Turning Torso
A residential building of nine cubes that twists ninety degrees from bottom to top, based on a sculpture by the architect. When it was completed in 2005, at 190 metres it was the tallest building in Scandinavia. A steel skeleton runs up the outside like a spine.
Turning Torso came about after Johnny Örbäck, head of HSB Malmö, had seen a sculpture by Santiago Calatrava depicting a twisting body made of nine cubes. He asked the architect to turn the idea into a residential building. The project was part of the regeneration of Västra hamnen, where the shipbuilding industry had closed down and where the Bo01 housing exhibition was held in 2001. Construction lasted from 2001 to 2005, and the building was inaugurated in August 2005. It is built around a concrete core, to which each floor is attached. Along the outside of one side runs a steel skeleton that stabilises the building against the wind. The costs turned out considerably higher than estimated, and HSB was forced to change the flats from owner-occupied cooperative units to rental apartments.
The building consists of nine cubes, each of five storeys, rotated in relation to one another so that the top one is turned ninety degrees relative to the bottom one. Each floor takes the form of a pentagon extending out around the core. The two lowest cubes contain offices, while the rest are flats, and at the very top there are conference facilities with views over the Øresund and Copenhagen. The façade is clad in aluminium and glass, and the windows lean with the twist. The external steel skeleton has a distinct form with a large support and diagonals, which Calatrava liked to compare to a spine. The flats often have sloping window walls and unusual plans, since each floor is slightly rotated.
When it was completed, the building was the tallest in Scandinavia and immediately became a symbol of Malmö, which was being transformed from an industrial city into a city of knowledge and housing. It has since been surpassed in height by Karlatornet in Gothenburg. Turning Torso has received several awards, including for its structure, and is clearly visible from Copenhagen and the Øresund Bridge. Västra hamnen has grown up around the building into a large district with housing, a university and parks. The building shows how a sculptural building can make a city appear in a new light, as in Bilbao, but also how difficult it can be to build an unusual form within a reasonable budget.