Marina Bay Sands Singapore

World Architecture News reports on the first of several casinos to soon be opening in Singapore.

Marina Bay Sands opens long-awaited SkyPark in flamboyant two-day ceremony

This Thursday saw part of Singapore’s newest mixed use development opened to the public in an extravagant ceremony across one of the world’s largest observation decks. Whilst the world must wait until later in the year for the completed building, the SkyPark, Event Plaza, shops, dining options and many nightlife offerings on the complex are now fully functional. Marina Bay Sands is a magnificent construction – a S$8bn development including a 2,560-room hotel, 120,000 sq m convention centre, The Shoppes mall, six restaurants, an Art and Science museum, two Sands Theatres, two floating pavilions and an 'atrium style' casino with 500 tables and 1,600 slot machines. The complex will be opened in 3-4 stages, with full completion on course for late 2010. Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the project’s developer Las Vegas Sands Corp, Mr. Sheldon G. Adelson, said: “The opening of the Sands SkyPark signifies an important milestone for Marina Bay Sands. This has been the single, most challenging engineering component of our unique integrated resort and to see it materialise is an incredibly proud moment for us. Marina Bay Sands along with its signature Sands SkyPark will be a truly impressive icon and we are excited to present this bold architecture to not only Singapore but to the rest of the world.”

Situated on Bayfront Avenue, across the water from Singapore's Central Business District, no expense has been spared in this luxurious design, where world-class dining will be supplied by Singaporean celebrity chef Justin Quek’s newest restaurant, Sky 57, and customers can gamble to their heart's content in the world's most expensive stand-alone casino, featuring four levels of gaming and entertainment under the light of a 7 tonne Swarovski chandelier.

The real gem of this exotic construction however is located in its crown. The three vertical 200m towers are topped with an extensive 9,941 sq m SkyPark, which totes a public observatory, jogging paths, gardens, restaurants and lounges. Basking in the limelight is a stunning 1,396 sq m infinity pool, from which guests at the hotel can enjoy the breathtaking views over the Singapore skyline. One of the world’s largest cantilevers (at 65m), the park can hold an impressive 3,900 people and is longer than the Eiffel Tower is tall. The park will be open to the public daily from 10am to 10pm.

Things haven’t always been so rosy onsite however, as the project failed to avoid the global economic crisis of recent months. Las Vegas Sands reportedly faced delays caused by labour shortages and escalating material costs, and had to delay projects elsewhere in the world in order to keep to strict deadlines. The issues didn’t stop once the first stages of the project were completed, as the first use of the conference centre – by The Inter-Pacific Bar Association – was marred by complaints of uncompleted facilities and a power cut during a speech. These mishaps found Marina Bay Sands suing the IPBA, after the firm refused to pay the S$300,000 previously agreed for use of facilities. In June, the IPBA counter-sued, complaining that its earlier payments had been imposed by ‘duress, fear and force’. Not off to a good start.

Regardless, things seem to be on the up for the delectable mixed-use development, as the June opening was deemed a full success. In line with its extreme architecture, the two-day event was topped off with a ‘World Championship Climb’, where 7 teams of 21 rock climbers scaled the shimmering glass façade of the building and 4,000 invited guests and customers were entertained with an evening concert. The SkyPark was officially opened at 2pm the following day.

Whilst one may consider this superb construction to have taken years of meticulous design, architect Moshe Safdie came on board the project with only four months left to the official Government-set deadline. Astonishingly, the Israeli architect managed to complete the 1,000,000 sq m design on time and to specification, commenting: “Singapore has invested a lot in this project, which is based in the most prominent site in Singapore. It’s right across downtown, and they set this up as a national project, they wrote very exacting terms of reference for the project. The idea was for it to have gardens on the ground, in the mid-level and in the sky, each serving another purpose and another function. All this together forms a project that is very integrated with nature and with green open spaces.”

Deserted Thonburi Temples

Visitors who enjoy visiting temples in Bangkok, but have seen all the familiar wats in the modern enclaves, may want to cross the river and explore the forgotten and largely abandoned temples of Thonburi. With the aid of a map from 1910, that's exactly what one enterprising professor has been doing the last few years. This Bangkok Post article didn't include a map, but the descriptions are good enough that you should be able to find most of the following temples. I'd advise hiring a tuk tuk and make a day of it.

Eleven deserted wats in Thon Buri reveal the history of communities from the early Ayutthaya period

Published: 14/03/2010 at 12:00 AM

With an adventurous spirit and love for his community, Prabhassara Chuvichean, a lecturer at Silpakorn University's Faculty of Archaeology, set out in search for deserted temples in Thon Buri. He was looking for artistic and archaeological evidence to confirm that temples in Thon Buri on the west bank of the Chao Phraya River are older than those on the east bank, the site of present-day Bangkok.

"It is clear that Thon Buri is the site of an ancient community that dates back several hundreds years to before Bangkok became the capital," Mr Prabhassara said.

He said the Chao Phraya River originally flowed northwards at this point, curved up towards present-day Taling Chan, then turned south and swirled towards Phra Pradaeng and Pak Nam. These areas are where ancient temples and communities were established.

"During my research, I found deserted temples located within the curves of the river and its satellite streams," said Mr Prabhassara, recounting field surveys he conducted in 2006 based on art historian Nor Na Pak Nam's paper, "Silpakam Nai Bangkok" (Art in Bangkok), which explored more than 100 ancient temples in Thon Buri in 1970. He also conducted a comparative study between earlier and the latest versions of maps. The Survey Department's most recent city map marks some temples as deserted, while maps made between 1905 and 1931 mark them as active temples with monks.

"Some deserted temples exist and bear new names, while there are traces of certain missing temples such as the bases of ubosot [ordination halls] and vihara [chapels]. In the end, I found 11 deserted temples in Thon Buri," he said.

The deserted temples are Wat Phoommarin Ratchapaksi, Wat Noi Thongyoo, Wat Suan Sawan, Wat Pikul Nai, Wat Angkula, Wat Kradang-nga, Wat Suwannakhiri, Wat Mai Wichian, Wat Viharn Luang Phor Khao, Wat See Bart and Wat Nak. Their ordination halls, chapels, Buddha images and ruins date from the late Ayutthaya to the early Bangkok period. The most outstanding evidence is a fragment of a red sandstone sema, a boundary marker, found at Wat Nak, a deserted temple on Rama II Road.

In 2006, Mr Prabhassara first explored Wat Phoommarin Ratchapaksi at the mouth of the Bangkok Noi canal near the foot of the Phra Pin Klao Bridge. This temple was merged into Wat Dusidaram during the reign of King Rama VI when only one monk remained there. Its name is stated on a map made in 1910 but it is omitted from the latest version. However, there is evidence to prove its existence.

The temple's ubosoth and vihara remain in place. Their curvy shape reflects the Ayutthaya style. Decorated with stucco art, their roofs, windows and doors are still in excellent condition. The stucco detailing above the entrances are extraordinary.

One of the ubosoth features a peacock fully spreading its wings. Above the chapel's front entrance is a depiction of the god Vishnu riding his garuda. Murals on the interior walls of both buildings feature rows of angels. Their colours are mostly faded. Between both buildings stands a hor trai (dharma library). Behind one of the buildings is a large standing Buddha statue.

Another temple, Wat Noi Thongyoo, was also merged into Wat Dusidaram in 1945 after being destroyed by a bomb blast during World War Two.

"After some exploration, I found a pagoda with five broken tops, north of Wat Dusidaram School near a bus garage at the foot of the Phra Pin Klao Bridge. I believe this is the former site of Wat Noi Thongyoo as it is quite far from Wat Dusidaram. This pagoda is in the early Bangkok period architecture," the archaeologist said.

Later, Mr Prabhassara honed his search for Wat Suan Sawan by using the 1910 map, which indicated it to be behind Wat Kharuehabodi in Bang Phat, opposite Thewes pier.

"First, I thought there would be nothing left. But after walking through the alleyways under Rama VIII Bridge, I saw an alley named Suan Sawan. In there stood Wat Suan Sawan's deteriorating ubosoth," he recalled.

Despite its rotten wooden components, the tiled roof of this ubosoth sports intact stucco art depicting the story of Phra Malai, a monk who visited heaven and spoke with the god Indra. The backdrop is Chedi Chulamanee.

Inside the ubosoth stands the image of the Lord Buddha and some of his followers. The presiding Buddha statue, named Luang Phor Dam, is covered in black lacquer. Behind it are two small windows. The side walls are in the shape of a lotus petal placed upwards, which is similar to the art of the late Ayutthaya period after the reign of King Narai. The ceiling is painted in red and adorned with gold stars. The rarest elements are the granite sema, which were cut and curved to fit each corner of the ubosoth. Two tall Phra Prang-style pagodas, one of which is now in the compound of a house, reflect Bangkok period art.

Mr Prabhassara then looked for the location of Wat Pikul Nai in Bang Bamru, according to the 1910 map. Near the Bang Bamru railway station and the south-bound railroad, he came across a Thai-style pavilion with a sign, "Luang Phor Yai". Inside it are several Buddha statues from the Ayutthaya period. The chairing Buddha statue named Luang Phor Yai is positioned in the mara vichai (subduing Mara) posture. Despite being covered in gold lacquer, it is very likely to be made of sandstone. Behind its base lies a small sema from the late Ayutthaya to early Bangkok period. There are also broken pieces of red bricks dating to the Ayutthaya period. The location of this pavilion matches that of Wat Pikul Nai, which is believed to have been deserted after the construction of the railroad.

While travelling along the Bang Ramat canal in Taling Chan, Mr Prabhassara spotted a sign, "Wat Angkula Rang" (deserted Angkula temple), near Wat Chang Lek. There, a base of what he believes to be an ubosoth as well as an Ayutthaya-style Buddha image named Luang Phor Dam remains. Scattered roof tiles lying nearby date from the middle to late Ayutthaya period.

The archaeologist also tried to find another deserted temple named Wat Kradang-nga. The map of 1910 refers to Wat Kradang-nga as a deserted temple, west of Wat Champa along the Bang Ramat canal. He found no trace, but met a woman who said her house was built during World War II on a plot of land which used to be part of Wat Kradang-nga.

The next temple on the search list was Wat Wichian, or Wat Mai Wichian. It was supposed to be near Tha Phra intersection in Bangkok Yai. Mr Prabhassara walked into nearby fruit orchards and finally saw this temple behind Wat Ratchasittharam. It is no longer a deserted temple as some monks have moved in. However, there is only one vihara left there. Inside the chapel lies a Buddha image, set in the reclining position. His face looks like that of a puppet, in the art style of the early Bangkok period.

Mr Prabhassara later explored the banks of the Bang Chak canal where many temples, including Wat Sala See Na, Wat Bosth, Wat Kampaeng and Wat Thong once stood, according to the map of 1910. He finally found a deserted temple named Wat Suwannakhiri in the compound of the Sutham Suksa School. Now, it is just a religious pavilion with a seated Buddha image dating back to the Ayutthaya period inside. Above its entrance is a sign saying "Suwannakhiri". One of the school owners said this pavilion was the only thing left when her grandfather built this school there.

On another day, Mr Prabhassara started his exploration at Wat Sing on Rama II Road and strolled along the Dan canal. Eventually, he spotted a deserted temple whose real name is unknown. It is called Viharn Luang Phor Khao. Inside the pavilion is a white image of Buddha.

After that, he searched for Wat See Bart, opposite Wat Kok, according to the 1910 map. From Wat Kok, he crossed the Dan canal and found an old structure beneath a new building. Inside this chapel is a Buddha statue called Luang Phor Phet.

It is covered with thick layers of gold leaves. Nor Na Pak Nam called this temple Wat Nak like some people did. He wrote: "There is nothing left but the ruins of Phra Ubosoth on a high mound like those at Wat Kampaeng. The front section of this roofless ubosoth has all collapsed. Remaining there is only a large Buddha image believed to date to the late Ayutthaya period. His face is long and his lap is five-sok [an ancient Thai measurement equivalent to about 50cm] wide. A few headless sandstone Buddha statues were also found scattered on the ground. So was a medium-sized terracotta or red sandstone sema. It is half a sok in height and dates to the late Ayutthaya period, around the reign of King Thai Sra."

As the real Wat Nak is elsewhere, Mr Prabhassara walked further, crossed the Dan canal and entered a community. Behind a house stands a brick building covering the deserted Wat Nak's old ubosoth. In there is a large seated Buddha image named Luang Phor Daeng with a square face and an Ayutthaya-style head. This image is probably made of red sandstone, but it is painted red now.

At Wat Nak, Mr Prabhassara discovered a fragment of a sandstone sema dating to more than 500 years ago. This sema depicts a flora design within a series of triangular and rhombus-shaped frames and an eight-petal flower design on the sides of the base.

"As its art style belongs to the early and middle Ayutthaya period, this sema is considered the oldest artifact discovered in the area," Mr Prabhassara said.

The discovery of the sema also supports the fact that the Dan canal was used by ancient people as a transportation route to the sea during the early and middle Ayutthaya periods, as stated in the Kamsuan Samut, a classical piece of prose written in the Ayutthaya period.

The Dan canal connects the old Chao Phraya River, which is now the Bang Luang canal or the Bangkok Yai canal, and flows southwest to the Tha Cheen River in Samut Sakhon, according to Sujit Wongthes's book, Maenam Lamkhlong Sai Prawattisart.

"The presence of the sema supports the theory that, since the early Ayutthaya period, there must have been communities along this route which linked the Chao Phraya River to other places including Ratchaburi, Phetchaburi, Marid and Tanao Sri. This confirms the Dan canal has long been used since ancient times," Mr Prabhassara said.

The lecturer concluded that many pieces of artistic and archaeological evidence discovered at these deserted temples in Thon Buri delve into the long history of communities on the west bank of the Chao Phraya River. Unfortunately, these temples are now in decay and under natural and human threat, especially the expansion of Bangkok's suburbs.

"The temples, art works and surroundings prove the importance of Thon Buri. However, the rapid changes being made to the area are of serious concern. Condos are mushrooming. Each new road comes at the cost of pagodas. Development is necessary, but we can move slowly and encourage locals to be proud of their communities, heritage and history," Mr Prabhassara said.

Burj Dubai Night Photos

I've been waiting for some original photos of the Dubai Tower, and finally found something new. The Burj Dubai photos taken at night. If I find a link to yesterday's parasail jump, I'll add it here.

A Video about Art and Architecture

The Third & The Seventh from Alex Roman on Vimeo.

A phenom video about the intersection of art and architecture. Trust me, you really should watch this video. Wonderful.

Here's how it was made:

Compositing Breakdown (T&S) from Alex Roman on Vimeo.

Villa Amanzi in Phuket

As World Architecture News puts it: not a bad place to crash in Phuket.

Villa Amanzi grows out of the rocks overlooking the Andaman sea in Phuket
Nestled in a cascading, west-facing ravine with a dramatic slab of rock defining the northern edge and a stunning outlook over the azure blue of the Andaman Sea to the south, Original Vision's commission; to do this demanding but ultimately spectacular site justice, was both daunting and exciting.

The defining elements are the rock and the view. They dominate at every juncture. They resonate on first approach, through the migration from public to private space, in the living and in the family areas, in the gardens, in the bedrooms; and they continue to command respect down the tropical jungle steps that arrive at a secluded rock platform, flanked by the same seam that welcomed you 60m above. Constant reference to these elements instills a feeling of solidity that contrasts with the openness of the house, reinforcing the dynamism and vibrancy that pays homage to the magic of the location.

The home grows out from the rock; the bedroom element rests between it and the wing that strikes the perpendicular, rising vertically from the slope. This composition defines the open living and dining space that is simply a transition between two garden areas. It is intimate but open and the uninterrupted clear span creates a bridge under which the conventions defining indoor space disappear.

Cantilevered over a massage sala, the swimming pool completes the composition. It is the focal point that draws the eye to the view and instills a calmness that provides balance with the energy of the architecture.

Video from the Top of Burj Dubai

Video taken at the top of Burj Dubai, the world's tallest building.

New BMW Museum in Munich

I so want to go to this museum. World Architecture News has the details.

The BMW Museum had to be integrated into the existing structural fabric of the company’s headquarters in Munich. The task was to interpret the historic 'Museum Bowl' anew and lead its design into the 21st century. The original qualities of the previous museum had to be maintained, making it suitable for temporary exhibitions and uniting it with a new permanent exhibition area.

The concept follows the key terms 'extension' and 'dynamisation'. The west wing of the headquarters was gutted and developed into an exhibition area; the 'Museum Bowl' was architecturally connected to it and staged as an epilogue with the 'Visual Symphony', a 360-degree display. The basic theme of the Bowl, 'continuation of the street in enclosed space' (Karl Schwanzer), is conceived as a principle of a dynamic architecture and finds its continuation in an urban spatial experience. A ramp system symbolises mobility. It takes on a key function as a formed and forming element.

World's 2nd Tallest Tower Starts in Seoul (Part 2)

What is this, some sort of joke from twisted architects? Last week I reported via World Architecture News that the 2nd tallest tower in the world had started construction, called the Digital Media Tower. Today, I see a report about another structure called the Lotte Super Tower 123. Both are located in Seoul, and according to the illustrations provided, are completely different buildings. Either somebody is lying, in a state of delusion, or we are seeing proof of architectural megalomania.

Inhabitat has the details, which are convincing and completely different from the other building. So what is going on?

A new super skyscraper has just been announced for South Korea and will tower over all other buildings in Asia when it is complete in 2014. From a global perspective, Lotte Super Tower 123, designed by Kohn Pederson Fox, falls just short of taking the title, and will be not the tallest but the second tallest skyscraper in the world. The structure will serve as the new corporate headquarters for the Lotte Group, whose subsidiary, Lotte Construction, will build it. Zoning has been approved and excavation is nearly complete. With aims towards LEED silver certification, the tower will have a strong environmental component and will offer Seoulians mixed-use areas such as shops, apartments, offices and a hotel.

To be built in the southern Jamsil section of the city near the Han River, the Super Lotte Tower will sit next to a key transportation hub, efficiently bringing in commuters as well as tourists eager to see the new attraction. Mixed-use development was a key element in the design, and the vertical city will include public transport connectors, retail and residential space, offices, a hotel, an observation deck, and other public areas. Exact details on the sustainable design elements of the structure have not been released, but the firm is aiming for LEED certification, which will hopefully by that time include building performance monitoring to ensure energy savings.

Kohn Pederson Fox, who is also responsible for the new eco-district Songdo IBD, is well known for designing super structures – especially in Asia. US architecture firms like KPF have been looking abroad for design work and have managed to stay afloat with contracts developing regions in Asia as well as the Middle East.

World's 2nd Tallest Tower Starts in Seoul

It won't conpete with the Burj Dubai, but the world's 2nd tallest tower has broken ground with an expected completion date in 2015, as reported by World Architecture News.

At 640 m high, Digital Media City Landmark tower in Seoul, South Korea will be around 180m shorter than the Burj Dubai, but it is projected to be the second tallest building in the world when it completes in April 2015. Having broken ground this week, the Samoo-designed tower costing 3.3 trillion won (€1.9billion), will now rise 133 floors in height.

The Landmark is to be the visual 'light' for what could be the most technologically advanced district in the world, Digital Media Centre (DMC) which is becoming home to over 2000 companies and 121,000 staff.

Following a masterplan which completed in 2000, DMC is being constructed on the last pocket of undeveloped land in the South Korean capital, adjacent to the World Cup Stadium used in 2002. The programme is creating a city within a city where all things digital, from music to animation to computing companies, are accommodated. The Mayor of Seoul Oh Se-hoon regards the development as a place where the possibilities are 'limitless': "We believe that Digital Media City will generate the ideas via which the full potential of digital media's application to every aspect of business, personal and community life wil be realized: a crucible of innovation.

Proposed Singapore Housing Complex

It looks like a very bad idea, but some architectural design group has proposed this ridiculous housing complex somewhere far up in the hills above Singapore.
Asian Off Beat provides more details, which makes this fantasy almost seem real.

This is an intriguing interlace residential complex in Singapore, by Ole Scheeren of architecture firm OMA. A complex of interconnected apartment buildings stacked in an innovative hexagonal arrangement.

The Interlace is located on an elevated eight-hectare site, bounded by Alexandra Road and the Ayer Rajah Expressway, amidst the verdant Southern Ridges of Singapore. With about 170,000m2 of gross floor area, the development will provide 1,040 apartment units of varying sizes with extensive outdoor spaces and landscaping. The site completes a green belt that stretches between Kent Ridge, Telok Blangah Hill and Mount Faber Parks.

Ole Scheeren said: "The design addresses concerns of shared space and social needs in a contemporary society and simultaneously responds to issues of shared living and individuality by offering a multiplicity of indoor/outdoor spaces specific to the tropical context."

7 Abandonded Wonders of Asia

WebUrbanist posts a fascinating collection of abandoned hotels, casinos and amusement parks in Asia, along with eerie photos and helpful text.

Abandoned buildings, properties and places take on remarkably different aesthetic character and are treated differently from one culture to the next – particularly in Asian nations where beliefs about the cultural role of architecture or the whims of a dictator can vary greatly. From South Korea to North Korea, Cambodia to Thailand and Azerbaijan to Hong Kong here are seven amazing oriental and subcontinental abandonments from the Near East to the Far East, from skyscraper hotels and pod cities to shopping malls and amusement parks and everything in between.

North Korea Hotel Makeover

I guess it had to happen. After years of ridicule, the Ryugyong Hotel in North Korea has been madeover with a shiny new glass facade on one side. The Sydney Morning Herald reports on the makeover, though no one expects this architectural monstrosity to every open.

A towering North Korean hotel which Esquire magazine once dubbed "the worst building in the history of mankind" has come back to life with a facade of shiny glass windows affixed to one side of the concrete monolith.

But few expect the North will ever finish construction of its 105-storey Ryugyong Hotel, started in 1987 and halted for 16 years because it could have bankrupted the destitute state.

"The hotel doesn't look as shoddy as it once did, probably because of the reflective glass," said a member of a civic group in South Korea that recently returned from a visit to the North.

The 330-metre tall hotel dominating the Pyongyang skyline consists of three wings rising at 75 degree angles capped by several floors arranged in rings supposed to hold five revolving restaurants and an observation deck.

Foreign residents of Pyongyang contacted in Seoul said Egypt's Orascom group began renovations last year.

The peak of the 3000-room hotel, in a country that permits few foreigners to visit, is encircled in new rings of shiny steel. Mirrored glass has yet to be affixed to the other sides of the muddish-grey concrete structure, foreigner visitors said.

"North Koreans told me that you put the glass on one side and if all goes well and looks fine, you then continue on to the others," the civic group member said.

Analysts said the North was likely sprucing up the Ryugyong's facade as part of a campaign to try to turn the state into a "great and prosperous nation" by 2012.

The communist North started construction in a suspected fit of jealousy at South Korea, which was about to host the 1988 Summer Olympics and show off to the world the success of its rapidly developing economy.

But by 1992, worked was halted. The North's main benefactor the Soviet Union had dissolved the previous year and funding for the hotel dried up.

As the North's economy took a deeper turn for the worse in the 1990s, the empty shell became a symbol of the country's failure, earning the nicknames "Hotel of Doom" and "Phantom Hotel."

For a time, the North airbrushed images of the Ryugyong Hotel from photographs.

Architects said there were questions raised about whether the hotel, which has never opened for guests, was structurally sound and a few believed completing the building could cause it to collapse.

Estimates published in South Korean have put the costs of completing the hotel and making it structurally sound at as much as US$2 billion (A$2.34 billion), more than 10 per cent of the North's yearly gross domestic product.

Kazakhstan Library as Mobius Strip

Kazakhstan? Seems the former Russian state has enough oil money to indulge in some architectural fantasies such as the library above. Mobius strip? I only remember Escher on that one.

Inhabit (a new one to me) has some details on this intriguing structure.

The building itself is a complicated juxtaposition of different ideas and concepts. It forms a spiraling circle around a strong vertical core that allows visitors to the library to move between floors. The museum’s curves form a möbius strip, so the interior becomes the exterior and back again; likewise the walls become the roof and the roof transforms back into the walls. The interior corridors are naturally daylit through geometric openings in the exterior shell, creating beautifully lit spaces perfect for reading.

To minimize cooling loads on the library, BIG Architects employed some advanced computer modeling to calculate the thermal exposure on the building envelope. Because of the warping and twisting of the exterior, some parts of the building receive more light than others. By taking that information, BIG was able to create a geometric pattern or “ecological ornament” to regulate the solar impact.
The new library will be located in the center of Astana with views of the entire city. All segments of the community will be served by the library, which is open for meetings, cultural events, and historical record keeping in hopes of further developing the country. Outside a park showcases the native plants and geology of the country. Visitors will be able to experience various trees, plants, rocks and minerals taken from all over the country, so they can see how diverse their native landscape.

UPDATE: I received this message a few days ago concerning the true architectural source of this building:

Regarding your article at http://friskodude.blogspot.com/2009/08/kazakstan-library-as-mobius-strip.html. Please note that BIG Architects plagiarized the design. The design was registered in the United States by Anwar Al-Mallah in 2003. BIG Architects submitted and won a prize for copyrighted work they shamelessly stole and presented as their own. Type “Mobius Building Anwar” in Google and see page 5 of the article at “ftp://ftp.formz.com/pub/formz/PDF_files/eCAADe_paper.pdf.” then you’ll see who the real Mobius Building designer is, or visit the U.S Copyright office and search for Mobius Building.

J. Spinweb

Bangkok's Tallest Building -- Mahanakhon

Not everybody is thrilled with this tower, but if the project goes through, this will be Bangkok's tallest structure within a few years. World Architecture News has the details.

Super sized tower will be Bangkok's tallest

Construction is set to start on MahaNakhon, a 77 storey urban oasis set to become Bangkok’s tallest building. Having recently completed Beijing’s CCTV Tower, widely considered among the world’s most imaginative contemporary architectural feats, acclaimed German architect Ole Scheeren, Partner, Office for Metropolitan Architecture (OMA) has conceived his first skyscraper: MahaNakhon. The dazzling, pixelated 77-storey tower will be the tallest building in Thailand’s capital, home to a lush urban oasis with public gardens and a major transportation hub, luxury retail, residences, a new public square, and a five-star hotel created by New York’s Ian Schrager.

The top of the 1.6 million sq ft project MahaNakhon tower houses a three-floor Sky Bar and restaurant with dramatic double-height spaces and a rooftop outdoor bar with 360° views of the skyline and river, floating 310 meters above the city.

MahaNakhon translated as ‘great metropolis’ dismantles the typical tower and podium typology to render not a tower in isolation but instead a skyscraper that melds with the city by gradually ‘dissolving’ the mass as it moves vertically between ground and sky.

Its glittering stacked surfaces, terraces and protrusions will simultaneously create the impression of digital pixelation and echo the irregularity of ancient mountain topography whilst producing unparalleled views across the city.

The tower is scheduled to complete in 2012.

Three Kings Hotel in China

A monument to Bad Taste, this Chinese hotel features a suite in the orange in the hand of the left god. Go ahead, take a chance, live in an orange in a hotel perhaps on the brink of collapse from ridicule.

To begin, this incredible hotel seems to have a few different names depending on what you read, as far as I can tell it has been known as: Tianzi Hotel, The Emperor Hotel, Son Of Heaven Hotel, and, in Chinese, 天子大酒.

The hotel is located in Hebei Province and according to Chinese architecture blog CAIP it was built some time around 2000/2001, The building is 10 storeys/41.6m high and was designed to represent Fu Lu Shou (good fortune, prosperity and longevity). The blog also points out that the hotel won a Guiness World Record for being the world's 'biggest image building'. Largest mimetic building perhaps?

World Games Stadium in Kaohsiung Taiwan

The New York Times reports on a new sports stadium opening this week in Kaohsiung Taiwan to host the World Games, honoring all those lesser sports that don't show up in the Olympics. What a beauty, IMHO the most stunning stadium in the world.

Designed by the Japanese architect Toyo Ito, the World Games’ main stadium, which will be unveiled at an opening ceremony here on Thursday, is shaped by a sensitivity to those conflicting sensations. It is not only magnetic architecture, it is also a remarkably humane environment, something you rarely find in a structure of this size.

The World Games, which have international sports competitions not included in the Olympics, don’t attract as much attention as those more famous games, and there has been considerably less buzz about Mr. Ito’s stadium than there was about the Bird’s Nest, the lavish Olympic Stadium by Herzog & de Meuron that opened in Beijing last year. Nor does it have the same symbolic ambitions.

Yet for those who have been privileged enough to see Mr. Ito’s creation, the experience is just as intoxicating. Clad in a band of interwoven white pipes, the structure resembles a python just beginning to coil around its prey, its tail tapering off to frame one side of an entry plaza. Unlike the Bird’s Nest it unfolds slowly to the visitor and is as much about connecting — physically and metaphorically — with the public spaces around it as it is about the intensity of a self-contained event.

The stadium, with more than 40,000 seats, is surrounded by a vast new public park, its grounds sprinkled with palm trees and tropical plants. Most of the trees are young, but in a few years, when they are fully grown, they should create the impression that the structure is being swallowed by a dense tropical forest. In essence the coiled form becomes a tool for weaving together opposing energies: the concentrated intensity of the stadium on the one hand, the plaza’s chaotic social exchanges on the other, the unruly forest all around. What brings the design to life is that Mr. Ito is able to convey this experience physically, not just visually.

Abu Dhabi Tower Gate Hotel

Not to be left in the dust of Dubai, Abu Dhabi is constructing an amazing leaning hotel, now about 50 percent completed.

Capital Gate climbing in Abu Dhabi

A symbol of engineering prowess, the Capital Gate tower hotel is starting to take form in Abu Dhabi. Designed as the most inclined tower in the world, the 35 storey, gravity-defying feature tower will lean westward 18 degrees, 4 times as far as the Leaning Tower of Pisa which currently leans 3.97 degrees.

Designed by RMJM, the tower relies on a diagrid exoskeleton constructed on top of a 7-foot-deep concrete base to hold the structure in place. 490 piles that have been drilled 100 feet underground will hold the structure still accommodating the gravitational, wind and seismic pressures caused by the lean of the building.

The halfway point is marked by the construction of a tea lounge and swimming pool suspended 263 feet above the ground on the 17th and 18th floors, above a gigantic internal atrium and halfway up the 35-story, 525-foot tall tower. Tony Archibold, RMJM Project Director, added: “Passing the half-way point in development is a great success and we are now entering a critical period in Capital Gate’s development. While we are facing some of our toughest architectural challenges, it is also the beginning of the most exciting stage as the structure takes shape.”

“When complete, Capital Gate will be a modern day icon for Abu Dhabi, recognizable throughout the world. Capital Gate is not about being the biggest or the tallest, it is about advanced technical ingenuity and aesthetic splendor,” said Simon Horgan, ADNEC Group CEO. “This is one of the most challenging buildings under construction in the world at the moment but due to the partnership between ADNEC, RMJM and all contractors on the project, ground breaking solutions are being designed on a daily basis.”

World Architecture News