The most photographed of all Arquitectonica's buildings, the Atlantis is a 96-unit condominium apartment building on Biscayne Bay south of downtown Miami. This building, more than any other, called attention to the provocative, pictographic nature of Arquitectonica's work. It was a setting for the movie Scarface, as well as a freeze-frame image in the opening sequence of "Miami Vice." Its flat blue supergrid wall punctured by an off-center void has become an architectural symbol for both Miami and Arquitectonica.
The Atlantis is a 20-story slab building with a 37-foot long cube cut out of the center to create a "sky court" for building residents. The sky court has three elements: a whirlpool, a red spiral staircase, and a palm tree, all set along the waving yellow wall.
The Atlantis is sited perpendicular to the waterfront so that it can easily be seen both from Brickell Avenue and from nearby Interstate 95; its imagery is simple and powerful. On the south side of the building, the glass wall is covered by a three-story blue masonry grid, a brise-soleil that hides the cantilevered balconies. The gray reflective glass on the north face is punctuated by four yellow triangular balconies. The end of the building facing the bay is shaped as a nautical curve. On the other end facing the city, a rooftop red masonry triangle conceals the mechanical equipment and provides an urban form.
The long slender building -- it is 300 feet long but only 37 feet wide -- has just six apartments per floor and two elevator cores. At the bay end the building curves to create a living room with a 180-degree panoramic view. The apartments at the base are two-story duplexes with double height living rooms and private courtyards. - Beth Dunlop
View Original