Dancing House

Its  absence of harmony, continuity, or symmetry is a perfect example of deconstructivist  architecture. The unusual "dancing" shape is supported by 99 concrete panels, each a different shape and dimension. A twisted structure of metal on top of the building affirms the quirkiness that this building has to offer. The two main parts of Ginger and Fred are like two dancers with very distinct appearances. The first is a glass tower that narrows at half its height and is supported by curved pillars; the second runs parallel to the river and is characterized by unaligned windows. The male part of the dancing couple is represented by a rock tower and the woman is symbolized by a tower made of glass. The building has 9 floors and the rooms in it are asymmetrical.

Driven by aesthetic this design has got aligned windows and the winding mouldings on the façade also serve to confuse perspective and diminish contrast with the surrounding buildings. In my opinion it is not inappropriate, albeit Prague is a classical city, it gives a much needed touch of modernism.

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The "Dancing House" is set on a property of great historical significance. Its site was the location of a house destroyed by the U.S. bombing of Prague in 1945. The plot and structure lay decrepit until 1960 when the area was cleared. The neighboring plot was co-owned by the family of Václav Havel who spent most of his life there. As early as 1986 (during the Communist era), Vlado Milunić, then a respected architect in the Czechoslovak milieu, conceived an idea for a project at the place and discussed it with his neighbour, the then little-known dissident Václav Havel. A few years later, during the Velvet Revolution Havel became a popular leader and was subsequently elected president of Czechoslovakia. Thanks to his authority the idea to develop the site grew. Havel eventually decided to have Milunić survey the site, hoping for it to become a cultural center, although this was not the result.