The Dancing House is set in a fine location by the Vltava River in Prague, Czech Republic.
It is one of the most interesting Prague houses built at the end of the 20th century.
The very non-traditional design was controversial at the time because the house stands out among the Baroque, Gothic and Art Nouveau buildings for which Prague is famous.
It was designed by Canadian-American architect Frank Gehry in co-operation with Croatian-Czech architect Vlado Milunić. The building was designed in 1992 and completed in 1996.
The interiors were partly designed by the British architect of Czech provenience Eva Jiřičná.
The style is known as deconstructivist (“new-baroque” to the designers) architecture due to its unusual shape.
The “dancing” shape is supported by 99 concrete panels, each a different shape and dimension. The windows have protruding frames, such as those of paintings, as the designer intended for them to have a three-dimensional effect.
On the top of the building is a large twisted structure of metal nicknamed Mary’.
Nowadays, there are hotel in the building, gallery and a luxury restaurant with a terrace and a beautiful view.
The windows have protruding frames, such as those of paintings, as the designer intended for them to have a three-dimensional effect.
The house originally named the house Fred and Ginger (after the famous dancers Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers – the house resembles a pair of dancers) but this nickname is now rarely used.
The Dutch insurance company Nationale-Nederlanden (since 1991 ING Bank) sponsored the building.
The building was awarded the prestige prize of the American Time magazine – it won the category of design in 1996.
The general shape of the building is now featured on a gold 2,000 Czech koruna coin issued by the Czech National Bank. The coin completes a series called “Ten Centuries of Architecture”.