https://www.archdaily.com/115949/guangzhou-opera-house-zaha-hadid-architects/501388cb28ba0d150700072c-guangzhou-opera-house-zaha-hadid-architects-photo?next_project=no

For my fourth building by Zaha Hadid I chose to blog about the Guangzhou Opera House in China. This building has a very unique and eye catching design. I wanted to blog about this building because it looked super dimensional and was beautiful at night. I thought it looked really well for its surroundings as well and incorporated them nicely. This building opens towards the pearl river and looks so cool in doing so. This building serves as an opera house like it tells you in its name. Because it is an opera house it has all of the newest and best musical technology and sound/acoustics inside. The design of the building incorporated nature a lot. This building is supposed to kind of mimic an eroded river valley. This building also has Zaha’s touch because it is future forward, cultural, and urban, which are all some things she is known for incorporating. Like the other buildings of Zaha’s that I have blogged about, this building was also made from mostly steel, concrete, and glass. I think the way these buildings are able to twist and curve is so cool and mesmerizing. I think these are what the buildings of the future look like and they are beautiful and inspiring. I had a great time researching Zaha Hadid and her work, she is inspiring herself and I learned a lot through writing these blogs.

cites:
https://www.archdaily.com/115949/guangzhou-opera-house-zaha-hadid-architects

https://www.dezeen.com/2019/11/20/leeza-soho-zaha-hadid-architects-skyscraper-beijing/

For my third building by Zaha Hadid I chose to blog about the Leezo SOHO skyscraper in Beijing, China. This building by Zaha Hadid caught my eye right away because it looks like it has a cut down the middle of the skyscraper. Because of this I thought that it would be super interesting to see how it was built and with what materials. This building is 45 stories tall! This building has the worlds tallest atrium in its center! This skyscraper services as a high-rise and has shopping and offices too. The plan for this building was to be modern and new but not effect the surrounding existing architecture. This building was positioned above a rail tunnel and therefore is why they decided to split the building into two with the atrium in the middle. As the building gets higher up it twists and allows the unique shape to form. This twist allows a lot of natural sunlight inside and gives everyone a great view. The glass used to build this building was used in many layers and was done in such a way to provide ventilation to the building and I think that was super smart and creative. The building also is very sustainable and encourages that to the people as well. This building looks so amazing at any time of day and lights up beautifully at night. I bet the atrium in the middle is something like no other. The project to build this amazing sky scraper was in 2015.

cites:

Zaha Hadid Architects completes Leeza Soho skyscraper with world’s tallest atrium

https://www.archdaily.com/795832/antwerp-port-house-zaha-hadid-architects/57e418c5e58ecef8b4000513-antwerp-port-house-zaha-hadid-architects-photo

For my second building by Zaha Hadid I chose to blog about the Antwerp Port House. This buildings purpose was to bring together 500 workers that previously worked in separate buildings. This is a new headquarters for the port and is built on a fire station. Antwerp is a thriving are with lots of shipping and transporting going on. It is constantly growing and they realized that they needed to have a central building for those in the technical and administrative services in order for them to continue expansion and growth and to work together. They wanted the building to match their sustainability and future forward thinking. There was a contest for who would build this building and Zaha Hadid won. She interpreted the old fire station into the project and made the headquarters and it was everything they were looking for. They were looking for a design that incorporated both the new and the old and wanted the vertical design of the old building incorporated. Zaha Hadid did just that and more. The building “ripples like waves” and I personally think it is magnificent from what I can tell by pictures. This building is also very sustainable and energy efficient. This building was made out of mainly glass steel and concrete. construction began in 2012. Catch me here if I ever go to Antwerpen, Belgium!

Cites:

https://www.archdaily.com/795832/antwerp-port-house-zaha-hadid-architects

https://www.archdaily.com/448774/heydar-aliyev-center-zaha-hadid-architects/52851f2be8e44e524b0001ab-heydar-aliyev-center-zaha-hadid-architects-photo

My next four blogs will be about Zaha Hadid’s architecture. I will blog about 4 buildings by Zaha that I find most interesting. For the first building I chose the Heydar Aliyev Center by Zaha Hadid because it caught my eye right away. The way the shape of the building has so many curves and dimension is super intriguing to me. This building was going to serve as an area for the nations cultural programs. This building brings out the Azeri culture and describes how this nation looks into the future. The building is very fluid and quite modern looking. This building is a concrete structure that works and combines with a space frame system. The inside is very fluid and geometrical. The building was made to be inviting and in my opinion it is and it looks super cool. This building was built in … and was made mainly out of concrete, steel structures, and composite beams. And for the space frame, they used a steel-tube-and-nodes system. This building started being built in 2007. If I ever find myself in Baku, Azerbaijan I will definitely want to visit.

Cites:

https://www.archdaily.com/448774/heydar-aliyev-center-zaha-hadid-architects
http://buildipedia.com/aec-pros/from-the-job-site/zaha-hadids-heydar-aliyev-cultural-centre-turning-a-vision-into-reality

As I mentioned on my third blog, Italy was a trip of a lifetime. And as I also mentioned in a previous blog that by being catholic and getting to visit buildings with catholic significance I feel closer to my faith, visiting the Vatican was breath taking. I always grew up hearing my family members and relatives tell me stories of when they visited Italy and some saw the Pope and the Vatican and I thought that was so cool. I never thought I would get the chance to do so myself! On my study abroad trip we had a choice to go see the Pope give a blessing or to go to the catacombs. As cool as the Catacombs seemed I wanted to live out one of my bucket list goals and see the Pope. The Vatican itself gives such a presence of power but in a good way. Even though it was massive and very luxurious looking, it made me personally feel at home, welcomed, and like there was truly something holy about the place. Which, obviously there is but I felt it too. Walking through seeing the perfectness and the story telling of the Bible everywhere really brought everything to life. When I went to the blessing it was raining outside and thousands of people were gathered outside to see the Pope come out onto the balcony to speak and give the blessing. The building of the Vatican proves itself to b e holy, respected, a place to gather, a place to worship, a place to be welcomed, and a place of perfection. Hearing the Pope and seeing him come out from the building was so un real. The emotion that architecture is able to bring to people is quite amazing. Because of its structure and presence people of all religions and cultures are intrigued by it and respect it. I think it was overall one of the best experiences of my life and made me feel so connected.  This picture is from the inside when walking through surrounded by art and windows with such brightness and peace. It was so amazing everywhere I looked. (I took this picture myself!)

I thought traveling to Paris was a dream come true but Italy blew Paris out of the water for me. I was very fortunate to be able to study abroad with PLC to Italy last summer. I have already been thinking about when I can go again because it was a trip of a lifetime. This blog is about the pantheon and wow was it an interesting building. The pantheon was super bright and natural inside and I felt like I was still outside yet in the shade. This was because there are no windows in the pantheon and there is a massive hole /opening at the top of the dome like structure that allows the natural light and nature inside. The Pantheon was carved so perfectly and had geometric patterns throughout the whole structure. The Pantheon was actually first built to honor all Gods and the hole in the top was to connect the people to the gods. I thought the pantheon would just be another basic building but once I walked inside and saw the masterpiece with my own eyes I was taken aback by the tranquility and beauty. I had a sense of peace and curiosity. The pantheon was built so long ago that no one truly knows when it was built. It amazes many architects because the building is still standing today and has survived so much. Many buildings that are close to the Pantheons age have not survived and it’s amazing that the Pantheon did and the condition that it is in is still incredible. The Pantheon is massive and made me feel small but in a good way. It made me reflect and have a sense of calmness and peace. I was able to just walk and look up and feel good and happy. I think the design is incredible and amazing and if it has lasted this long, I have no doubt that it has many many years to stay standing. (I took this picture myself!)

I have already touched on how much I truly loved Paris as a little girl in my last post, but I forgot to mention that I literally had my bedroom Paris themed for a while so being there and seeing the architecture and buildings for myself truly was a dream come true. For this blog I will be talking about the Palace of Versailles. I have watched a few tv shows that have depicted the palace of Versailles in a way earlier time period and I never though for one second that it would look the same still today. The building has been preserved so nicely and the art and furniture that is still held inside is exquisite and truly tell a story and takes one back in time. The picture I have above was taken in the Hall of Mirrors and I felt like I was in the Beauty and the Beast movie or at least something royal. Most of what was built in the Palace of Versailles was to be dedicated to the king and to glorify him. The outside of the building is massive and made me gasp at how massive the estate was. I was honestly thinking to myself how many miles will I be walking??? Well, the walking was worth it. Once inside I felt like I went through a time machine and I felt so regal. Everything inside screamed expensive and luxury and I was just imagining the cost of everything. The palace was truly fit for a king! The Hall of Mirrors made me feel like a kid again but at the same time very grown up. I felt like I was in the worlds most luxurious fun house. The chandleries, mirrors, artwork and architecture made me feel like I was in a painting or in an illusion myself. The room went on and on and on and it was gorgeous every step I took. Being in the palace made me wish I could actually travel back in time to see people dancing in gowns and attending balls thrown by the king, what a luxurious life some lived there. I think the Palace of Versailles is a building that will always draw in tourists and will always be an exquisite piece of architecture. (I took this picture myself!)

When I was younger I had always dreamed of going to Paris and seeing all of the sites. Paris is so beautiful in movies and in person and is nick named the city of love and the city of lights. I was so eager to see the beautiful city for myself and got the chance to when I graduated high school. I was expecting the Eiffel Tower to have the greatest impact on me because ever since I was a little girl I wanted to see it. I was actually impacted more by both Notre-Dame and The Palace of Versailles. I will be talking about Notre Dame in this blog. Notre-Dame is a medieval Catholic cathedral and was consecrated to the Virgin Mary. I myself am catholic and have been fortunate enough to go to mass in many famous catholic churches including Notre-Dame. Because I am catholic I am able to feel closer to my own personal faith when I attend mass in beautiful buildings like Notre-Dame. I had chills the entire time, the sounds and architecture that surrounds ones self when inside would make just about anyone feel at peace and in awe. The way the structure of the building was built allowed voices of the choir to sound extra holy and angelic, and allowed for the priest to also be heard throughout the whole church as if someone were speaking straight from the heavens. Attending mass there is an experience I will never forget and luckily I was able to see Notre-Dame before the fire that occurred. Thankfully, they are working hard on restoring the gorgeous building. I thought I would feel quite normal inside of Notre-Dame and I thought it would be like any other church, but I was very wrong. As I explained above, the cathedral made me feel at peace and very connected to my personal faith. The sounds, smells, architecture, detail, and stained glass windows took my senses and emotions on a journey. There was so much to look at, I think I could stay there for a month and there could still be some detail I hadn’t seen. Notre-Dame is a masterpiece in many ways and should be visited by all. (I have taken these pictures myself!)