Turning Torso is a neo-futurist residential

skyscraper A skyscraper is a tall continuously habitable building having multiple floors. Modern sources currently define skyscrapers as being at least or in height, though there is no universally accepted definition. Skyscrapers are very tall high-ri ...

built in

Malmö Malmö (, ; da, Malmø ) is the largest city in the Swedish county (län) of Scania (Skåne). It is the third-largest city in Sweden, after Stockholm and Gothenburg, and the sixth-largest city in the Nordic region, with a municipal popula ...

, Sweden in 2005. It was formerly the tallest building in the Nordic region until September 2022, when it was surpassed by Karlatornet in Gothenburg, which is still under construction. Located on the Swedish side of the Öresund strait, it was built and is owned by Swedish cooperative association HSB. It is regarded as the first

twisted skyscraper Buildings can appear to be twisted by design, where the twisting ( torsion, helix, etc.) is structural rather than merely an ornamental detail. The Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat defines a twisting building as one that progressively ...

in the world. It was designed by Spanish architect, structural engineer, sculptor and painter Santiago Calatrava and officially opened on 27 August 2005. It reaches a height of with 54 stories and 147 apartments. Turning Torso won the 2005 Gold Emporis Skyscraper Award; and in 2015, the 10 Year Award from the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat.

Design

Turning Torso is based on a sculpture by Calatrava, also called ''Twisting Torso'', a white marble piece based on the form of a twisting human being. In 1999, HSB Malmö's former managing director,

Johnny Örbäck Carl Wilhelm ''Johnny'' Örbäck (born May 29, 1952) is a former head of the Malmö, Sweden division of the company HSB (Sweden), HSB, who was the driving force behind the construction of Scandinavia's tallest structure "Turning Torso" designed by ...

, saw the sculpture in a brochure presenting Calatrava in connection with his contribution to the architectural competition for the Öresund Bridge. It was on this occasion that Örbäck was inspired to build HSB Turning Torso. Shortly afterwards he travelled to Zurich to meet Calatrava, and ask him to design a residential building based on the idea of a structure of twisting cubes. Turning Torso structure

It is a solid, immobile building constructed in nine segments of five-story pentagons that twist relative to each other as it rises; the topmost segment is twisted 90 degrees clockwise from the ground floor. Each floor consists of an irregular

pentagon In geometry, a pentagon (from the Greek language, Greek πέντε ''pente'' meaning ''five'' and γωνία ''gonia'' meaning ''angle'') is any five-sided polygon or 5-gon. The sum of the internal angles in a simple polygon, simple pentagon is ...

al shape rotating around the vertical core, which is supported by an exterior steel framework. The two bottom segments are intended as office space. Segments three to nine house 147 apartments.

Construction

Construction started in the summer of 2001. One reason for building Turning Torso was to re-establish a recognisable skyline for Malmö since the removal in 2002 of the Kockums Crane, which was located less than from Turning Torso. The local politicians deemed it important for the inhabitants to have a new symbol for Malmö in lieu of the crane that had been used for

shipbuilding Shipbuilding is the construction of ships and other Watercraft, floating vessels. It normally takes place in a specialized facility known as a shipyard. Shipbuilders, also called shipwrights, follow a specialized occupation that traces its roo ...

and somewhat symbolised the city's

blue collar A blue-collar worker is a working class person who performs manual labor. Blue-collar work may involve skilled or unskilled labor. The type of work may involving manufacturing, warehousing, mining, excavation, electricity generation and ...

roots. The construction of part of this building was featured on Discovery Channel '' Extreme Engineering'' TV programme which showed how a floor of the building was constructed. Prior to the construction of Turning Torso, the

Kronprinsen Kronprinsen () is a neighbourhood and complex of modernist buildings including a landmark high-rise tower located in Malmö, Sweden in the city district of Västra Innerstaden ("The Western Inner-City"). The high-rise tower itself is commonly ...

had been the city's tallest building. The apartments were initially supposed to be sold, but insufficient interest resulted in the apartments being let. The owner has several times unsuccessfully tried to sell the building. The construction costs were almost double the estimate.

Events

On 18 August 2006, Austrian skydiver Felix Baumgartner parachuted onto the Turning Torso, and then jumped off it. Floor 49 is home to the public observation deck while floors 50–52 contain a private club, meeting events, the reception, and the venue restaurant. Floor 53 and 54 in the Turning Torso are conference floors booked and managed by Sky High Meetings. Since 2009 the owner, HSB, has decided to let the public visit these floors but only on special scheduled days, and pre-booking is required.

Gallery

File:Turningtorsoconstruction.jpg, Construction in 2004 File:Malm%C3%B6_1442.JPG, Main entrance File:Top_of_Turning_Torso%E2%80%93flygbild_06_september_2014.jpg, Top floors File:Turning_Torso–flygbild_06_september_2014.jpg, Aerial view File:Turning_Torso_bakom.jpg, View from the ground level File:Turning torso by night1.jpg, View at night

Notes

References

External links

*
Fullscreen panorama from Turning Torso

PERI GmbH - From a sculpture to a building

''The New Yorker'', October 31 2005, "The Sculptor"
Link broken, Nov 2011
Torso Tower Blog

Short films of Turning Torso from various locations
{{Malmö Buildings and structures in Malmö Skyscrapers in Sweden Towers in Sweden Santiago Calatrava structures Residential skyscrapers Skyscraper office buildings in Sweden Towers completed in 2005 2005 establishments in Sweden Twisted buildings and structures Modernist architecture in Sweden Postmodern architecture High-tech architecture Landmarks in Sweden Neo-futurism architecture 21st-century establishments in Skåne County