Shown above is the beautiful Notre-Dame Cathedral, located in Paris, France. This cathedral is a huge tourist attraction, in which many people make a point when visiting Paris to pay respects. After a fire burned part of the cathedral on April 15, 2019, I felt this a great piece of architecture to reflect on. Millions of euros have been collected in hopes of being able to rebuild the cathedral by the summer 2024 Olympics.

The Notre-Dame Cathedral is a very well-known, beautiful piece of architecture. I visited this cathedral my Sophomore year of high school with my sister and my grandparents. The outside of the cathedral is stunning with immense detail and unique shapes and symmetry. I felt dwarfed as I entered the church. In the image shown you can see how small the people inside the church compare to the high ceilings and huge altar. The cathedral has scenes and statues around the edges of the building, which are interesting to study. There are a lot of pews, which allow for a large amount of people to attend mass. I felt at peace when I entered this piece of history and was overcome by a sense of holiness.

Information retrieved from https://www.cnet.com/how-to/notre-dame-cathedral-fire-slow-reconstruction-and-new-dangers-ahead-update/

Growing up I went to public school, all the way up until my Sophomore year. Right before my Sophomore year of High School my parents decided it would be a good idea for me to go to private school so I would be out of the toxic environment that I was in at public school. At first I did not want to go to the school because I had all of my friends already and the transition would mean that I have to make all new friends. After the first few months of school I really started to enjoy it because I made so many new friends. Another thing I really liked about CCS was that I could openly talk about my faith at school without being looked at differently or seen as the “Jesus Freak”. The architecture of this building is very modern and is very pretty on the outside but the inside is just as pretty and modern. Having a school that allows a lot of natural light in really helps you enjoy the schooling.

The last building I choose was Cowboy Stadium. I would say it is an incredible stadium with fantastic architecture. The amount of glass they used almost surrounds the whole stadium giving it a very open feeling as well as the retractable roof, which can enhance that when opened. However, I would say memories of this building are mostly negative. This is due to the fact that our fanbase always hypes our team up preseason, and of course, the cowboys always find a way to fall apart and miss the playoffs. But I guess it is better to watch your team lose in a beautiful, comfortable stadium compared to an older one that needs an upgrade.

OU has a lot of of beautiful around campus such as the Biz with its magnificent Cherokee Gothic architecture or the newer, highly functional, Gaylord College. It still amazes me someone thought it was a good idea to have this monstrosity on campus. It is the literal definition of sticking out like a sore thumb (Except for the Towers but they deserve their own hate post). I’m not sure what architects were thinking in the late 60s, but to regress to this after the early buildings of this school is impressive. I mean it is perfect for what it was built for, preventing riots, but other than that I can’t name a more depressing building to enter. The fact their main reason for building The Blender this way was to suppress a student population if they disagreed with them should say something alone. After listening to multiple student presentations in class about healthy buildings and their impacts they can have on the people in them they must have listened to them too then proceeded to do the exact opposite. You would hope this place would have a cool inside to offset how bad it looks on the outside, but it is just as bad. The layout is horrible having to go through bathrooms to cross to the other side of the building to be quick, as well as containing long corridors from The Shining. I’m sure the top floors might be better because they actually have windows, but if you meet someone that actually likes this building, other than a survivalist preparing for the end of the world by the Coronavirus, let me know.

Above is the Bizzell Memorial Library, here on the University of Oklahoma’s campus. The Bizzell Library was constructed in 1927 with a budget of only $500,000. The library included “treasure room” for rare books and a reading room, known as the Great Reading Room. In 1958, an addition was added to the library which tripled the size. The libraries on the University of Oklahoma campus hold a combined five million volumes.

The Bizzell Memorial Library is a place I enjoy on campus. Specifically, one of my favorite places to study is the Great Reading Room located inside the library. The outside of the library is beautiful and has immense detail. I feel dwarfed as I enter through the large, wood doors. As I enter through the doors, I hear quiet conversations and see many people studying. When I walk into the Great Reading Room, I am always amazed at how beautiful and intricite the room is. The GRR has dark wood beams across the ceiling and large lanterns hanging from the ceiling. The unique, detailed windows allow daylight to stream into the room, making this room very bright during the day. The library also has many other areas to study, which are unique and special in their own way. I feel productive and peaceful when I study in the GRR and feel as if the room takes away some feelings of stress.

Information retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bizzell_Memorial_Library

The Bizzell in my opinion is one of the prettier buildings on campus, it is just very pleasing to look at. The Bizzell Memorial Library has been an important building in my life these past few semesters of college, it allows you to have a serious and quiet environment to do homework or study. These past few semesters I have found myself in the “biz” quite often, I try to study at home but I always seem to get distracted by something on TV or by my roommates or something of that nature. But when I come to the Biz its like all of the distractions are taken away and I can completely focus on what I am doing.

Shown above is the Pi Beta Phi sorority house. In 1958, 1701 Elm Avenue become the home to Pi Beta Phi and is where the house is currently located. In the 1980s, a new chapter room was added to the house and in the early 2000s a new bedroom wing was added. The houses large open living areas and sweeping lawn make it unique to any other sorority house on campus. The Chapter House Corporation works very hard for this house to stay in great condition and house 91 girls year after year.

The Pi Beta Phi sorority house has had a very positive effect on me. Pi Phi has been the source of many friendships that will last a lifetime. Despite the house being home to 90 girls, the classy décor feels very homey. The house is separated into many different rooms which all have unique purposes. The formal living room, shown above, is classy and elegant. The informal living room is less fancy and feels more laid back and a better place to relax. The kitchen is always filled with people chatting, either eating or studying. I love the classic, symmetric look of the exterior and the timeless white pillars. I also enjoy the classical windows with shutters.

Information retrieved from https://history.pibetaphi.org/chapters/oklahoma/oklahoma-alpha

The Village Church is the church that I grew up going to and have been attending for the majority of my life. I attend the location in Flower Mound which is led by lead pastor Matt Chandler, a well-known pastor not only in the state but nationwide. He and worship leader Michael Bleeker had a large impact on my life solely because they worked in this building and I got to experience them on a weekly basis here. I enjoyed coming here and made great memories with friends and family when I was in this church.

While I have been attending The Village for quite some time, we haven’t always gone to the same building every week. The church moved locations to expand and be more centralized in the town, and it worked out well. I have much greater memories in this church building due to time spent inside and around it as well as the recency bias of attending it for the latter years of my life so far.

The next building I choose was the physical science center. My only negative memory is genuinely just the long walk there as well as the fact that all my math classes were in there. I think the architecture is unique at OU, as it isn’t the typical red brick buildings we have all over campus. I would say it is not very aesthetically pleasing as it honestly just looks like a bunker, but then again, that is the design. This building can withstand up to either F4 or F3 tornados I am not 100% certain, so it makes sense why it is made up of different materials and goes so deep underground.