Gehry Tower

The Gehry Tower stands nine storeys high in Hanover’s Steintor district beside Goethestraße. Its architect is Frank Gehry, who was asked by the city’s transport company üstra to design a building that would make the best use of a narrow plot. The tower’s outer shell is made of stainless steel and twists visibly around a concrete core. Each panel of the façade is a different size and shape, cut precisely with the help of 3D computer models. The result is a slender, gleaming shaft that catches the light at changing angles. The tower was finished in 2001 after two years of building. Its construction cost 8.5 million Deutsche Mark and used the most modern technology available at the time. Gehry’s office first made a 1:100 model, scanned it, and imported the data into CAD software to calculate every dimension. The computer then produced the exact measurements for each steel piece before it was manufactured and assembled on site. Visitors approach along Goethestraße and see the tower rising above the pavement. The stainless-steel surface reflects passers-by and passing trams, giving the building a constantly shifting appearance. At street level the tower stands close to the road, emphasising its slender form. Above, the nine floors taper slightly, ending in a clean horizontal line against the Hanover skyline.