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Architectural Digest

The 31 Ugliest Skyscrapers in the World

Nick Mafi

November 26, 2018 at 8:00 AM

Located in Panama City, Panama and reaching a height of nearly 800 feet, the F&F Tower was completed in 2011. Designed by the Panama City-based firm Pinzón Lozano & Asociados, the spiraling structure (which is made of glass and reinforced concrete) is a bold attempt at modern architecture, but one that missed the mark.

Hypo-Haus, which is HypoVereinsbank's headquarters in Munich, may be the home of Germany's fifth-largest financial institution, but the banking firm missed the mark in designing the structure that houses thousands of its employees.

Standing some 610 feet tall and located in Brazzaville, Congo, the Nabemba Tower is the tallest building in the country. The massive structure is aptly named after the tallest mountain in the country, Mont Nabemba (3,346 ft. elevation).

London's Lloyd's Building may be iconic, but the design leaves a lot to be desired. Completed in 1986, it was designed by Richard Rogers and Partners.

Winner of the 2017 Carbuncle Cup—an award handed down by Building Design magazine to the UK's ugliest new building—London's Nova Victoria attempted to evoke the angular shapes produced by such starchitects as Frank Gehry and Daniel Libeskind but failed in doing so.

Fernsehturm Berlin dominates the German city's skyline. Designed by German architect Hermann Henselmann, the tower soars some 1,207 feet in the air. Completed in 1969, the structure was commissioned by the East German government.

Standing 808 feet tall, New York's MetLife building can be seen from several locations throughout the city. But that doesn't mean it's appealing to look at. Situated above Grand Central Terminal, the building was completed in 1963 and designed by Emery Roth & Sons, Pietro Belluschi, and Walter Gropius.

Opened in 1990, the Oregon Convention Center is located on the east side of Portland's Willamette River. Designed by the American firm ZGF Architects, the space takes up 1 million square feet, making it the largest convention center in the state (but certainly not the best-looking one).

With a name that's as bland as its looks, Cairo's Radio & Television Building stands some 328 feet off the ground. The banal Egyptian structure was designed by Naoum Shebib Architects and completed in 1957.

We applaud the fact that Elevador Lacerda, Brazil's first elevator, dates from 1869, and was rebuilt in 1930 in its current incarnation. That doesn't mean we think the design is exceptional. In fact, it's in need of another makeover.

While Robarts Library at the University of Toronto allows students to further their education, the exterior of the building isn't much to write home about. The structure, which was completed in 1973, was designed by Mathers & Haldenby Architects.

Completed in 1955, Warsaw's Palace of Culture and Science was designed by Soviet architect Lev Rudnev, a man who led the Stalinist architecture movement between 1933 and 1955.

Completed in 2006, Munich's BMW Headquarters was designed to look like a four-cylinder automobile engine. And while that was a novel idea, the end product appears more childish than anything.

When the Žižkov Television Tower was completed in 1992, Prague's skyline forever changed. The project, designed by Václav Aulický, took seven years of construction, stretching some 708 feet in the air.

No matter that North Korea's Ryugyong Hotel is, after three decades, still under construction, we can already tell this skyscraper won't be the most beautiful on the planet. Designed by Baikdoosan Architects & Engineers, the 1,083-foot-tall structure has continuously remained vacant.

Located in Abu Dhabi, UAE, and designed by the Lebanese-based firm MZ Architects, the Aldar headquarters building was opened in 2010.

New York City's Verizon Building, which was designed by Rose, Beaton & Rose and completed in 1975, is not only aesthetically displeasing but it's located in downtown Manhattan, near the Brooklyn Bridge and East River. Which is to say, it's wasting a great opportunity in a prime New York real estate space.

Located in London and completed in 2010 for roughly $146 million, the Strata SE1 (which is also referred to as the "Razor" or "Electric Razor") was designed by the U.K.-based firm BFLS.

Although the National Library of Belarus was founded in 1922, the current structure, which houses all its books, wasn't completed until 2006. The building was designed by architects Mihail Vinogradov and Viktor Kramarenko.

The Slovak Radio Building in Bratislava was completed in 1983, after 16 years of construction. The structure, which looks like an inverted pyramid, was designed by Štefan Svetko, Štefan Ďurkovič, and Barnabáš Kissling.

Designed by the Dutch-based firm MVRDV, the Mirador Building in Madrid is a collection of different neighborhoods stacked vertically around a public sky-plaza. The structure was completed in 2005, after four years of construction.

Located in Bangkok, the Elephant Building was completed in 1997 by architect Sumet Jumsai. While playful in design, the structure does little to push the integrity of Thai architecture.

Completed in 2012, the National Fisheries Development Board Building is located in Hyderabad, India, in the southcentral part of the country.

The Russian Embassy in Havana, which was designed by Soviet architect Aleksandr Rochegov, was completed in 1985.

Perhaps one of the reasons Milan is considered by many to be Italy's "Ugly City" is the Torre Velasca building. Designed by the Milan-based firm Studio BBPR, the structure was completed in 1958.

It certainly doesn't help Tour Montparnasse's cause that it was built in one of the most architecturally significant cities in the world. But the structure, which was completed in 1969, is currently the third-tallest building in Paris, and possibly the ugliest.

With its 7,351 rooms, Malaysia's First World Hotel & Plaza, which was completed in 2008, is the world largest hotel. But for all it has in size, it certainly lacks in beauty.

The 1,535-foot-tall Oriental Pearl Tower is the second-tallest skyscraper in Shanghai. Designed by architects Jia Huan Cheng, Zhang Xiulin, and Lin Benlin, the structure was completed in 1994.

Not everything beautiful needs to flash like gold. The Trump Tower in Las Vegas is a perfect example of that. Completed in 2008, the 620-foot-tall structure is an eyesore even in a city filled with over-the-top architecture.

Another structure located in Bangkok designed by architect Sumet Jumsai, the Robot Building was completed in 1986 for roughly $10 million.

Completed in 1997 and located in Newark, Ohio, Longaberger's former headquarters building, modeled on a Longaberger Medium Market Basket, was designed by American architecture firm NBBJ.

From Tour Montparnasse in Paris to Pyongyang's Ryugyong Hotel, AD surveys the architecture that might've best remained a concept

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