85 Sky Tower, located in the Lingya District of Kaohsiung, Taiwan, is one of the most architecturally distinct supertall skyscrapers ever completed. The building has a prong-shaped design incorporating two elevated podiums that support a pagoda-inspired tower. Each of the three vertical elements feature a tall central atrium, which facilitate the entry of sunlight, and allows greater communication between office units. The unique design of the building leaves a substantial space below the central tower, effectively creating an aperture in the building. As it stands, the building mimics the shape of the Chinese character “gao,” which means “tall” and is the first character of the city’s name.

The whole building is erected on a podium that is raised high enough to incorporate a tunnel underneath. Internally, the building is constructed around eight separate cores, allowing easy access to and through the building’s facilities. Each programmatic area of the building is independently designed, with separate entrances. The tower gains its basic verticality form the eight elevator shafts located in each core.

Numerous adornments augment the outward appearance of the tower. Pagoda-inspired shapes crown the top of each prong along with the main tower, which itself has a small spire. Though clad mainly in glass, the building utilizes different materials and colors to delineate certain sections of its façade. Dark shaded glass makes up the majority of the skin, but extruding volumes are clad in lighter glass, creating a textured appearance.

85 Sky Tower manages to simultaneously appear modern and forward thinking while also incorporating ancient Chinese principles of geomancy. Despite its modern design, it is unquestionably Chinese in flavor and reflective of historical Asian architecture. Its forward thinking—yet historically attuned—design makes it a singular and incomparable building.