Tuesday, September 25, 2012

Awe-Inspiring Architecture around the World - V.1

In the last 20 years architecture has been making a dramatic and sometimes surreal impression on the world’s landscape. Over the next few months our blog will celebrate some of the most inspiring creations from hotels for enotourism lovers to incredible modern-art museums. Here is our first pick:

Der Neue Zollhof

Considered one of Düsseldorf’s landmarks, Der Neue Zollhof (The New Zollhof) is situated in the Media Harbour, part of the redeveloped port of Düsseldorf, Germany. The building complex, consisting of three separate buildings, was designed by Canadian-American architect Frank O. Gehry and completed in 1998.

Floorplans and facades of all three buildings curve and lean. The tallest building is 14 stories high and just under 50m tall and each building has a different type of cladding - the outer two in white plaster and red brick respectively; the central building's stainless steel facade reflects material and shapes of its two neighbour buildings.

Culturally, Düsseldorf is known for its Academy of Fine Arts (notable artists who attended include Joseph Beuys, Gerhard Richter, Sigmar Polke, August Macke and Andreas Gursky). It is also known for its pioneering influence on electronic music (Kraftwerk), and its large Japanese community.