Lotte Super Tower 123 - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

Lotte Super Tower 123 is a 123-floor supertall skyscraper

Skyscraper

A skyscraper is a tall, continuously habitable building of many stories, often designed for office and commercial use. There is no official definition or height above which a building may be classified as a skyscraper...

currently being erected in Lotte World 2, Seoul

Seoul

Seoul , officially the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea. A megacity with a population of over 10 million, it is the largest city proper in the OECD developed world...

, South Korea

South Korea

The Republic of Korea , , is a sovereign state in East Asia, located on the southern portion of the Korean Peninsula. It is neighbored by the People's Republic of China to the west, Japan to the east, North Korea to the north, and the East China Sea and Republic of China to the south...

. It is located next to the existing Lotte World

Lotte World

Lotte World is a major recreation complex in Seoul, South Korea. It consists of the world's largest indoor theme park which is open all year around, an outdoor amusement park called "Magic Island", an artificial island inside a lake linked by monorail, shopping malls, a luxury hotel, a Korean folk...

complex which opened back in 1989. Ground was broken in 2005 but due to nearby airport's height restrictions, further construction was postponed to February 2010 when restrictions were removed in 2009. At 555 m (1,821 ft) in height, the building would become one of the world's tallest buildings if completed on schedule in 2015. The Lotte Group of South Korea

Lotte (conglomerate)

Lotte Co., Ltd. is a South Korean-Japanese Jaebeol and one of the largest food and shopping groups in South Korea and Japan. Lotte was established in June 1948, in Tokyo, by Japanese-educated, Korean businessman Shin Kyuk-Ho – also known as...

is owner and developer of the project.

The conceptual design calls for a slender cone with convex, gently curved sides. An exterior of pale-coloured glass

Glass

Glass is an amorphous solid material. Glasses are typically brittle and optically transparent.The most familiar type of glass, used for centuries in windows and drinking vessels, is soda-lime glass, composed of about 75% silica plus Na2O, CaO, and several minor additives...

draws inspiration from Korean ceramics and features accents of metal filigree

Filigree

Filigree is a delicate kind of jewellery metalwork made with twisted threads usually of gold and silver or stitching of the same curving motifs. It often suggests lace, and in recent centuries remains popular in Indian and other Asian metalwork, and French from 1660 to the late 19th century...

. Located near the Han River

Han River (Korea)

The Han River is a major river in South Korea and the fourth longest river on the Korean peninsula after the Amnok, Duman, and Nakdong rivers. It is formed by the confluence of the Namhan River , which originates in Mount Daedeok, and the Bukhan River , which originates on the slopes of Mount...

, the tower will contain retail outlets (floors 1-6), offices (7-60), residences (61-85), a luxury hotel (86-119), and public access floors (120-123) with an observation deck.

The design for the Lotte Super Tower 123 is by the architectural firm Kohn Pedersen Fox

Kohn Pedersen Fox

Kohn Pedersen Fox Associates , an architectural firm responsible for several world-renowned buildings, provides architectural, interior and urban design as well as programming and master planning services for clients in both the public and private sectors...

. James von Klemperer leads KPF's project team. Construction was approved in March 2009 and excavation was nearly complete seven months later.
Earlier plans for the project referred to the planned structure as the Lotte Super Tower II Hotel, with Skidmore, Owings and Merrill

Skidmore, Owings and Merrill

Skidmore, Owings and Merrill LLP is an American architectural and engineering firm that was formed in Chicago in 1936 by Louis Skidmore and Nathaniel Owings; in 1939 they were joined by John O. Merrill. They opened their first branch in New York City, New York in 1937. SOM is one of the largest...

(Chicago

Chicago

Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...

, USA) reported as the designer.

See also