12 architectural curiosities that defied the laws of science (21 photos)

Architects around the world are creating buildings that look more like art objects than ordinary houses.





Some of them "sing" in the rain, others resemble giant games, and still others seem to have come from the pages of science fiction novels. It is hard to believe that these unusual houses are real, but they really exist.

1. Melting House



A work by Argentine artist Leandro Erlich, designed to symbolize climate change. Erlich often uses hyperrealism and distorted perspective to emphasize the fragility of the world around him.

2. Upside Down House





Another work by Erlich. The Upside Down House in Brighton (UK) is not just an art object, but a whole museum of illusions.



The house, literally "standing on the roof", creates the effect of gravitational chaos: furniture, stairs and even the fireplace are fixed upside down, making visitors feel like heroes of a surreal world.

3. The Dancing House



The Dancing House (Czech: Tančící dům) has become one of the most unusual buildings in Prague. Designed in 1992 by Croatian-Czech architect Vlado Milunic in collaboration with Canadian deconstructivist Frank Gehry.



The building resembles a pair of dancers. The graceful female figure (the glass tower - "Ginger") seems to be waltzing with the male (the stone part - "Fred"). The name refers to the legendary duet of Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers.

4. Crooked House



The Crooked House (Krzywy Domek) has become one of the most photogenic attractions of the Polish resort of Sopot. Built in 2004 according to the design of the Szotynski architects, it looks as if it came from the pages of a fairy tale illustration. Or climbed straight out of a surreal dream.

The inspiration came from the grotesque drawings of Polish illustrator Jan Marcin Szancer (creator of the visual style of many children's books).



The building's façade seems to "melt". Its walls bend like waves, the windows are skewed, and the roof resembles a dragon's back. The effect is enhanced in the evening, when dynamic lighting is turned on, making the house even more unreal.

5. Cubic Houses



These innovative buildings in Rotterdam, Netherlands were designed by architect Piet Blom. Each of these unique houses represents a tree, and all the houses together are supposed to represent a forest. Each cube is a three-story residential building, where the walls and windows are located at angles unthinkable for classical architecture. Blom wanted to create a “city within a city,” where each cube symbolizes an abstract tree, and the entire complex is an urban grove.

6. Thin House



This flattened house is located in London, and its width at its narrowest part is only 1.8 meters. The house was built in the Victorian era as part of a terrace. And the narrow wedge was formed due to the non-standard shape of the site - the building was literally "squeezed" between two streets converging at an angle.

7. The Living House



The Keep the Memory Alive Center in Las Vegas. This masterpiece of deconstructivism was created by Frank Gehry.



The building is part of a medical center and resembles a cross-section of a brain. This is a hint at the center's mission: research into Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, and other neurological diseases.

Gehry used his signature curved titanium panels to create the effect of a "living", pulsating object.

8. The Walking House



Among the strict buildings of Tel Aviv, the "Promenade House" stands out. This is an architectural whim that appeared due to a newspaper joke. In the 1980s, architecture professor Zvi Hecker drew a fantastic project for a newspaper column. And a local businessman, fascinated by the sketch, offered to finance the construction. Contrary to all norms and standards, the "Promenade House", resembling a tree with branches-balconies, was built in 1993.

9. Home in the Sky



In the heart of Manhattan, at 56 Leonard Street, among the classic skyscrapers, rises a 57-story, 250-meter-tall skyscraper that looks like it was assembled from giant Jenga blocks.



10. House with a face



In Georgian Batumi there really is a building that looks at passers-by.



11. The "Bubble" House



In 2003, Birmingham received one of the most unusual buildings in the UK. It was the Selfridges Building, a shopping centre whose façade looks like it was wrapped in giant bubble wrap. This avant-garde design instantly became an architectural icon of the city.



The designers were inspired by silver dresses by Paco Rabanne and the shape of sea shells. 15,000 aluminum disks covered with a silicone membrane create the effect of "bubbles".

12. Singing House



It would be more correct to call the Sound House the House of Singing Rain, since it was conceived as an art installation that unites nature, architecture, and music. There is a house in Dresden where rain becomes a composer and performer. Its facade is decorated with a network of gutters and downpipes, designed to create melodic overflows during rain, reminiscent of playing a xylophone.



German artist and sculptor Anish Kapoor worked together with engineers. Gutters made of different metals (copper, aluminum) and different lengths are tuned to specific notes. Raindrops, flowing down the pipes, hit special resonators. This is how a sound similar to music is born.