TID Tower, Tirana

The tower is part of the ambitious new master plan for the city, which converges around ten iconographic towers. The main program of the tower consists housing program. Offices, shopping and restaurant facilities are located in the base. At the top of the building a panorama restaurant.

Our first investigation was to resolve the dilemma of elegance – a clear ambition stated in the master plan - and square meters. We propose a volume based on a super ellipse: starting as an ellipse and ending as a rectangle. The subtle transition between these two basic shapes makes a tower which fully captures the Mediterranean light of Tirana, and creates ever changing shadows.
The main views towards the site from the boulevards entering the centre are diagonal, showing the tower in its most dramatic angle. From the top corners the facade slopes 6 m inwards, resulting in a gentle cantilever. Seen from Kavajes Boulevard, the grand shape of the tower gracefully complements the urban ensemble consisting of the mosque, the clock tower and the cultural palace.
The specific position of the building in the cityscape demands for a facade that works on two scales: on an urban scale and on a private scale. The façade is developed as one system, emphasizing the tower as a whole, while allowing for diversity and variation when zooming in. It becomes a mediator between the public and private. The facade generates diverse conditions in response to the inside and outside environment.