Rhode Partners builds Austin’s tallest skyscraper from cantilevered glass

Texas architecture firm Rhode Partners has built a 58-storey residential skyscraper in Austin, Texas, from stacked glass blocks angled around a central core.

Called The Independent, 688-foot-tall (212 metres) tower sits between Austin’s Seaholm District and Shoal Creek.

Rhode Partners designed the building — The tower resembles stacked Jenga blocks

It is several feet taller than The Austonian, a 56-storey residential tower that completed in the Texan capital in 2010.

Rhode Partners described the new apartment building as a “vertical neighbourhood”.

“As a new addition to the city’s skyline, The Independent’s striking silhouette represents the bold and innovative spirit of Austin,” Rhode Partners told Dezeen.

Rhode Partners built a swimming pool on the 9th floor — A swimming pool is located on the 9th floor. Photo is by Patrick Wong

Four distinct glass blocks are stacked in a formation resembling a Jenga tower. Residential units are arranged to provide each level with a different view of the city.

“Each tier is slid and mirrored around a central core, creating an assortment of unit types and views,” explained Rhode Partners.

The Independent is a tower in Austin, Texas — The Independent has expansive city views. Photo is by Jason O’Rear

The tower’s shape was informed by various site constraints, including an immovable utility line and a horizon protected by Austin’s Capitol View Corridor.

An amenity deck on the 34th floor which cantilevers, or juts out, over the city. With floor-to-ceiling glass window walls, the deck has unobstructed 360-degree views of Austin.

Owing to an efficient HVAC system, the tower is able to function as net-energy-neutral for a significant portion of the year.

Other sustainable measures include a regenerative elevator system and interior spaces with reduced drywall that is achieved through the use of locally sourced fly-ash concrete.

Minimal interiors line the rooms — Light wood lines interior spaces. Photo is by Jason O’Rear

The tower’s various amenity rooms are finished in walnut and white oak, with commissioned artworks and other built-in furnishings that elevate what Rhode Partners described as “a condo project with museum-influenced design”.

Founded in 2006 by Brett Rhode, Rhode Partners is an architecture and interior design office based in Austin, Texas.

More notable Texan architecture include a skyscraper with a glass-bottomed pool in Houston and a new canopy designed by Snøhetta for the Blanton Museum of Art at the University of Texas.

Photography is by Nick Simonite unless otherwise stated