What’s the one thing that can truly set a city apart from other locations? Its opera house, of course. At least that’s what Harbin, a small city in northeastern China, believes of its newly designed monument.
The Harbin Opera House rises from the wetlands upon which it was built in an impressive glass and metal-based spiral that looks more like a spaceship than it does your typical music venue.
MAD architects – who won a competition to build the opera house and the cultural buildings around it, according to The Architectural Review – hoped to craft a space that would contrast not only with the surrounding nature, but the other buildings being built in the fast-growing city as well.
And the ultra-modern space certainly achieved that. Curbed reports the the building clocks in at 850,000 total square feet, and is home to a 1,600-seat theater with curbed walls made from Manchurian Ash wood. A rooftop observation deck also sits atop the 184-foot tall structure offering unobstructed views of Harbin.
The opera house is supported by an annex building, which has a restaurant, hotel and exhibition space. And once the city’s transit system is completed, it will have its own underground station in order to provide visitors with direct access to the impressive attraction.
Take a closer look at the futuristic structure in the photos below.
