The Al Hamra Firdous Tower is an awesome skyscraper in Kuwait City, Kuwait. Designed by architectural firm Skidmore, Owings and Merrill (SOM Architects), the 77-story tower is the tallest building in Kuwait on completion in 2011 at 412.6 m! It’s height may not be all that impressive compared to a few other skyscrapers that have been showcased on this tumblr, but it’s absolutely stunning. The tower was completed late just last year, though work on some of the surrounding public areas continues. It turns out that even before completion, some observers compared the tower’s inspiring silhouette to a figure wrapped in a cloak or “adishdasha” (definitely struggled to pronounce that term)—the floor-length robe worn by Kuwaiti men. I, of course, was just perusing www.archrecord.com and stumbled upon this building, so definitely check out the website to see more info and design/conceptual pictures! Hope you enjoy the Skyscraper of the Month for May!!!!
Socially Aware Architecture
Hey, everyone! Please make sure to visit this website entitled “Socially Aware Architecture”. I haven’t been through all of it yet, but based on what I’ve seen thus far it’s INCREDIBLY LEGIT!!! Not only does it feature awesome structures that respond to the social and environmental issues that surround that particular structure’s location, but each and every building has pictures and text detailing the design process behind it, so it’s way more interesting than just reading some words. I love it, and it firmly explains what I believe architecture is—a response to the human condition. So, please go and visit…oh and follow it if you can. See ya’ around :)
I was just blog-hopping and came across this awesome rendering of a skyscraper that’s currently under construction in Seoul, South Korea. The Lotte Super Tower, wich began construction in April of 2011, will stand at approximately 556 m, and will be Korea’s tallest building by the year 2016 (when construction is projected to be completed). Like most other skyscrapers that have been featured on this site, Lotte Super Tower will serve as a mixed-use structure, allowing for high-income residents and visitors to live and work within and throughout the building. Enjoy April’s Skyscraper of the Month!!!
Holy moly! March’s Skyscraper of the Month is the ultimate contender! The soon-to-be tallest skyscraper in the world, Kingdom Tower, will be located in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. In August of 2011, Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Bin Abdulaziz Alsaud (whew, that’s a mouth-full) announced that by the year 2017 the Kingdom Tower would be the tallest building. It will, hopefully if nothing goes wrong, be at a towering 3,281 feet (with more than 200 floors)! That’s more than half a mile!
CTBUH Journal - International Journal of Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat
YES! So, right now I’m in my university’s Architecture Library and before I sat down at the computer, I stumbled upon greatness! Here, in my hands, right now, is a copy of a CTBUH (Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat) Journal. It’s the fourth issue of 2011, and I have never heard of it before. But as I flip through the pages, I can find nothing more than inspiration. They have written debates on whether or not skyscrapers are sustainable, sections featuring global news and a large variety of skyscrapers around the world, articles going in depth into the engineering and buildings processes that went into making specific skyscrapers, a slew of different case studies, and so much more (please visit the link; the website is great, too)! Have I died and gone to heaven?!?!
Alright, we’re on a roll here and I am seeing if I can bring us up to speed. I’ve been holding onto a slew of skyscraper ideas for the past couple of months, and I just want to make you all aware of them! So, Signature Towers, once known as Dancing Towers, designed by who other than the awe-inspiring talent of Zaha Hadid, is a mixed-use complex located in—where else—Dubai (where everyone seems to go if they want to do something architecturally mind-blowing/outlandish). The tallest tower stands at 350 m tall, so we’ve definitely seen taller ones here on Oatmeal+Skyscrapers, but I’m not hating. These structures were unveiled at an exhibition at the Guggenheim in New York in the summer of 2006, and is currently still in its proposal phase. No ground-breaking yet, but keep your fingers crossed! Enjoy February’s “skyscraper” of the month!
So, here we go everyone! The Crystal Church located in Orange County, California, and designed by architect Philip Johnson. I really was attracted to the prayer spire that is the more predominant of the two buildings that you see. Technically speaking, it’s not even a skyscraper, but I figured that I would break the rules just this one time simply because this building deserves showcasing! Anyway, even looking at the interior of the church (in the previous picture that I posted) you can see that this really is a massive space that does a fantastic job of playing with the light that the California sun provides. For more on the architecture of the building, you can visit the following link: http://www.crystalcathedral.org/about/architecture.php. Enjoy (oh, and btw, this is the Not-So-Skyscraper of the month for January)!
This is absolutely CRAZY!!! This is the inside of the Crystal Church in California. It is going to be the skyscraper of the month in my next pic for the month of January :P Yeah, I know, I have been gone for a wee while. School work calls! :)
Robert Moses v. Jane Jacobs; Rationalism meets advocacy planning.
Okay, so I actually took a Historic Preservation course last semester about the common man within the everyday American “environment”, and you better believe that Robert Moses and Jane Jacobs were two very intricate parts of our discussions through out the course. All I am going to say is that I do not approve of Robert Moses, but I’ll it up to you all to decide on who you prefer and what you believe. Enjoy!
(via humanscalecities)
Atrium House by MESH Architecture
