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All Spain Madrid Torres Blancas
AO Edited

Torres Blancas

Meant to resemble a massive tree, the building is the best example of Spanish organicist architecture in Madrid.

Madrid, Spain

Added By
Javier Pascual Aguilar
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CAPTION
  Metro Centric/CC BY 2.0
Torres Blancas   Loreto Carmona / CC BY-SA 4.0
Part of the Madrid skyline   Strakhov/CC BY-SA 3.0
Brutalist style flats   Luis Morato / Atlas Obscura User
Torres Blancas   Luis Morato / Atlas Obscura User
Brutalist top   Luis Morato / Atlas Obscura User
Circular flats   Luis Morato / Atlas Obscura User
In the distance   Xavixavir / Atlas Obscura User
  Zarateman, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons
Torres Blancas   Luis García/CC BY-SA 3.0 ES
  Xavixavir / Atlas Obscura User
Torres Blancas apartment building   Xauxa Håkan Svensson/CC BY-SA 3.0
  Xavixavir / Atlas Obscura User
A Falcon flies over the towers   Luis Morato / Atlas Obscura User
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About

Torres Blancas, or "white towers," is a building like few others. Despite its name, the structure is a single tower and is not white. Spanish architect Francisco Javier Sáenz de Oiza designed the 265-foot-tall building in the 1960s alongside Rafael Moneo and Juan Daniel Fullaondo, and today the brutalist masterpiece is an emblem of the Madrid skyline. 

The 23-story-tall concrete tower has a distinctive cylindrical shape that is reproduced both outside and inside the building. The shape is meant to resemble a massive concrete tree. The building's 23 floors are divided into apartments and office spaces. The two top floors house a restaurant and pool. There are also two basement floors, an access floor, and a service floor. The numerous apartments and offices feature many curved terraces that are meant to resemble the leaves of a tree. Smaller vertical cylinders house spiral staircases.

The building was constructed between 1964 and 1969 and is widely regarded as the world's biggest and best example of Spanish organicism architecture. Spanish organicism sought to harmonize nature and the built environment. In 1972, the building won the Official Chamber of Architects of Madrid Award. Then, in 1974, it won the prestigious European Excellence Award.

Related Tags

Modernism Apartment Architectural Oddities Architecture Buildings

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You can get to Torres Blancas by Metro. Avenida de América is the closest stop.

Community Contributors

Added By

Xavixavir

Edited By

hrnick, Luis Morato, Michelle Cassidy

  • hrnick
  • Luis Morato
  • Michelle Cassidy

Published

May 17, 2023

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Sources
  • https://www.esmadrid.com/informacion-turistica/torres-blancas
  • https://es.wikiarquitectura.com/edificio/torres-blancas/
  • https://www.elledecor.com/es/arquitectura/a23543836/edificio-torres-blancas-interior/
Torres Blancas
2 C. del Corazón de María
Madrid, 28002
Spain
40.439948, -3.672133
Get Directions

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