10 of the Most Unusual Buildings in the World

Architecture is a funny thing. At one point in time, we couldn’t get enough of towering Gothic cathedrals. Then came a love of sleek glass skyscrapers. And sometimes, architects throw out all the rules, designing buildings so unusual that you’d think they weren’t buildings at all.

And these aren’t your average square or rectangular building; some seem to defy gravity entirely. Creativity is a huge part of architecture, and these unusual buildings are designed to make you feel something. In that way, they’re just like a piece of art, there to invite curiosity and, sometimes, to cause a bit of confusion.

10. Longaberger Basket Building, Newark, Ohio

Close your eyes and picture a woven picnic basket. Now, imagine that picnic basket was seven stories high. The Longaberger Basket Building was the brainchild of Dave Longaberger, who founded an American basket manufacturing business called the Longaberger Company.

Clearly, he is passionate about baskets, and wanted the building to resemble exactly what the company is so famous for. Inside, the building was initially used as Longaberger’s corporate headquarters, with meeting rooms and offices arranged in a unique floor plan. The center of the building has a spacious glass atrium with plenty of natural light.

It’s one of those unique buildings that really turns heads if you’re walking through Newark, Ohio. And I guess that subliminal marketing was precisely what Longaberger intended with its design.

9. Azerbaijan National Carpet Museum, Baku, Azerbaijan

Baku is known for its sprawling metropolis of modern steel and glass high-rises. But one of its most identifiable buildings is, in fact, a museum dedicated to all things carPets. The marvel was designed by Austrian architect Franz Janz and completed in 2014. Expectedly unexpectedly, the museum resembles a rolled-up Azerbaijani rug rolled into a spiral.

The flick of the rug’s edge is connected with the ground by large floor-to-ceiling windows, letting plenty of natural light into the main atrium. Inside the building, you’ll find a treasure trove of carPets, along with exhibitions explaining the carPet weaving process and its artisanal History.

In fact, there are ten thousand carpets in the museum, each representing centuries of Azerbaijani weaving traditions.

8. Casa Batllo, Bercelona, Spain

Not only is the Casa Batllo one of the most unusual buildings in the world, but it’s also one of the most famous. Tourists from across the globe flock to the Spanish Capital of Barcelona to catch a glimpse of this exquisite Antonio Gaudi masterpiece.

The building was completed in 1906 and was commissioned by a wealthy Businessman who gave Gaudi permission to let his imagination run wild. And what a good idea that was. The result is a building with no right angles and enough whimsical features to make it look like it could belong to a family of mermaids.

Originally a residential building, it is now a museum where visitors can bathe in the soft light of Gaudi’s famous stained-glass windows.

7. Crooked House, Sopot, Poland

The Crooked House, or Krzywy Domek in Polish, is the architectural equivalent of a funhouse mirror. Built in 2004, the building’s wavy and distorted lines were inspired by the works of Jan Marcin Szancer, a Polish children’s book illustrator, and Swedish artist Per Dahlberg. One look at their work, and it will all make sense.

It almost looks as if it’s been warped or melted by the hot sun. And it’s not just a wacky facade. The inside is a buzzing dining and shopping center that will make you feel like you’re in an alternate reality.

The Crooked House is one of those playful buildings you can’t help but love to look at. And for the architecture fans among us, it’s enough to bring the inner kid out of you.

6. Bubble Palace, Cannes, France

When you think of Cannes, your mind might jump to regal apartments and seaside estates. But the designer of this private residence in Theoule-sur-Mer had other plans for the architectural integrity of the town.

It’s one of the most unusual buildings in the world, mainly because it is used as a private holiday home. It extends across the hilly coastline and comprises a panoramic living room, a 500-seater open-air amphitheater, ten bedrooms, and three swimming pools.

This home looks a bit like what you might expect the first homes on Mars to look like — granted, we get there. The architect disliked straight lines, and with these separate bubble rooms conjoined as one mass, it’s not hard to believe.

5. National Fisheries Development Board, Hyderabad, India

Ever felt like a building was staring back at you? The National Fisheries Development Board in Hyderabad certainly has that effect. It’s another great example of mimicry architecture, where the building itself looks just like the Business that operates inside it. And in this case, it’s a fish.

Designed to promote fisheries, one of the region’s major industries, the building was inspired by Frank Gehry’s quirky fish sculpture.

Inside the building are offices — because who wouldn’t want to work inside a giant fish? While it’s mostly off-limits to the public, it does entice a fun photo opportunity for anyone walking past. I suggest visiting at sunset when its ‘scales’ shimmer in the golden light.

4. Kunsthaus Graz, Graz, Austria

The Kunsthaus Graz is locally known as the ‘friendly alien’ or the ‘blue blob’, and it’s not hard to see why. It was built in 2003 by architects Peter Cook and Colin Fournier and designed like a bulbous organic space creature. As you can imagine, it sticks out like a sore thumb in a sea of otherwise traditional Austrian buildings with gabled houses and red-tiled roofs.

Appropriately, the building houses a contemporary art museum, of which the building itself is the main attraction. But the most unusual thing about it is its surface, which is covered by lights that screen signals or even written messages that can only be seen at night.

3. Kansas City Library, Kansas, U.S.

In an unexpected yet somehow perfectly fitting twist, the Kansas City Library is designed to resemble a stack of books. In fact, it doesn’t just resemble books, but it captures every little detail, making the building look like ordinary hardcovers scaled up to building size.

And since no one expects to walk past a row of buildings that look like books, it’s these ordinary objects made big that really gets people’s attention. If you’re a book lover, this building alone will make your day (let alone the impressive collection of volumes inside it).

It’s a playful tribute to the literary treasures inside.

2. Hang Nga Guesthouse, Dalat, Vietnam

Locally known as the Crazy House, Hang Nga Guesthouse is more suited to be the set of a horror movie than a guesthouse. It looks like something out of a surrealist dream – or nightmare – but in the coolest way possible.

The guesthouse combines elements of Gaudi-inspired fantasy and nature with tree-like structures, twisting steppingstone staircases, spiderweb railings, bridges, and hidden nooks. Inside, each room follows a different theme, from under-the-sea scenes to grottos. There is no need to visit a theme park when you can just stay at the Hang Nga Guesthouse in Dalat.

1. Dancing House, Prague, Czechia

The Dancing House in Prague is one of the most unusual on this list. Not because it resembles an everyday object but because of its ingenuity in modern design. It is the brainchild of Frank Gehry, one of the world’s most famous architects, and it really offers a stark break from Prague’s traditional city architecture.

The design features two buildings side by side. One is curving and flowing, the other rigid and modern. Together, they create a structure that captures the fluidity of movement — a symbol of democracy and freedom that felt very welcome after years of communism.

Today, the building is used as a gallery and restaurant, with a rooftop terrace that boasts exceptional views of the Vltava River and the city.