What if our buildings were long instead of tall?

U-shaped is the new black! New York City: Oiio studio has unveiled the project for a curved skyscraper named 'The Big Bend', on 57th Street.

The team said: "The story of The Big Bend follows a recent trend that has appeared in New York City: the emergence of myriad tall and slender residential skyscrapers. As the story unfolds, the reader is presented with a provocative thought. He or she is challenged to think of an alternate version of the city that seems to be ever-growing but only in height: But what if we substituted height with length? What if our buildings were long instead of tall?"

The studio explained:"We have become familiar with building height measurements. We usually learn about the latest tallest building and we are always impressed by it’s price per square foot. It seems that a property’s height operates as a license for it to be expensive."

The architects continued: "If we manage to bend our structure instead of bending the zoning rules of New York we would be able to create one of the most prestigious buildings in Manhattan. The longest building in the world. The Big Bend can become a modest architectural solution to the height limitations of Manhattan. We can now provide our structures with the measurements that will make them stand out without worrying about the limits of the sky."

What was once considered to be the greatest challenge in elevator history, is finally becoming reality: the elevator that can travel in curves, horizontally and in continuous loops. The innovative track changing system allows for the horizontal connection of two shafts on the top and bottom to create a continuous loop.

Source: multi.thyssenkrupp-elevator.com/en/

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All images & drawings copyright © ioannis Oikonomou – oiio architecture studio