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The Torre Agbar ((:ˈtorə əɡˈbar)) is a 38-story skyscraper / tower located between Avinguda Diagonal and Carrer Badajoz, near Plaça de les Glòries Catalanes, which marks the gateway to the new technological district of Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. It was designed by French architect Jean Nouvel in association with the Spanish firm b720 Fermín Vázquez Arquitectos and built by Dragados. The Torre Agbar is located in the Poblenou neighbourhood of Barcelona and is named after its owners, the Agbar Group, a holding company whose interests include the Barcelona water company Aigües de Barcelona.〔(Agbar corporate Web site )〕 The tower measures a total of 50,693 square metres, of which 30,000 are offices, 3,210 technical facilities, 8,132 services, including an auditorium, and 9,132 square metres for parking. It cost 130 million Euros to build. It opened in June 2005 and was officially opened by King Juan Carlos I on 16 September 2005. It is one in a collection of High-tech architecture examples in Barcelona. The building is owned by the multinational group Agbar which has its corporate headquarters in the building and that takes up most of the floors, renting the remainder. The Agbar Tower was acquired in March 2010 for 165 million euro, after reaching an agreement with its former owner, the investment group Azurelau.〔(Azurelau sells Barcelona's Agbar tower for EUR 165m )〕 Azurelau previously had bought the property in mid-2007. The purchase price was not disclosed. ==Design== According to Jean Nouvel, Torre Agbar is intended to recall the shape of a geyser rising into the air. It was inspired by Montserrat, a mountain near Barcelona. In an interview, he described the tower as having a phallic character.〔〔(El gran supositorio ) Article by El Pais, quote: ''The suppository of Agbar rises to the heavens quickly'' (Translation by Google)〕 As a result of its unusual shape, the building is known by several nicknames, such as "el supositori" (the suppository), "l'obús" (the shell) and some more scatological ones.〔(Notícias Agbar ) (Includes interview with Jean Nouvel) quote from the Jean Nouvel interview: ''The Torre Agbar is called the suppository. What do you think"? "It's normal! But I am sure that its phallic character will be diluted when it is finished. What characterises the tower will be a big vibration of light. Lovers of mottos will find another name, surely.'' (HREF="http://www.kotoba.ne.jp/word/11/sic" TITLE="sic">sic'' ) ((Translation by Google ))〕 It is also somewhat similar in shape to Sir Norman Foster's 30 St. Mary Axe in London, often called "the Gherkin". It has 30,000 m² (323,000 ft²) of above-ground office space, 3,210 m² (34,500 ft²) of technical service floors with installations and 8,351 m² (90,000 ft²) of services, including an auditorium. The Agbar Tower measures 144.4 m (473.75 ft) in height〔(Torre agbar homepage )〕 and consists of 38 storeys, including four underground levels. Its design combines a number of different architectural concepts, resulting in a striking structure built with reinforced concrete, covered with a facade of glass, and over 4,500 window openings cut out of the structural concrete. The building stands out in Barcelona; it is the third tallest building in the city, after the Arts Hotel and the Mapfre Tower, which both stand 154 m (505.25 ft) tall. A defining feature of the building is its nocturnal illumination. It has 4,500 LED devices that allow generation of luminous images on its façade. In addition, the outside of the tower has temperature sensors that regulate the opening and closing of the window blinds of the façade, reducing the consumption of energy for air conditioning. It houses the head office of the ''Aigües de Barcelona'' Group, the water supply company of Barcelona. As explained by Nouvel himself, the construction was strongly influenced by one of the most representative symbols of Catalan culture. One side references the bell towers of the Sagrada Familia by the Catalan architect Antoni Gaudí. (These bell towers were based in turn on the idea of the Hotel Attraction, a course project by the teacher Reus in 1908 for some New York hoteliers which was redesigned in 1956 by his disciple Joan Matamala. These designs were included in Rem Koolhaas' book Delirious New York,〔Rem Koolhaas#Delirious New York〕 a reference for many architects.) An additional tribute to the Sagrada Família lies in the north side of the tower, which was designed with the intention of obtaining an optimal view of the cathedral. Additionally, Nouvel was inspired by the distinctive pinnacles of the Montserrat mountain range, which are of great significance for the people of Catalonia, as Montserrat houses their patron saint, Our Lady of Montserrat. In designing the Agbar Tower, Nouvel said he rejected the prevailing North American opinion of what a skyscraper should look like. It was the architect's intention to give the impression of land that is emerging out of the ground in a particular fashion. The use of the tower by a water utility company led him to the design of a metaphor of a geyser sprouting from the deep sea. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Torre Agbar」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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