Designed to looks like a giant staircase, this Oslo office block by Dark Arkitekter completes the trio of buildings housing the headquarters of DNB Bank, created in collaboration with MVRDV and A-Lab (+ slideshow).
Photograph by Olaf Kon
The West Building, also known as Bygg C forms part of the Barcode Project ? a major new high-rise development on former dock and industrial land on the waterfront of the Norwegian capital.
Photograph by Olaf Kon
It stands alongside the pixellated brick Bygg A by Dutch firm MVRDV, and the hollow-centred Bygg B by Norwegian firm A-Lab ? which were all commissioned by DNB at the same time.
Photograph by Olaf Kon
This building is 15 storeys high and features a stepped profile that make it look like a huge set of stairs. This form allowed Oslo-based Dark Arkitekter to create both double-height rooms and a series of roof terraces for staff.
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"The 15-storey office building resembles a giant stair, in which each tread is a large roof terrace and each riser is a two-storey-tall glazed common room," explained the studio.

"The extensively planted rooftops retain water while also providing employees with contemplative break spaces that look towards the east and south," it added.

The building contains just under 12,000 square metres, with office space for up to 600 employees. Like its neighbours, it features a ...