No matter our dwelling, be it a house or a condo, apartment building or duplex, the place we call home is our private sanctuary. These apartment buildings around the world are some of the coolest out there. And, some lucky people get to call these buildings their homes! Let’s take a look at ten of the coolest apartment buildings on the world.
The Kavanaugh Building – Buenos Aires, Argentina
The Kavanaugh Building is located in Buenos Aires, Argentina. The apartment building opened in 1936 after a two year construction period. The design of the building combines art deco and modernism, with a rationalist approach. There are a total of 105 apartments and the upper levels have exquisite terrace gardens with spectacular views of the city. Corina Kavanaugh was a 39 year old millionaire at the time the building was erected. She sold two ranches to build her own skyscraper. She lived on the 14th floor in the largest apartment for many years. The 14th floor is the only floor that houses just one apartment.
Absolute World – Mississauga, Ontario, Canada
Absolute World, also referred to as The Marilyn Monroe Towers, is residential condominium twin tower skyscrapers in Mississauga, Ontario, Canada. The final two towers were to be designed by the winner of a competition held by the city. Out of over 600 registrants and 92 submissions from architects around the world, six finalists were picked. Yansong Ma from Beijing, China, was announced the winner on March 28, 2007. The towers are very unique rotating towers and tower one has six levels of underground parking. Tower 1 has 56 floors and tower 2 has 50.
Education Executive Agency and Tax Office – Groningen, Netherlands
Designed by UNStudio, this modern building was built in 2006 and completed by 2011. This building is sure to stand out from the surrounding architecture. When UNStudio designed this building they really took into consideration the direction of the winds that hit the building, so that they wouldn’t affect the environment.
Perry West – New York, New York
These two 15-story residential towers are located at the corners of Perry and West Streets. Designed by Richard Meier, they overlook the Hudson River and allow panoramic views of Manhattan and the New Jersey riverfront. Each floor is a single apartment of 1,800 square feet in the north tower at 173 Perry Street and 3,750 square feet in the south tower at 176 Perry Street. Perry West has housed a few well-known people, including Nicole Kidman, Martha Stewart, and Calvin Klein.
Linked Hybrid – Beijing, China
This apartment building is named quite literally after its design concept. Designed by Steven Holl Architects, the building began construction in 2003 and was completed in 2009 when the doors also opened to the public. There are 21 floors in each building and a total of 2,500 inhabitants. Within the entire complex, there are 750 apartments, hotel, cinema, educational facilities, a kindergarten, and a Montessori school. Linked Hybrid has won several awards for its design. Not only does it look cool, it contains geo-thermal wells to cool in summer and heat in winter. This is one of the largest green residential projects in the world.
The Scotts Tower - Singapore
This 31-story building located at 38 Scotts Road, Singapore, is another beautiful building designed by UNStudio. The building offers one, two, three, and four bedroom apartments with two different social areas. The building has also been said to be its own vertical city.
Eureka Tower – Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
The Eureka Tower in Melbourne is a 91-story (plus one underground level) residential apartment building. Construction began in 2002 and by 2006 they were complete and had a hefty price tag of $415M for the finished project. Fender Katsalidis was the architect for the tower and the coolest part of this building has to be the observation deck on the 88th floor called Eureka Skydeck 88. The Skydeck is a glass cube that hangs over the tower called The Edge.
The Wave – Veijle, Denmark
The Wave is a modern residential complex consisting of 115 luxury apartments spread out in 150,000 square feet of space. Designed by Henning Larsen Architects, it has won the prestigious architectural LEAF Award in the multiple occupancy category. It also won the annual Veijle Award in 2010 as Building of the Year. And yet another award in 2011 the project won at Civic Trust Awards.
I’Park City – Suwon, Korea
I’Park City has a total of 88 apartments. Construction began in 2008 and the residential apartments opened in 2012. Another UNStudio design, this time the parcels were divided into a series of neighborhoods or zones. Each zone has a different name: City, Village, Field, Water, and Park are the names given to describe the different designs.
8 Tallet – Copenhagen, Denmark
Built in the shape of the figure eight, 8 Tallet is Danish for 8 House. Designed by Bjarke Ingels, the building is mainly residential and about a quarter retail and office space. The apartments are on the top floors and the commercial spaces are on the lower levels. The concept behind this is that the commercial spaces are street level with people passing by and the residential spaces can benefit from the sunlight and fresh air. This is able to be because the shape of the 8 House is hoisted up in the northeast corner and pushed down in the southwest corner allowing light and air to enter the courtyard to the southernmost area. This design also allows for two courtyards. The building has won several awards, and we can see why!
