Overview
Vertical gardening is one way to prevent the Blade Runner-ifying of our urban environments. But how about an invisible skyline, made up of anti-skyscrapers?
South Korea is about to get a first taste of the concept, with construction set to start on 'Tower Infinity'. At 450 metres, it's definitely one of the ten tallest buildings in the world. What's attracting headlines, however, is the fact that you can't see it. (What?)
By employing cameras, a special skin and optical technology, GDS Architects have designed the tower so that its pinnacle appears to vanish into the sky. Their concept won a 2008 international competition involving 146 entries from 46 nations, but they've only just been granted permission to begin construction.
To be built in Seoul's Yongsan International Business District, near Incheon International Airport, Tower Infinity will, for the most part, fulfil recreational, rather than residential, purposes. There'll be eateries, a theatre, amusement park rides, observation decks (including one at 392 metres) and landscaped gardens.
GDS Architects' principal, Charles Wee, argues that it's not merely an exercise in vanity. "Instead of symbolising prominence as another of the world's tallest and best towers, our solution aims to provide the world's first invisible tower, showcasing Korean technology while encouraging a more global narrative in the process," he said in World Architecture News. "We are elated that the many years of design, testing and coordination have led us to that all important step of beginning the building process. We look forward to providing Korea and the world with a completely new model for what it means to be an observation tower."
[via Inhabitat]