Sunday Escape - Dancing House

The House Drunk. The Dancing House. Fred and Ginger. Different names for a simple, romantic image, a man and a woman dancing close together, turned into an architectural complex. In Prague on the riverside in the Novè Mesto district, on the site previously occupied by a building destroyed by the bombings of 1945, is set this particular building, designed by Croatian Vlado Milunic in cooperation with the Canadian Frank Gehry, famous as the greatest exponent contemporary of deconstructionism. His theory? Dismantle the architectural forms in elementary units, and then reassemble them in a seemingly illogical, at the boundary between stability and imbalance. 

The Central European project stands  out for the curved shape and the materials used. The Dancing House has two central bodies supported by 99 concrete panels, each of different shape and size. The first, which is the figure of the female dancer, is a glass tower supported by curved pillars. The second, the partner, made of stone, has a large structure on top of metal twisted nicknamed Medusa, which should create the illusion of hair. The "Fred" body is characterized by moldings that evoke a wave where windows are installed in non-aligned position. This aesthetic solution should ensure the impression of three-dimensionality and make the most confusing perspective, decreasing the contrast with the buildings that surround it.

From the beginning of the project, strongly backed by President Vaclav Havel as a symbol of rebirth it will and of removal from previous regimes, has been a topic of discussion and controversy. The criticism has split, on the one hand those who appreciate this work and on the other hand those who believe an urban error. They dispute the fact that the Dancing House is nestled in a mountain range of ancient buildings, especially Baroque and Art Nouveau, precious artistic and historical examples of the Czech Republic, but it does not respect the aesthetic line. The Prague building that originally was supposed to be a cultural center, it later housed offices of various multinational companies as well as an elegant rooftop French restaurant on the top floor. For a couple of years inside there is a luxury hotel with 21 rooms that offer magnificent views of Prague Castle. If you find yourself in the capital and walking in the neighborhood Nove Mesto, stop to observe the two stone and glass dancers dancing.