Henning Larsen designed this building with the goal of transparency in mind. The reason he wanted to keep the building transparent was because it symbolized the role that Der Spiegel, a media company, had to the public. The role of a media company is to be transparant and to serve the community and Larsen used this as his vision. The construction is made up of 2 different buildings, totaling over 500k square feet.
This is the Tower of Americas designed by O’Neil Ford. This building was finished in 1968 and is the 27th tallest building in Texas. I think the whenever I decide to go to San Antonio, I will need to visit this building. This building piques my interest because the top part of the building slowly rotates and features the Eyes Over Texas Restaurant. This building reminds of one of the water towers in Moore, Oklahoma but is far more interesting.
This is the Foshan Ancestral Temple in Foshan, China. When I first encountered the place, I thought it was just going to be another typical temple that people went to pray at. After looking around for an hour, my mindset had completely changed. There was so much history to this place than I thought. One of the main attractions is the turtle pond that sits in front of it. It features two giant stone tortoises that act as fountains. Another exhibit that it has features old weapons and armor that were used back in the age of the dynasties. The picture shows only one of the roofs in the place. There are many other roofs that are as detailed as this one in this place.
Michael Reynolds started an earthship community in Taos, New Mexico. The community uses only solar and wind power in order to function which is very unique. This is one of my favorites by Reynolds because it brings a community together, which is what Michael Reynolds values so heavily. His ability to unite people across the world is one of the reasons why I find his work so intriguing! This community consists of hundreds of acres of land and has provided housing for many people. The earthship community in Taos offers tours to the public and educates them on the origins of earthships, how to build them, and the significance of them. This is something that I would be very interested in attending after seeing some of the amazing work created by Michael Reynolds!
https://taos.org/places/earthship-biotecture/
This building was created in memory of the martial artist Wong Fei-hung. I went to this place for the first time when I was in 8th grade. At first, I thought my uncle was dragging me to go shopping in bizarre place but when I got there I was fascinated. This place showed the life and history of someone that I watched so many movies about as a kid growing up. It even showed all of the movies that were made about him. There were also exhibits that were dedicated to Ip Man, Bruce Lee, and Jackie Chan. When I saw each of these exhibits, it brought back so much nostalgia. I wanted to watch all of those movies that I watched as a kid. This is one of my favorite places that I have visited in China.
The Tinkle House created by O’Neil Ford might be one of his most iconic structures besides his Tower in San Antonio. This older structure was created with far more intricate designs than most houses and this still stands true today. The inside includes different levels with their own unique style. This house has become a very well known structure and has stood the test of time.
This is Wagner Hall on OU’s campus right next to Price. Wagner Hall brings back not so fond memories because it is the freshman building for advising, and my first semester of school the advisors completely screwed me. Knowing my major prior to starting school I declared my first day. Well the advisors (2 or them) advised me completely wrong causing me to get off track of my graduation date by 12 credit hours in my first semester of college, so seeing this building reminds me of that and the money I have to and have had to spend to catch back up.
YKK Dormitory
The YKK Dormitory is located in Kurobe, Japan, it was built in 1998. The outside of the building is kind of bland with boxy structures lined up in a row. The inside, however, I really enjoy. The inside has a very simplistic design and Hertzbergers ideas on letting the space be defined by different uses really shines through. The way that the dorms are connected with glass hallways that are almost like tunnels but with lots of light. One of the most pleasing parts of the building though is the shielded courtyard area where there is a reflection pool and some plants. The way each of the dorm rooms function allows people living there to customize the room to the way that they like best.
The Chasse Concert Hall
This is the largest concert hall in the Netherlands, built in 1995 located in Breda/ This seems like a departure from Hertzbergers previous designs. The concert hall seems like much more of a work of art in and of itself. There seems like there was a more concerted focus on the aesthetics of the building itself with its sweeping wavy lines. There is more colour in this building than many of his others with a bright red greeting the patron inside. The building was obviously designed with acoustics in mind, being a concert hall, and that’s reflected in the slanted shape of the roof
CODA Shelter for Culture
This building is also located in Apeldoorn, Netherlands it was completed in 2011. This building has a much less dated design and really looks quite modern. The dark grey and glass exterior is very clean with nice lines. The building carries on the idea structuralist ideas of the Central Beheer offices. The building holds an art museum but in keeping with Hertzberger’s structuralist ideas there are no fixed walls in the underground gallery section. The building also houses part of a library, really excelling in the multiple-use idea that Hertzberger was working toward. There is lots of light through the building and large spaces since there aren’t fixed walls.
