IQON BUILDING

Traditionally a city of dense low-rise buildings, the skyline of Quito was re-imagined following the relocation of the city-center airport over a decade ago. With the skyline able to grow upwards, Uribe Schwarzkopf hired BIG in 2017 to design a 390,000 sq ft mixed-use residential building, including 215 residences, commercial units, office spaces, and a variety of amenities. In addition to IQON, BIG and Uribe Schwarzkopf's EPIQ Residences, located nearby, is slated to finish construction in 2023.
IQON is designed as a vertical community, and an extension of the neighboring La Carolina Park, which continues up onto the building facade. The building features a notable curved corner, wrapped by terraces that continue around the building's perimeter with views of the park, city and over the Pichincha volcano.
IQON’s architectural identity is defined by its ‘stripped back’ façade; the raw, exposed concrete simultaneously functions as the building’s structure. Individual ‘pixels’ are stacked 32 floors high and rotated to provide the best possible views while simultaneously creating terraces for the apartments. Celebrating native trees and plants, the building integrates greenery wherever possible to take advantage of with Ecuador’s temperate climate and ecology the country with the most plant species per square meter in the world.
The ground floor plaza includes generous public spaces, retail units, and public art. This central plaza functions as a new east-west pathway, connecting the park to the rest of the neighborhood.