Monday, December 10, 2007

10 Buildings







The Fred and Ginger building is located in Prague and was designed by Frank Gehry. I really enjoy looking at this building because it seems to look very wimsical. There is a certain playfulness about it that you would not normally get from a building. I love the left side of the building and how it has the affect like it is moving. I also enjoy how the windows on the right side are not in a straight line. These different elements really bring this building to life.

Palacio de Las Artes Reina SofĂ­a is located in Valencia, Spain and was designed by Santiago Calatrava. This building probably gives the most visual interest of any building that I've seen. It has such an unusual shape that really catches your eye but then there are other elements of the building that keep you looking. The white color of the builiding is perfect for it because it allows you to focus more on its architecture. I love the roundedness of the building and how it is contrasted by the straight lines of the windows towards the bottom of the building. It almost appears that there is an outer shell to the building as if it is being protected. You usually do not see that type of thing on a building but it works really well in this case.

Taipei 101 is currently the tallest building in the world that is completed. It is a 101-floor landmark skyscraper located in Taiwain. It was designed by C.Y. Lee & Partners and contructed by KTRT Joint Venture. In 2004 it received the Emporis Skyscraper Award. The thing that really stands out to me about this building is that it is so tall but the design of it is not boring. I like how the bottom of the building goes out while you can see different levels going upward. It almost looks like the building is keeps growing out of itself. Another interesting element of the building is that it lights up different colors each night of the week. Overall, Taipei 101 is a really beautiful building.

The Biltmore house located in Ashville, NC is the largest home in America. It is truly a stunning and enormous house. It took 6 years and an entire community of craftsmen to building this home. The architect of the homem was Richard Morris Hunt and the landscape designer was Frederick Law Olmstead. Hunt modeled the architecture of this home after the French Renaissance. Not only is the house amazing to look at, but it is set in the mountains and amongst beautiful gardens. The intricate details of the house along with the steep sloping roofs make it even more dynamic than it already is. I can not imagine living in a house as big as the the Biltmore House.

The Sydney Opera House has come to be one of the most well known buildings in the world, not only representing Sydney but also Austrailia. It was designed by John Utzon and the original plan was put forth in 1950 but the ideas of Utzon were not put into place until 1973 due to architectural and engineering abilities of that time. The curved roofs of this building are what really make it stand out, especially since it is at the waters edge. The simplicity of the neutral colors used are perfect in showing off the architecture of building.



This is Fallingwater designed by Frank Lloyd Wright. This is one of his famous homes that he designed. I love how it is set in the wood and the beauty of the sharp angles that it has. It looks cozy tucked away in the woods. I reallyl like the different levels to the house and how the rock is incorporated into the structure of it.




I absolutely love the design of the US Air Force Academy and how it is shaped similar to a plane. It is located in colorado. The architect was Walter A. Netsch, Jr. and was completed in 1963. The main materials that were used in the making of the building include steel, aluminum, glass, and concrete. The function of this building is to serve as a chapel. The more you look at the design of it the more interesting and attention grabbing it is. I love the pointed roof and how there seems to be many layers or dimensions to it.





The Notre-Dame Cathedral is located in Paris, France. The architect was Maurice de Sully and was completed in 1250. Stone and masonry was used in the making of the building. The cathedral has a Gothic style to but it is very intriguing. The diversity in shapes along the building add more visual interest to the building making it more spectacular. Also the way the building reflects of the water adds even more to it.






The Eiffel tower is a well known tourist attraction all around the world. It was completed in 1889 and the architect was Alexandre Gustave Eiffel. It is located in Paris, France and the main material that was used was iron. The Eiffel tower is such a well known structure with such an interesting design. The bottom part of the tower is interesting because it is in an arch shaped as opposed to a more square shape like the rest of the tower. It's tremendous height makes this tower even more dynamic.







The Chysler building is located in New York City and was completed in 1929. The architect was William Van Alen. It was mainly constructed out of concrete, steel, stainless steel and stone. The building functions as a corporate building. I love how the building has a larger base but gets smaller as it goes towards the top. Also the top of the building is probably the most intriguing. I love how the lights shine from the top of it making the Chrysler building easily reconizable.








1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Very interesting article. Most of all I liked The Fred an Ginger. There are not many places in the world, about which I can say I love them. I have to confess, that Prague is ONE of those.
The architecture of Prague includes Romanesque, Gothic, Renaissance, and Baroque as well as classical Prague property and Art Nouveau. Prague is also a city of bridges, 14 alone crossing the river Vltava. Prague is also a ‘Green City’ with numerous parks and forest areas. I was impressed by the Prague castle, the old town's powder gate tower and the famous astronomical clock. I had a chance to explore the Jewish quarter, also fascinating (the Spanish synagogue is not to be missed). St. Vitus's Cathedral rivals Notre Dame as a massive, buttressed church: it also houses the tomb of "Good King Wenceslas". Charles Bridge is a treasure, a great beauty.