Here we go again with an amazingly original project of towers in Dubai. The dramatic “Dubai Towers – Dubai” have been announced as the centerpiece for “The Lagoons” development.

The four towers, designed by TVS (Thompson, Ventulett, Stainback and Associates), ranging from 54 to 97 floors, are clustered to form a choreographed sculpture, representing the movement of candlelight.

The Towers will combine in form to represent the evolutionary and innovative achievements of Dubai. They will be characterized by a range of additional facilities including retail, entertainment, and residential which merge to create a vibrant, dynamic community.

I love the structure of the building though. It looks so complex! I love the curves of the towers and how they look like they are just slightly twisting. The estimated completion date is mid 2010.

source

These pictures are from a wonderful New York City penthouse apartment designed by UnStudio. This building features a series of metal bands at different sizes that creates a unique shape for the building and provides a little character for each floor.

These some pictures of this building, the wide living area with modern fireplace, modern bar stool table, the bathroom with an awesome views.

The building is Five Franklin Place in TriBeCa.

Via momoy

Dubai is building another masterpiece structure shaped like a pyramid and like the pyramids of the Mayans and Egyptians, this new structure in Dubai is a giant : it will cover 2.3 square kilometers (0.88 square miles).

The structure called Ziggurat will house nearly one million people and will be self-sustainable with all natural-energy sources. It is named after the temple towers of the ancient Mesopotamian valley, a terraced pyramid structure with successively receding stories.

The main purpose of the Ziggurat is to ensure a better quality of life with almost zero-carbon emissions ; the structure will be powered by solar, wind and natural sources and capable of running completely off the grid, according to Timelinks, Dubai-based environmental design firm who is in charge of the project.

Also, there will be no cars thanks to the complex transportation system that runs both horizontally and vertically. Biometrics would provide security with facial recognition technology.

Timelinks has already patented the design and technology incorporated into the project and has applied to the European Union for a grant for technical projects. The intriguing mixed use concept will be unveiled at Cityscape Dubai which takes place at the Dubai International Exhibition Centre from 6-9 October 2008

Just before the week end, I wanted to show you guys one of my dream apartment :

Located on the 73rd floor of a Manhattan building, the apartment is a pied-a-terre overlooking Central Park designed by E Benqué for a private client in 2006.

The interior design is primarily structured by different relations to the view and the urban landscape.

The furniture elements can be moved around on the window frames and allow to sit right against the floor to ceiling windows and experiment the thrill of altitude.

The design principle throughout the apartment is to imagine the reflections of the objects in the windows. Everything is designed and chosen according to the image it will create, day or night, mixed with lights of the city.

The Saudi government is planning four new cities, in its bid to diversify the economy and increase employment opportunities, has encouraged growth in the non-oil industrial sector.

The mega project was revealed in 2005 by Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, the king of Saudi Arabia. As designed, the cities will have a total of four times the geographic area of Hong Kong, three times the population of Dubai, and an economic output equal to Singapore’s.

The coastal King Abdullah Economy City (abbreviated as KAEC; pronounced CAKE - Arabic: مدينة الملك عبدالله اللإقتصادية‎) is designed to house two million in an area twice the size of Hong Kong.

Entirely funded by domestic and foreign private investors, this is the only one of the four planned cities that is currently under construction.
With a total development area of 173 km² (66.8 sq mi), the city is located along the coast of the Red Sea, around 100 km north of Jeddah, the commercial hub of the kingdom.

The city will be the largest transportation and logistics hub in the Middle East and will be approximately an hour away from the holy Islamic cities of Mecca and Medina by car and an hour away of the 12 Middle Eastern capital cities by plane.

The city will be divided into six main components: Industrial Zone, Sea Port, Residential Areas, Sea Resort, Educational Zone, and a Central Business District (Find out more details on Wikipedia).

The total cost of the city is $26.6 billion. The first stage of the city is planned to be completed in 2010, while the whole city is going to be fully completed by 2020.

The city will help diversify the oil-based economy of the kingdom by bringing direct foreign and domestic investments. Based on initial forecasts, the project and its several components will create up to 500,000 employment opportunities for the youthful population of the country, where 60% of the population is under 15. (Source CNN)

Here we go again, in the old tradition of selling lives, personalities and organs on ebay…

An eccentric British Lord is selling his title and property on Internet auction site eBay and has attracted bids of over three million pounds, he said Friday.

David Piper, who describes himself as “Lord of the Manor of Warleigh,” includes a nine-bedroom house in Plymouth, modern art collection and two Bentley cars in the price. Also included in the auction are six acres of freehold land at Great Warleigh Farm, Tamerton Foliot, near Plymouth.

The 58-year-old entrepreneur said he is making the sale because he wants to move to London to receive treatment for advanced prostate cancer. “I have decided, as a result of having this rather advanced prostate cancer, and not having been able to work since January 2007, to have treatment done in London.

“Therefore I will sell everything up down here and move back to London,” he said, adding that he hopes to generate up to six million pounds from the auction sale. His advertisement says the sale “can include David, the existing eccentric lord of the manor physically as well, to a suitable purchaser.”So yes, you would be able to call yourself Lord of the Manor of Warleigh should you win his auction.

It is not the first time Piper has hit the headlines : Mr Piper received widespread publicity in 2002 when he placed a lonely hearts advertisement in the International Herald Tribune, seeking a soulmate with a sense of humour, receiving over 2,000 replies.

One of them was from US estate agent Rosaura Capelleri who moved to Britain to see how their relationship developed, but left Piper’s estate after two weeks.

Best of luck to the Lord of Warleigh regarding his health (source : AFP)