A new skyscraper planned to grace the skyline of Seoul has been accused of resembling the spectacle of the World Trade Center under terrorist attack.
The structure, dubbed “The Cloud,” is intended as a high-rise apartment building and takes the form of a pair of towers connected by a cubistic blob of rooms.
Construction is currently scheduled for completion in 2015.
The public reaction to the design has so far not been enthusiastic – many have commented on it calling to mind either the explosions caused by planes impacting the WTC or the cloud of debris arising from their collapse.
Even those not so minded have called the design “gross” and “creepy,” presumably on the basis of sheer ugliness.
The building’s architects, MVRDV, are actually a Dutch firm, and strenuously claim that they had no idea the design brought to mind the defining atrocity of the previous decade:
“This design was in no way intended to be related to the events of 9/11, and we had no intention of building such a structure. We apologise for the fact that this offended your sentiments.”
However, they refuse to do anything about it, saying this is solely a matter for the client to determine.
Further complicating their version of events is the fact that they apparently already admitted to a Dutch paper that they were aware of the resemblance throughout the design process but went ahead anyway.
Korea can do no right as far as the majority of online Japanese are concerned, although for once they may have a point:
“It’s just creepy.”
“The design really is gross.”
“No design sense at all.”
“It’s a nice idea, but the execution is grotesque.”
“There is no plane sticking out of it. People are just imagining whatever they want.”
“Leaving aside the question of the design, there’s no way a bunch of filthy Koreans could build or live in such a structure.”
“It’d be like living in a tombstone. Awful.”
“It’s interesting. Ignore the critics and build it!”
“The whole design looks as though it is based on the theme of ‘collapse’.”
“Even if it doesn’t get levelled by an earthquake, it looks like something the northern Korean scum would aim at.”
“Korea and the Netherlands. An effective collaboration of scum.”
“I can’t help but think the client actually asked for it to be based on 9/11.”
“They ripped this off:”
“That’s amazing.”
“MVRDV’s other designs:”
“They just want to make everything float, it seems.”
“I can’t believe they didn’t realise the 9/11 thing.”
“It’s not that similar:”
“Do the Dutch hate the US or something?”
“I want to know what the Americans think of this.”
“Looks like they used Minecraft to make the blueprint…”
The thought put into it is cool although, yes, it does look eerily similar to 9/11….I’m sure there was a way to accomplish the same intention with a different design…one not reminiscing of 9/11…. /:
I mean, do you think America would put up a Hitler statue that has been made to look slightly tweaked where you can’t quite tell, but you know who he is?
NO, of coarse not! Why? Because unlike others, we have a little thing called decency!!!
~3000 people died that one day. A tragedy, it is.
~1000 children die every day for various reasons.
Hmm… so butthurt about something so minor.
I hope you’re all trolling, this stereotyping is really disgusting. Kinda throws out the notion that the entire populace of whatever country you come from is better than the entire populace of whatever other country you’re ragging on; American, Dutch, Korean, Japanese, whatever.
lol i ddnt know 9/11 was so controversial in asia and europe. and people are still trying to prove/defend against if it was a whole setup in the US anyway.
anyway the design is weird but i’d actually think it’d be kool. but i wouldnt live there cuz i hate heights and that screams “fall down” to me
Im not going to lie, when I saw the post image before even reading the title of the post, the first thing that came to mind was 9/11 with smoke coming out of the towers.
But taking a second look, its a very neat design and Id love to live in one of those cubes in the center. I like how they have trees and parks between the two towers, so high up above the ground.