This is the Library Quarter. It was built in 2013 in Spijkenisse, Netherlands. It is currently 1700 m^2 and was built very symmetrically triangle. Even though it is called a library, it also contains a supermarket and also offices on that site. On the top side of the buildings are living quarters where people can live as apartments. I think it is interesting that the buildings are all homologous. The color and shape remind me of an ancient village.

https://www.mvrdv.nl/projects/112/library-quarter

This is the Griffith Observatory located in Los Angeles, CA. This building has affected me in a very positive way, throughout my life. My first interaction with this building was when I went on a school field trip when I was seven years old. I remember being so impressed with the building itself because it looked so different with its unique architecture and the planetarium dome. I thought that the observatory looked so futuristic, however later that day I found out that this structure had a long history and had actually been completed in 1935. The interior of the building however was not as impressive as the exterior. The building was kind of run down and the space exhibits were underwhelming. However, I still appreciated the location of the building, and I was so excited to be so high up on the mountains overlooking the entire city.

One of my most prominent memories related to the Griffith Observatory was how big of a deal it was when the city announced that the building would be closed for a period of four years for renovation. Citizens took this building for granted and loved visiting and were outraged that the building would be closed for that long. However, the city of Los Angeles realized that the building was worthy of restoration, and the almost 100 million dollars that would be spent so that future of citizens of the city could further enjoy this building.

Over the years, I visited this building many times. I have many good many memories of meeting up with friends and hiking from the base of Griffith park the whole way up to the Observatory. The Griffith Observatory to me represents a quintessential Los Angeles building, reminds me of my childhood, and to this day is still a building that catches my attention.

The Culture and Congress Centre (aka KKL)  in Lucerne, Switzerland is a multi-functional building with a concert hall that is esteemed for its high-profile acoustics. The KKL was built by Jean Nouvel, and it was finished in the year of 1998 at the start of the Lucerne festival. I had the opportunity to study abroad in Lucerne, Switzerland last semester, and I spent a great amount of time in this beautiful building. It is built right along side the Lucerne lake, so there were always incredible views from the glass windows that were all around the building. It also held many concerts throughout the year that were known to be outstanding from its surreal acoustics.

Milan Cathedral is the cathedral church of Milan, Lombardy, Italy. Dedicated to the Nativity of St Mary, it is the seat of the Archbishop of Milan, currently Archbishop Mario Delpini. The cathedral took nearly six centuries to complete. It was finally completed in 1965. I had the opportunity to visit this Cathedral on a weekend trip to Italy while I was studying abroad in Switzerland last semester. We were able to go inside the cathedral during Mass. My favorite part was going inside the building and seeing the breathtaking stained glass all around us. It was truly an incredible experience to see it not only on the outside but on the inside as well!

The Apple Headquarters, or “Apple Park”, was one of the most overwhelmingly massive buildings that I have encountered in my life. It was designed by Norman Foster in what is described as a neo-futuristic architectural style. The building has been described to have a “spaceship” atmosphere. Steve Jobs claimed that he wanted the building to look more like a wildlife refuge than a blase office building, and I can confidently say that he achieved that. 

When I first saw Apple Park, I saw it from the ground on the side, and thought that it was just a large, flat-faced office building; even from about 100-150 feet away, it was so massive that I didn’t notice the curvature or even consider that the building was a huge circle. Upon visiting and exploring the nearby Apple campuses, I found that the building was sustained by giant solar panels placed on top of nearby parking garages. The second image of this blog is of a large 3d scale model in a nearby Apple store. The large sheets over the structures on the left are those panels, and support the entirety of Apple Park. This was eye-opening to me because it made me realize that a simple mechanic could be used to the extent that it could uphold a 2.8 million square foot, $5 billion building designed in the modern age. It gives testimony to modern technology’s potential to create more efficient and environment-friendly structures.

The NEMO Science Museum is a science centre in Amsterdam, Netherlands. It is located in the Oosterdokseiland neighborhood in the Amsterdam-Centrum borough, situated between the Oosterdokseiland and the Kattenburg. The museum has its origins in 1923, and is housed in a building designed by Renzo Piano since 1997. It is noted as looking like a sinking ship by the people living in the city. I had the opportunity to visit this spectacular building while I studied abroad in the Fall of 2019, and it was just as incredible on the inside as it was on the outside!

The Winspear Opera House is located in the arts district of Downtown Dallas, Texas, and it was built by Foster + Partners and Kendall/Heaton Associates, Inc in 2009. It was designed as a 21st-century reinterpretation of the traditional opera house, the Winspear seats 2,200 in a traditional horseshoe configuration. It is very special to me, because I grew up going to different shows and performances inside this beautiful building for many years. This kind of building made performances feel so incredibly magical, and it transformed the way people could view live entertainment.

The Chesapeake Energy Arena, the home of the Thunder, is a building I have been going to for the last 7 years to games. Once they finished construction on the side that is pictured, it made the building look a lot better. And I can’t wait to see the arena once the surrounding area is complete from construction.
My dad has season tickets so we always go to the games together. Overall, it is just a great experience to bond with my dad and we always have a good time despite the outcome of the game.

The Willis Tower is one of the tallest buildings in the United States, standing at 110 stories and 1,730 ft high. It was designed by a group, an architectural company named Skidmore, Owings and Merrill. It finished construction in 1973 and was originally called Sears Tower, as it was to become office space for Sears employees. The name was changed in 2009 after an insurance broker firm. 

I visited Willis Tower around Thanksgiving of 2017, and it was a phenomenal building. I felt that it resembled a large black battery. The two antennas on the top of the building were quite odd to me, but it was shocking to find out that they were each around 300 feet long. It just put into perspective how massive the building was as a whole. For being so tall and domineering, I feel like Willis Tower is much more aesthetically pleasing than buildings like the Empire State Building or the Aon Center. I have visited Chicago twice now, and I can confidently say that this building sticks out like a black, concrete sore thumb. The second picture that I have added is actually the view from the Skydeck at the top!

The Oculus is a very distinguishable building located in Lower Manhattan, and was opened to the public in 2016. I got the opportunity to visit this unique building during the summer of 2018, and it was quite the experience. It was designed by a Spanish architect named Santiago Calatrava, who intended for it to resemble a white bird in flight. The massive, white steel beams that support the exterior structure of the building do protrude out like large wings. The commercial purpose of this building is to serve as a transportation hub for New York City commuters, replacing a train station that was destroyed in the 9/11 attack. 

When I initially visited The Oculus, I wasn’t aware of any of the history behind it. It was located right next to the 9/11 memorial, Ground Zero, so it makes sense that it would serve as a public amenity and a 9/11 tribute at the same time. I thought that the building resembled something of an organ instrument on the inside. The large white structures were like pipes and keys and we were inside of the structure. I also felt like it somewhat resembled a spinal structure from within. The building was so stunningly white and scattered with people who seemed like little colorful dots.