Beautiful buildings! I have written a bit about my love for architecture before. Did I tell you that as a kid in school, I admired the cover of my Social Studies book that showed the very modern buildings of the capital of Brazil and asked the teacher if we could write a letter to Brazil asking about them? I wonder what they thought when they received a letter from the 6th grade class from Conyers, Georgia? (I wasn't allowed to write the letter myself, the teacher asked a GUY to do so. Hey, that was okay. It was MY idea!)
Anyway, that was my first taste of architecture! Having only lived in small towns in Georgia, the first time I saw London in 1981...well, it was just breathtaking to me. Many of the buildings that I admired then are long gone... but many of them are still there, along with lots of modern edifices that seem to be from another world!
Sometimes, there will be a building that catches my eye that might be something very simple but it impresses me nonetheless.
(There, I haven't used the word "nonetheless" in ages. It is so old fashioned, that suits me just fine!)
I have given you two photos here...I hope you recognize the magnificent St. Paul's Cathedral, designed by Sir Christopher Wren and built in the early 1700's.
This next photo is also from London... Can you guess what it is?
Here is a name for you...Thomas Heatherwick. Have you seen photos of the building that he designed in New York City called "The Vessel"? It was opened in March of this year. It is just beside the Hudson River, it is a structure with 16 stories, 15 flights of stairs and 2500 steps. It looks very much like a honeycomb to me.
Thomas Heatherwick is an English designer and he has also designed buildings in England and in other parts of the world. You should really look at his buildings and structures...you may do so just here.
Amazing!
There, did you see that he designed the Olympic Cauldron for the 2012 London Olympics? Remember that one ? The one where the children lit all the different flames and each flame joined into one big flame? I loved that!
Also, he designed the East Beach Cafe in Littlehampton in East Sussex! It is a steel structure and the steel was allowed to rust to a lovely brown and then was fixed with a transparent oil. I find that fascinating!
(Getting a bit rusty myself, might be useful to fix myself with that oil! HA HA.)
The most beautiful building that is close to me is the Monastery. This was built by the monks themselves over a period of about 20 years and is made entirely of concrete. It is considered one of the most beautiful buildings ever constructed in that medium in our state.
What is one of the most beautiful buildings that you have ever seen? Do tell me! I would love to know.
1000 Trees in Shanghai. (Still under construction.)
Look at the video!
Kay, I love architect also. Our town has lost it's Catholic church due to a lightening strike that cause a great imbalance in the footing , so it was torn down. I am praying they build a new one of bricks and not one of those pole barn looking churches. LOL. Blessings, xoxo, Susie
ReplyDeleteSo sorry for loss of that church, hopefully we be built back with great beauty. Blessings to you and your Teddy bear! xxx
DeleteThe most beautiful building I have seen is the National Cathedral in Washington DC. The outside of the building is so full of character. When you step into the main chapel and see all those gorgeous stained glass windows you have to think to start breathing again. Then each of the smaller chapels is unique. It is quite a tour.
ReplyDeleteI have only seen photos of the National Cathedral in Washington, D.C. We have a friend who has lived there for the past 20 years and he sent me a birthday card once with the Cathedral photo on the front, and I kept it and taped it on my address book. I have seen the Cathedral for years by doing this! Maybe I will see it myself one day!
DeleteThere are so many breathtaking buildings in this world, and i've been blessed to see some of them.
ReplyDeleteNear here, there is the Old State Capitol, which you either love or hate. Many think it is gorgeous, Mark Twain said it was the ugliest building on the Mississippi River.
I looked it up! I can see Mark Twain's point, it does look like it is trying to be something that it isn't. Having said that, I have seen much worse!
DeleteFor some, it may be hard to look at a building objectively, and what they associate with it can make it ugly in their eyes, for instance if someone is negatively prejudiced against a certain religion, buildings that represent that religion will be ugly to them.
ReplyDeleteOr if one has been suffering for months in hospital, I guess they will not exactly find the building beautiful even if it may actually be an architectural gem.
I like it that you can look at buildings just for what they are - man-made constructions after a design, and some really great designs have come out of the minds of talented people all over the world.
Some of the most beautiful buildings I know are of course Ludwigsburg's three palaces, Ripon Cathedral and Ulm Minster. For modern buildings, I like the inside of Stuttgart Airport; the large, airy hall's glass and steel construction looks like trees.
I really love churches...whether it is the most magnificent cathedral or the simple white wooded churches from the rural counties of Georgia. I have only seen one airport that I thought was beautiful...it is the Denver Airport in Colorado. The Atlanta airport is considered the busiest, but beauty does not come into it! :-)
DeleteI knew you would say the palaces where you live!
Thanks for sharing all these beautiful buildings. We don't often hear about the designers. Although I did recognize the name Christopher Wren. I didn't know any of the others.
ReplyDeleteWe hope to see more of the the Christopher Wren churches when we are next in London!
DeleteIt just proves...the is no age limit on beauty.
ReplyDeleteThat includes those of my vintage, I hope! One can only dream - or kid themselves! :)
Absolutely! Do you want some of the oil to go on your rusty bits, Lee? I might be like the tin man from the Wizard of Oz! I guess you reminded me of Oz! :-)
DeleteI love looking at beautiful buildings.......Many in Budapest are my favorite, but there is certainly a world of man made giant art I've never seen. Thank you for pointing out some of it! An architect is an artist who has a sort of problem. He needs a large space and lots of funding to do the amazing designs in his head, to translate them into reality. You always give me new things to think about, Kay!
ReplyDeleteFunny you should say that about needing a lot of money...I also read that Thomas Heatherwick had planned to do a Green Bridge over the Thames, for pedestrians only, it would have been near Waterloo Bridge, but the funding fell through but not before a lot of money had been paid by the taxpayers OUCH! That is a shame on both counts- the bridge didn't get completed and money was wasted. Still, maybe one day!
DeleteAll of the cathedrals in Europe are beautiful. I liked the Vatican very much.
ReplyDeleteOh, the Vatican, I can only imagine what it would look like.
DeleteI simply love old buildings. I wonder sometimes with all the STUFF built these days if in 100 years people will stare at them and gaze like we do today of the buildings we love and admire.
ReplyDelete<3Rebecca
"If in 100 years"...that reminds me...when I first saw London in 1981, I kept admiring buildings and Richard would tell me , "Oh, that is only 100 years old!". Of course, for me the Victorian buildings were magnificent!
DeleteDear Kay, thank you for introducing me to Heatherwick. I've never seen any of his building/habitats/flights of fancy that stretch my mind. The monastery is also lovely. I lived in a convent for 8 1/2 years and part of the architecture for me was the pervasive calm of 150 years of prayer. Peace.
ReplyDeleteYou are so right about the atmosphere of the Monastery! It is a beautiful building, of course, and the county should appreciate it, but it is the serenity that you feel when you are there, the sense of decades of deep prayer is an amazing thing to be close to.
DeleteGlad you enjoyed learning about Thomas Heatherwick also!
DeleteEvery day is a school day when I read your posts, Kay. I had never heard of Thomas Heatherwick. I have now!
ReplyDeleteI hope you had a chance to look at his website, the Heatherwick Studio. I want to see the Coal Drops Yard in Kings Cross in London, it was designed by Thomas Heatherwick and just opened in October of 2018. Next time I am in London, I will try to get a picture of it and you will see it on this blog if I do!
DeleteThanks, Graham. You are a star student!