Turning Torso is a neo-futurist residential skyscraper built in Malmö, 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 the Swedish cooperative association HSB. It is regarded as the first twisted skyscraper in the world.
Turning Torso was designed by Spanish architect, structural engineer, sculptor, and painter Santiago Calatrava and officially opened on 27 August 2005. It reaches a height of 190 m with 54 stories and 147 apartments.
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, 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 afterward he traveled to Zurich to meet Calatrava, and ask him to design a residential building based on the idea of a structure of twisting cubes.
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 pentagonal 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. 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. Floors 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.
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.
According to Wikipedia
