Vitruvius ( The first-ever architect) described architecture as an amalgamation of three things, Strength, functionality, and beauty. Throughout the years of advancement, architecture has become complicated and beautiful. Buildings have always been used to make a statement, right from the Pyramids, Taj Mahal to the more recent Burj Khalifa. These buildings have become an icon. Here is a list of buildings that are nothing short of art
1. Barcelona Pavilion
This building designed by Mies Van der Rohe was in the display of architecture’s modern movement to the world. Originally named the German Pavilion, the pavilion was the face of Germany after WWI, emulating the nation’s progressively modern culture that was still rooted in its classical history. Its elegant and sleek design combined with rich natural material presented Mies’ Barcelona Pavilion as a bridge into his future career, as well as architectural modernism.
2. Jewish Museum
The Jewish Museum Berlin was opened in 2001 and is the largest Jewish museum in Europe. It consists of three buildings, two of which are new additions specifically built for the museum by architect Daniel Libeskind. German-Jewish history is documented in the collections, the library and the archive, and is reflected in the museum’s program of events. The museum is one of Germany’s most frequented museums. This museum uses architecture to make the visitors feel the discomfort of the Jews during WW2 times.
3. Pantheon
The Pantheon in Rome has become a destination not only for tourists and filmmakers, but also for architects, designers, and artists from around the world. Its geometry has been measured and its building methods have been studied, as explained in this photographic tour. This is the first building that uses concrete to this extent. Its magnificent dome is a lasting testimony to the genius of Roman architects and as the building stands virtually intact it offers a unique opportunity for the modern visitor to step back 2,000 years and experience the glory that was Rome.
4. Humayun’s Tomb
This is biggest and the most notable Mughal building to be constructed in India. Built-in 1564 A.D. by Haji Begum, wife of Emperor Humayun, eight years after his death in Delhi.The architect was a Persian by the name Mirak Mirza Ghiyas. The mausoleum is placed in a spacious square park. This building is hands down one of the most beautiful buildings ever constructed.
5. Habitat 67
This beautifully designed building by Moshe Safdie. This was originally intended as an experimental solution for high-quality housing in dense urban environments. Safdie explored the possibilities of prefabricated modular units to reduce housing costs and allow for a new housing typology that could integrate the qualities of a suburban home into an urban high-rise. Reflecting on the project’s significance in “A look back at habitat ’67” Safdie stated that “Habitat ‘67 is really two ideas in one. One is about prefabrication, and the other is about rethinking apartment-building design in the new paradigm.”
6. Guggenheim Museum
Designed by Canadian American architect Frank Gehry, the Guggenheim Museum Bilbao building represents a magnificent example of the most groundbreaking 20th-century architecture. The Museum represents an architectural landmark of audacious configuration and innovating design, providing a seductive backdrop for the art exhibited in it.
7. Gardens By The Bay, Singapore
Gardens by the Bay is one of the largest garden projects of its kind in the world. Located on reclaimed land in Singapore’s new downtown at Marina Bay, the site will provide a unique leisure destination for local and international visitors. Designed by Grant associates that use greenery to this extent.
8. Metropol Parasol, Seville, Spain
Architects J Mayer H has completed a giant latticed timber canopy as part of their redevelopment of the Plaza de la Encarnacíon in Seville, Spain. The Metropol Parasol scheme includes an archaeological museum, a farmers market, an elevated plaza, and bars and restaurants, all contained beneath and within the parasol structure.
9. Notre Dame De Paris
Notre-Dame de Paris, also called Notre-Dame Cathedral, cathedral church in Paris. It is the most famous of the Gothic cathedrals of the Middle Ages and is distinguished for its size, antiquity, and architectural interest.
10. Angkor Wat
Angkor Wat is the prime example of the classical style of Khmer architecture—the Angkor Wat style—to which it has given its name. By the 12th century Khmer architects had become skilled and confident in the use of sandstone (rather than brick or laterite) as the main building material.
11. Semperoper
The Semperoper is the opera house of the Saxon State Opera Dresden (German: Sächsische Staatsoper Dresden) and the concert hall of the Sächsische Staatskapelle Dresden in Dresden, Germany. It was first built in 1841, by architect Gottfried Semper. The building style itself is debated among many, as it has features that appear in the Early Renaissance style, Baroque and even features Corinthian style pillars typical of classical Greece (classical revival).
12. Hohenzollern Castle
The third, and current, castle was built between 1846 and 1867 as a family memorial by Hohenzollern scion King Frederick William IV of Prussia. Architect Friedrich August Stüler based his design on English Gothic Revival architecture and the Châteaux of the Loire Valley.
13. Falling Water
This beautiful structure by Frank Llyod Wright has become an icon for architects all over the world. The house was built as a weekend home for owners Mr. Edgar Kaufmann, his wife, and their son, whom he developed a friendship with through their son who was studying at Wright’s school, the Taliesin Fellowship. The waterfall had been the family’s retreat for fifteen years and when they commissioned Wright to design the house they envisioned one across from the waterfall so that they could have it in their view. Instead, Wright integrated the design of the house with the waterfall itself, placing it right on top of it to make it a part of the Kaufmanns’ lives.
