Barcelona’s ‘erotic gherkin’ finally lights up

15 September 2005

BARCELONA — The 31-storey Torre Agbar, dubbed among other things Barcelona’s erotic gherkin, is to open.

King Juan Carlos and Queen Sofia will officially open the tower, designed by French architect Jean Nouvel, on Friday.

Nouvel claims he was inspired by Monserrat, the famous mountain retreat near Barcelona.

But many have given the multi-coloured landmark less saintly names.

Erotic gherkin, dildo and cucumber are common jibes, but perhaps the best joke is they say those who work at the tower will know what it is like to be inside a penis.

The exterior is made up of 40,000 red, blue and orange windows, but it has been criticised for not being in–keeping with the skyline of the rest of the city.

It is the third biggest building in the city at 144-metres, after the Hotel Arts at 154m and Barcelona’s tallest structure, the 288m high Torre Collserola communications tower.

Part of the idea behind the tower, owned by water company Agbar, is to attract other business to a rapidly growing business district called 22@ in the east of the city.

[Copyright EFE with Expatica]

Subject: Spanish news