Chinese news agency Xinhua report of a new building in
Suzhou that is nearing completion. The 74-story Gate to the East
was designed to look like an arch, but unfortunately, in the eyes
of many it appears as a giant pair of trousers.
The developer of the landmark building has recently come under
much criticism for the unconventional look. One user on China's
blogging website Weibo reportedly said, “This should be called the
Pants of the East, not the Gate of the East”.
The 278-meter-high Gate was developed by the private firm Suzhou
Chianing Real Estate Co., Ltd to accommodate offices, hotels, malls
and apartments.
Xu Kang, the company's vice executive of sales, defended the
design, saying the linked-twin-tower structure is based on classic
garden gates and ancient city gates in China.
Suzhou's Gate is not the first unfortunate piece of architecture
in this world. Here are some buildings that were supposed to look
magnificent, but turned out to be something embarrassing
instead.
Designed by French architect Jean Nouvel, the 231 meter tall
building located between the north side of Doha Bay and the new
city centre was heavily criticized in 2007 when the building was
first proposed. An artist impression that appeared back then
appeared to look like a huge shining sex toy.
The completed building looks beautiful and was also named the
best tall building in the Middle East and Africa. But the early
views have stuck making it impossible to see the building as
anything else.
Velo Towers designed by New York-based Asymptote Architecture
has been compared to both a toilet-roll holder and a cam shaft. The
153 meters tall twin towers is currently shaping up in Seoul, South
Korea.
The two towers are connected by a skybridge which is suspended
30 storeys above ground level, providing the residents of both
structures with fitness and recreation centres, communal lounges,
pools, spas and eateries, as well as a landscaped sky garden. A
raised plinth at ground level also offers communal facilities in a
light-filled atrium.
Dutch architecture firm MVRDV proposed a design for two
high-rises in Korea that reminds people of the World Trade Center
twin towers exploding on 9/11. A mockup shows two soaring
skyscrapers connected in the middle by a “pixelated cloud” that
evoked the clouds of debris that erupted from the iconic World
Trade Center towers after terrorists flew planes into them.
The luxury residential towers have been named ‘The Cloud’, with
one reaching 260 metres or 54 floors and the other covering 60
floors over 300 metres. The total surface area is 128,000 sq
metres. The ‘cloud' is housed in a 10-floor tall structure
positioned halfway up the structures, and the towers feature a
fitness studio, pools, restaurants, cafes and a conference
centre.
Asahi Beer Headquarters located on the east bank of the Sumida
River in Sumida, Tokyo, Japan is considered one of Tokyo's most
recognizable modern structures. There are two main buildings, the
biggest building standing 100 meters tall resembles a giant beer
jug complete with a foam shaped white roof. The shorter building is
known as the Super Dry Hall. It is a black building in the shape of
a beer glass, with an enormous golden flame shaped object perched
on top.
The golden structure at the top is said to represent both the
'burning heart of Asahi beer' and a frothy head, but the the
structure is often colloquially referred to as "the golden turd"
and the Asahi Beer Hall itself as "poo building". Some people even
see the flame’s similarity to the human sperm.
