect and interact." This goal is further targeted by placing an atrium in each section, which will act as public space for the residents of that specific section.

Quay Quarter Tower will be situated close to the Sydney Opera House
Quay Quarter Tower will be situated close to the Sydney Opera House

"This project looks at the 'high rise' in an entirely new way, from both the inside out and outside in," says founding partner and creative director of 3XN Kim Herforth Nielsen. "Its dynamic, shifted massing maximizes views for all of the building's users while also creating expansive open spaces that encourage the possibility for interaction, knowledge sharing and vertical connectivity."

The extruded sections of the tower also create a series of external terraces. These are linked to the internal atria, providing more shared space and a place for outdoor relaxation and greenery.

Construction of the Quay Quarter Tower is due to begin in 2018.

Source: 3XN

View gallery - 3 images
4 comments
4 comments
BZD
Nice to see they are not putting up just another block with a spire on top.
I some ways the project makes me think of think of the Turning Torso in Malmö, Sweden. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turning_Torso
Slowburn
You take the elevator to your floor or are they going to make you climb stares to get too your floor after you get of the elevator?
Mark Keller
Aren't elevators usually within the core of the building?
Slowburn
@ Mark Keller I was commenting on the ludicrous notion of a community based on a few floors being "separate" from the rest of the building together.