“Marilyn Monroe Buildings”

If you’ve ever driven through Mississauga and thought, “Wait, are those skyscrapers dancing?”—you’re not entirely wrong! Officially named Absolute World, these two jaw-dropping residential condos are fondly known to locals and architecture nerds worldwide as the “Marilyn Monroe Towers.”

Back in 2006, the project developers decided they were tired of the usual, boring “box-shaped” suburban high-rises. They launched an international design competition to find something truly unique for the intersection of Hurontario and Burnhamthorpe in Mississauga, Ontario.

A young, up-and-coming Beijing-based firm called MAD Architects (led by founder Yansong Ma) swooped in with a daring, fluid design and took home first prize. It was actually the first time a Chinese architectural firm won an international competition for a major North American skyscraper!

The nickname caught on almost instantly. The taller tower (standing at a proud 56 storeys) features a stunning, hourglass silhouette that twists from its base all the way to the top. Locals instantly likened the building’s voluptuous, dramatic curves to Hollywood icon Marilyn Monroe.

The design was such a massive hit that the apartments sold out in mere days. The hype was so real that the developers quickly decided to add a second, 50-storey sister tower next door to keep her company (affectionately making them the “Condo Couple”).

Besides looking incredible on the skyline, the wavy design serves some pretty neat functions:

• 360-Degree Views: Because each floor plate rotates every single condo unit gets its own unique angle and a continuous, wraparound balcony with breathtaking panoramic views.
• Working with Nature: The continuous, deep balconies naturally shade the apartments from intense summer sun while letting in plenty of daylight.
• Award Winners: In 2012, the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat officially crowned them the Best Tall Buildings in the Americas.

So, next time you spy these twisting beauties on the skyline, you’re looking at a piece of architectural history that threw out the rulebook (and the right angles) to give the city an iconic landmark!