Book Mountain: MVRDV Designs Glass Pyramid Library
Reading enthusiasts in Spijkenisse, the Netherlands can climb spiraling towers of terraced bookcases beneath a shimmering glass pyramid to find new printed treasures. Architecture firm MVRDV has ...
Category: Public & Institutional
Civic structures shape cities – the best examples of institutional architecture stand out from the crowd and declare themselves as objects rather than infill. From sensational schools, colleges and universities to magnificent museums, theaters and opera halls, here are some buildings well worth viewing (and visiting should you ever find yourself in the relevant city!).
Ruined Renaissance Palace Gets Rusted Steel Addition
A rusted, L-shaped Corten steel volume replaces the missing corner of a crumbling Renaissance palace in the renovation of an ancient site in Pécs, Hungary. The contrast between the historic ...
Abandoned Walmart is Now America’s Largest 1-Floor Library
There are thousands of abandoned big box stores sitting empty all over America, including hundreds of former Walmart stores. With each store taking up enough space for 2.5 football fields, ...
Walk on the Wild (Out)side: 14 Stunning Exterior Staircases
Some are so steep they're nearly vertical. Some cantilever from a wall ten stories off the ground, with no handrail. Some lead to the roofs of houses, while others lead nowhere at all. These 14 ...
Floating Islands Add 100,000 Square Feet to Downtown Seoul
Many of the most densely-populated cities in the world reside along bodies of water, from canals and sounds to seas and oceans. Beyond merely extending solid ground, this three-island project ...
Gold Metal Architecture: Olympic Stadiums, 1896 – 2012
Over the last 116 years, Olympic stadiums have gone from sprawling marble structures made from ancient Greek ruins to strikingly illuminated bird's nest-shaped buildings. Designed by architects ...
Skateable Sculpture in France Glows in the Dark
Glowing an eerie green in the darkness, 'OTRO' is a new skate park in the sculpture garden of the International Center of Art and Landscape on Vassiviére Island in France. Designed by Koo ...
Underground Art: The Repurposed Oil Tanks at Tate Modern
Once a power station, now a repository for some of the world's most innovative art: the expansion of the Tate Modern art museum in London is repurposing industrial infrastructure in surprising ...
Celebratory Nanshan Marriage Registration Center Covered in Confetti
In the United States, the process of obtaining a marriage license - and even the subsequent wedding, should the bride and groom choose a civil ceremony - isn't exactly a glamorous affair. But in ...
Watching Wisely: 7 Owl-Shaped Japanese Police Stations
Never accuse Japan's police of not giving a hoot... they must be, since they're working in owl-shaped police stations! These seven Fukuro Koban (literally “Owl Police Boxes”) help put a ...
