Novelty architecture, also calledprogrammatic architecture ormimetic architecture, is a type ofarchitecture in whichbuildings and other structures are given unusual shapes for purposes such asadvertising or to copy other famous buildings. Their size and novelty means that they often serve aslandmarks. They are distinct fromarchitectural follies, in that novelty architecture is essentially usable buildings in eccentric form whereas follies are non-usable, purely ornamental buildings also often in eccentric form.

Although earlier examples exist, such as the planned but never completed ParisianElephant of the Bastille, the style generally became popular in theUnited States, and later to some other countries, as travel by automobile increased in the 1930s.^[1] TheStatue of Liberty in New York is a statue that is part sculpture and part monument, which like many subsequent examples of novelty architecture, has an accessible interior and became a tourist attraction.

Constructing novelty architecture near to roads became one way of attracting motorists to a diner, coffee shop, orroadside attraction, so buildings were constructed in an unusual shape, especially the shape of the things sold there. "Mimic" architecture became a trend, and many roadsidecoffee shops were built in the shape of giantcoffee pots;hot dog stands were built in the shape of giant hot dogs; and fruit stands were built in the shape of oranges or other fruit.Tail o' the Pup is a hot dog-shaped hot dog stand;Brown Derby is a derby-shaped restaurant; Bondurant's Pharmacy is a mortar-and-pestle pharmacy; theBig Apple Restaurant and theBig Duck are, respectively, a 10.7 metres (35 ft) tall apple and a poultry store shaped like a duck (now a gift shop).Montréal has the restaurantGibeau Orange Julep built as a 12-metre high orange-coloured truncated sphere in 1966 (replacing its smaller sphere of 1945) and still operating today.^[1]

Novelty or programmatic (mimetic) architecture may take the form of objects not normally associated with buildings, such as characters, animals, people or household objects.Lucy the Elephant andThe Longaberger Company's head office are examples. There may be an element ofcaricature or a cartoon associated with the architecture. Such giant animals, fruits and vegetables, orreplicas of famous buildings often serve as attractions themselves. Some are simply unusual shapes or constructed of unusual materials.^[1]

Many examples of novelty architecture are designed to attract drive-by customers by taking the form of products sold inside. Others, such ascasinos inLas Vegas andMacau, are based on famous landmarks from around the world.

Mimetic architecture, or buildings designed to imitate a giant object or creature, sometimes having to do with what is being sold or showcased inside.

Examples include theHigh-Heel Wedding Church inTaiwan, the Mr. Toilet House inSouth Korea, the Museum of Tea Culture inChina, theNational Fisheries Development Board building and theChowdiah Memorial Hall auditorium inIndia, theElephant Building inThailand, or theWolfartsweier Cat Kindergarten and theBMW Headquarters inGermany, to name but a few.

Novelty architecture in the form of famous landmarks has been built inChina,Georgia,Japan and the United States, for instance. Such replica buildings are extensively used in casinos, hotels, shopping plazas, oramusement parks such asDisneyland where the apparent playfulness and whimsy are intended to add to their appeal. In some cases, such asCarhenge, the structure is an adaptation of a well-known building.

In China, theNew South China Mall inDongguan, features a 25 metres (82 ft) replica of theArc de Triomphe,^[2] another replica of Venice's St Mark's Campanile,^[3] a 2.1 kilometres (1.3 mi) canal with gondolas.^[2]

InBatumi on Georgia'sBlack Sea coast, new high-rise landmark buildings and the renovation of the Old Town have incorporated novelty buildings.^[4] Many of these constructions are novelty architecture, including theSheraton Hotel, designed in the style of theGreat Lighthouse at Alexandria, Egypt;^[5] the Alphabet Tower (145 metres (476 ft) high), celebrating Georgian script and writing;Piazza, a mixed-used development in the form of an Italian piazza; and buildings designed in the style of theLeaning Tower of Pisa, theAcropolis, and an upside-downWhite House.

In Japan, there is theHuis Ten Bosch theme park nearNagasaki, which has replicas of Dutch landmarks likeHuis ten Bosch and theDom Tower of Utrecht.

In the US, a shopping plaza in Kansas City, Missouri contains a half-sized replica of La Giralda in Sevilla. Casinos on theLas Vegas Strip in the form of novelty architecture include thepyramid-shapedLuxor Hotel and theNew York-New York Hotel & Casino, a building designed to look like theNew York City skyline;Paris Las Vegas whose front suggests theParis Opera House and theLouvre; andExcalibur Hotel and Casino (1990), with its stylized façade ofKing Arthur's castle (Camelot). In Macau,The Venetian Macao, likeits counterpart in Las Vegas, features a replica ofSt Mark's Campanile and other buildings inVenice.

Water towers and storage tanks, often prominent features in a small town, are two types of buildings which have been shaped or decorated to look like everyday objects. There are many versions of these types of novelty architecture.

Water towers exist in many forms, among thempeaches, coffee pots, and teapots; corn cobs, wine bottles, and sauce bottles; and fishing bobbers and strawberries.

Severalbreweries and other businesses have designed holding tanks in the shape of giant cans of beer or other containers.

Sculptures of ordinary items scaled to building size are another aspect of novelty architecture. Such sculptures appear at roadside parks and attractions or museums in Australia, Canada, Japan, New Zealand, the Philippines and the United States. They are likely to represent local animals, such as fish or other wildlife; local plants, such as apples orpineapples; well-known local people such asPaul Bunyan; food, such as the branded candy bars at the formerCurtiss Candy Company; sporting or mechanical equipment such as giant bats, balls, ortires; musical instruments, such asguitars; clothing, such asgiant boots; or popular creatures, such asdinosaurs.

In some instances, the giant sculpture provides a reference for the building to which it is connected. Examples are the giant baseball bat outside theLouisville Slugger Museum & Factory and the giantpaper plane atCleveland Hopkins International Airport.

Architecture popular in the 1950s-1960s in southernCalifornia and inFlorida featured sharp corners, tilted roofs, starburst designs, and fanciful shapes. This came to be known asGoogie,Doo Wop, orpopuluxe architecture.

Long-established firms whose features are well-known could still qualify as novelty architecture; examples includeMcDonald's original golden-arches design and the self-referential design of theWhite Castle restaurants.

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  The Face House inKyoto, Japan.
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  UFO-shaped bus station inKielce, Poland (2012)
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  Evoluon inEindhoven, Netherlands
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  Haukilahti water tower inEspoo, Finland
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  The Big Pineapple inNambour, Australia
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  Gibeau Orange Julep inMontreal, Quebec, Canada
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  Large barrel-shaped bistro and bar inOkinawa City, Japan
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  ThePysanka or Painted Easter Egg Museum inKolomyia, Ukraine
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  TheHigh-Heel Wedding Church inTaiwan
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  Wolfartsweier Cat Kindergarten inGermany
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  TheBig Merino inGoulburn,New South Wales, Australia.
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  Giant Koala,Dadswells Bridge, Australia.
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  Office building of the National Fisheries Development Board inHyderabad, India^[6]
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  ATwistee Treat restaurant inMinden, Ontario, Canada
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  TheTuborg Bottle inCopenhagen, Denmark.
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  A museum inYasothon, Thailand
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  An upside-down house inSzymbark,Poland.
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  The Upside-Down House ofTrassenheide, Germany^[7]
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  Rügen, Germany

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  Lucy the Elephant inMargate City, New Jersey (1881)
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  The originalBrown Derby inLos Angeles, California (1926)
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  TheBig Duck inFlanders, New York (1931)
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  Coffeepot water tower inLindstrom, Minnesota (1902)
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  Hot Cha Cafe, now Koffee Pot Cafe;Long Beach, California (ca. 1932)
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  Corn cob water tower inRochester, Minnesota (1931)
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  World's Largest Catsup Bottle water tower inCollinsville, Illinois (1949)
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  A 64-foot-tall (20 m) Nehi Bottle located nearAuburn, Alabama, in an area referred to as "The Bottle" (destroyed by fire in 1933)
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  Benewah Milk Bottle inSpokane, Washington (1935)
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  Bono's Orange Stand inFontana, California (1936); used to sell California orange juice to hot drivers who all lacked air conditioning at that time.^[8][9]
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  Wigwam Motel inHolbrook, Arizona (1950)
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  Tail O' the Pup hot dog stand in California^[10]
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  Coney Island Hot Dog Stand inBailey, Colorado (1966)
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  AtCabazon Dinosaurs inCabazon, California; this dinosaur's belly holds a souvenir shop
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  TheBig Chicken inMarietta, Georgia
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  Randy's Donuts (1953) inInglewood, California
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  The Donut Hole inLa Puente, California
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  Shell Service Station inWinston-Salem, North Carolina
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  Kansas City Public Library's parking garage (2004)^[11]
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  Dog Bark Park,Cottonwood, Idaho
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  TheChiat/Day Building (1991), byFrank Gehry, inVenice, California.
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  Teapot Dome Service Station inZillah, Washington.
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  "Mammy's Cupboard" restaurant, Adams County, Mississippi (1940)
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  Encinitas Boathouses,Encinitas, California^[12][13]
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  Haines Shoe House

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  Paul Bunyan and Babe the Blue Ox inBemidji, Minnesota, US (1936)
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  Dinosaur Park sculpture of a Tyrannosaurus rex inRapid City, South Dakota, US (1936)
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  Babe the Blue Ox atTrees of Mystery inKlamath, California, US (1949)
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  Golden Driller statue inTulsa, Oklahoma, US (1953)
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  Paul Bunyan statue inPortland, Oregon, US (1959)
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  Johnny Kaw statue inManhattan, Kansas, US (1966)
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  Apatosaurus statue atNorth Carolina Museum of Life and Science inDurham, North Carolina, US (1967)
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  Paul Bunyan statue inAkeley, Minnesota, US
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  Harvey statue at Harvey Marine inAloha, Oregon, US
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  Blue Whale of Catoosa inCatoosa, Oklahoma, US
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  World's Largest Dinosaur inDrumheller, Alberta, Canada (2000)
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  World's Largest Muskellunge inHayward, Wisconsin, US at the National Freshwater Fishing Hall of Fame.
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  Big fruit outside Cromwell, CentralOtago, New Zealand
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  Kiwi fruit inTe Puke, New Zealand
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  GiantCanadian two-dollar coin Monument,Campbellford,Ontario, Canada

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• Ice hotels, temporary hotels made of ice and snow, found in the coldest regions of the world
• John Margolies, a photographer who specialized in roadside attractions, including novelty architecture
• List of world's largest roadside attractions
• Muffler Men, oversized molded fiberglass sculptures used to promote roadside businesses
• New Zealand's big things

• Large Canadian roadside attractions
• Roadside America: Big Coffee Pots