The picture below is of the Tokyo National Museum that was designed by architect Yoshio Taniguchi. It was built in a natural & cultural setting to create and environment that is rare to present day Tokyo. The museum is widely known for its tranquility, order and dignity. This new gallery building was built over the old gallery in 1999, which was originally used only to preserve the works rather than to display them. I love this building because of how light passes through the outer glass walls to the middle of the building but is then suddenly blocked by a stone wall, in order to preserve the works. Inside the museum, Taniguchi included solid steel structures and extruded aluminium mullions that incorporates his qualities of accuracy and pure elegance.
2. Beach Cottage in the Hamptons
The beach house below was designed by Preston T. Phillips for close friends that live in East Hampton. Phillips created this house to evoke the informal houses of a simpler time, almost to contradict the fact that the Hamptons have changed so fast that people do not enjoy the beach anymore. They just go to say that the have a house in the Hamptons rather than to relax in their calm, carefree environment. I love this house because Phillips took his ideas from Edward Steichen's beautiful photograph of Isadora Duncan at the Acropolis. The peaceful photo was then transferred into a modern day beach house retreat.
3. Disney Concert Hall
Located in downtown Los Angeles, California this concert hall was designed by Frank Gehry for Walt Disney in 1987 and was finally finished in 2003. This concert hall is home to the Los Angeles Philharmonic and the Los Angeles Master Chorale. It was built for $274 million dollars to replace the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, which had very poor acoustics. This building is so unbelievable because of its geometric shapes that come together to form a modern house of music. It houses a large concert organ that was also designed by Frank Gehry, whose keys are said to look like a bunch of falling french fries.
4. Falling Water
I chose this house because it looks like it was carved out of the rocks and it fits perfectly in its environment with the natural tones and huge waterfall, rightfully giving it its name "Falling Water". Designed by Frank Loyd Wright in 1935 this extraordinary house was built for Edgar Kaufmann. It replaced an old rundown cabin outside of Pittsburgh, owned by Kaufmann, for around $155,000 dollars. In 1964 Kaufmann donated the property to the Western Pennsylvania Conservancy and was opened to the public as a museum. This house is known for its dynamism and organically designed structure.
5. Burj al Arab
Located off the coast of Dubai, this gigantic hotel is not only the second tallest building in Dubai, but it also known as "The Best Hotel in the World". This amazing building was designed by Tom Wright and resembles a blowing sail. The hotel also has the world's tallest tennis court that is located on the top side of the hotel. I love this building because it is luxurious and symbolizes Dubai's urban transformation. It is made out of Teflon-coated fiberglass that curves around the reinforced concrete tower inside. The hotel was built by Said Khalil in 1994 at 321 meters and is about to be passed in size this year by the newest skyscraper in Dubai, the Rose Tower, which is 333 meters.
6. Emirates Office Tower
Standing at an outstanding 354.6 meter tall, the Emirates Office Tower is the tallest building in Dubai and the world. It was designed by architect Hazel W.S. Wong Norr and was finished in 1999. I like these buildings because they look very futuristic, like there from a Star Wars movie or something. Norr designed these towers deliberately and successfully to provide an iconic profile that dominates the business districts skyline. Below the towers is an oasis shopping mall and looking out to the side of the building is the horse racing grounds. The outside of the buildings are made out of aluminium panels with copper and silver glass the constantly capture the light of the desert sun.
7. Adobe Towers
The headquarters of Adobe Systems Inc. is the model for sustainable operations and the best example of an energy saving facility. I love the layout and intricate design of these three towers, it really proves that you can create a green building for a reasonable price. The buildings were designed by Bill Valentine in San Jose, California and is was completed in 2007 for $1.4 million dollars. This office building consist of three different towers and they all include high-pressure fluorescent tubes, motion-activated computer monitors and fans that only run twice a day for 3 hours at a time to keep the air quality above standards but at an energy efficient level. New products and technologies have been used around the buildings which make this more of a modern day appliance.
8. The Chicago Spire
I first saw this amazing building when architect, Blair Kamin, from Chicago came to Greensboro to talk to us about our architecture here and what we could do to improve. It was designed by Santiago Calatrava, who began construction on it in 2007. This skyscraper cost around $2.4 billion to create and reaches up 610 meters in the sky. I think I am so attracted to this building because it reminds me of the tower in the Emerald City in the Wizard of Oz. It is so tall that you cannot help but stare at it. It is definitely in the right location though, the city where skyscrapers were born. The top of the building looks like the end of a drill bit or a space ship taking off. It is awesome!!
9. BMW Headquarters
Shaped like a four-cylinder engine the BMW Museum/Headquarters in Munich, Germany was designed by architect K.Schwarzer. Clearly visible from the U-Bahn this enormous building towers over Munich as the highlight of the city. Shaped like a clover from above people say that the structure has brought BMW a lot of luck in their business affairs. Inside of the museum is the technical evolution of the automobile through the 20th century. I love the idea of bringing the inside of the automobile out and exposing it to the world in a different way.
10. The Louvre
One of the oldest, most beautiful museums in the world is the Louvre which is located in Paris, France. The glass pyramid of the Louvre is a true symbol of Paris, making it one of the most popular attractions along with the Eiffel Tower. The building used to be a royal palace and still is home to the Mona Lisa, Madonna of the Rocks, Venus de Milo and over a hundred more famous pieces. I first fell in love with this building when I went to Europe for a month in 2005 and was able to take a tour of the Louvre. It was absolutely amazing to be able to see something that is so old but still so unique.
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