There is an undeniable obsession that resides in Manhattan. It is undeniable because it is made to be seen. There are many different ways that can make a building stand out, but in order to do so the building has to literary stand out.
Responding to this phenomenon, architect Ioannis Oikonomou of oiio architecture studio has proposed an alternate solution, called “The Big Bend,” that asks the question: “What if our buildings were long instead of tall?” The proposal envisions a tower that, rather than continuing skyward, bends over on itself to create a massive inhabitable arch. The resulting building (with its non-coincidental similarities to 432 Park) would stretch 4,000 feet long in total, meeting the ground in two locations straddling several existing buildings. To allow for circulation around the bend, Oiio envisions using the latest in elevator technologies, Thyssen Krupp’s MULTI system, which allows elevators to travel independently both vertically and horizontally through shaft loops within a building.
“The Big Bend can become a modest architectural solution to the height limitations of Manhattan,” the architects conclude. “We can now provide our structures with the measurements that will make them stand out without worrying about the limits of the sky.”