By artfully connecting the city’s central park and historic commercial center—and by expanding public space and inserting landscape elements—Studio Libeskind produced a mixed-use commercial complex that is a dynamic new attraction in the heart of Düsseldorf, Germany. Kö-Bogen, or the `King’s Bow,’ is a large-scale office and retail complex whose sinuous form hugs the point where the Königsallee Boulevard, Düsseldorf’s primary avenue, converges with the newly created Hofgarten promenade. The complex sits on two plots, comprised of two structures—one to the east, the other to the west—separated on the ground by a central pedestrian passageway and joined above by a…

As the retail heart of the MGM MIRAGE CityCenter project, The Shops at Crystals is a 500,000-square-foot retail and entertainment space that serves as the connective tissue of the otherwise vertical “city within a city.” Crystalline stainless steel-clad volumes house the flagship retailers along The Strip while the spiraling roof structure animates the public arcade internally. Visible in a 180 degree-sweep from along the legendary Strip, the structure is a work of architecture read from many different angles.   The dramatic form and skylights of its spiraling roof soar over luxury retail and dining and accommodate a public space that features…

The Westside Shopping and Leisure Centre in Bern-Brunnen, Switzerland, is notable for its unique integration of architecture and landscape and the ways in which it invites glimpses of the natural world into the usually hermetic world of a large urban shopping complex. Extensive window cuts in varying designs open up the façade and conjure a web of natural light, including a panoramic window in the food court and spa area. The bulk of the retail space of the Westside project is organized in the well-tested convention of boxes and their efficient relationship between retail, circulation and delivery.  In dialogue and…

Studio Libeskind designed the bold façade of the new Hyundai Development Company headquarters located in Seoul, South Korea, to integrate the building with a public plaza and below-grade spaces, as well as serve future development on the site.  A gigantic, 203 ft. ring, encompassing red and white geometric forms, and an inclined metal vector was superimposed onto the existing modern office tower, transforming the main façade and plaza areas. The façade also includes working balconies and louvers. The project was completed in 2005.   “Viewed from the street, the façade is a vivid and memorable expression through a combination of graphic…