Columbia Twins

New offices - Hamburg, Germany, 2009

The Columbia Twins, a commercial complex with offices – are the new CARSTEN ROTH buildings at the Hamburg harbour. A stroll around the harbour area reveals that the towers allow a new perspective. The Columbia Twins are located at the Hamburg harbour, directly at the shore of the river Elbe. The public street where the buildings are located was heaped up so the view to the river was kept and the new buildings give it sort of a frame. The place between the two towers is open to the public and guarantees a breathtaking view over the harbour area.

The buildings have only faces, each two equal fronts, the length sides are designed to give a slim and elegant impression. They have no backsides, which means that they have beautiful facades allover: no ugly service supply shafts in sight. And every person working in this building has a window with a view and can enjoy the daylight. „My first buildings with a ´crease´“, says Carsten Roth.The design was historically inspired by ancient harbour storage depots with their bricks and warm red colours. The facades are quite unique: shimmering because of the use of metallic fabrics like titanium coated premium steel, which was developed by a German company especially for the facade of the Columbia Twins. The Columbia Twins have a levitating facade as well. This static construction is very fine and underlines again the design of Professor Roth`s style in facades.