The Khalifa Architects

The Burj Khalifa is the worlds tallest building, standing at 829.8m and has a total of 163 floors, due to the shape of the building the top 20 (ish) floors can not be used as the building actually wobbles in the wind. There were 4 architects that designed this building – Adrian Smith, William F. Baker, George J. Efstathiou and Marshall Strabala – All architects are American however have worked in destinations all over the world, including other UAE states, Europe, USA and Asia.

The Burj is the first man made, free standing building to ever successfully be built and finished. It stands alone in the middle of Dubai and although surrounded by other buildings that are still standing at an average of 300m, the Burj can be seen from 60 miles away. As the sun is setting it can be viewed over and over as you chase the sun to horizon as you go up the levels.

I particularly like the look of this building because it has an usual style and is in no way typical of arabic style, it really shows the development of the city and also as it is a record breaking height there are thousands of photographs of this building.

Simon Kennedy

Simon Kennedy is a London based photographer who photographs specialising in architecture and interiors.

Simon has worked with architects, engineers, developers designers, artists, journalists ad visualisation companies to produce ironic architectural images and videos

His photographic vision developed in a unique way. Simon spent years working as a qualified architect combined with teaching post-graduate architectural studies at The Bartlett School of Architecture. Teaching has obviously given him a larger understanding of architecture which has made it better for him to photograph.

Sebastian Weiss architecture – Neave

Fascinated by architecture, photography and mobile technology, Sebastian Weiss abstracts urban shapes and models a new uniqueness by underlining their clear forms and structures.

German born photographer Sebastian Weiss career has taken a few creative turns. Originally studying Constructional Engineering at Technical University of Dresden, Sebastian then went on to further his studies at University of the Arts in Berlin, focusing on technology and design. This then set him on the path as a designer within advertising and design agencies.

When asked about what he looks for in a building, Sebastian said that “of course every building fulfils an intended purpose, as people live, work or study there, they do some sports, make music, relax, or they go shopping in there. The designated purpose of a building determines considerably the design of it.”

“But I in contrast don’t want to emphasize these functional benefits and advantages of a building, like the property developer might expect from an architectural photographer. I try to elaborate the aesthetic beauty and subtleties of constructive details, which often remain hidden to us in everyday life.”

“However, these details significantly define the appearance of our environment and represent a sort of city’s alphabet to me, which I want to explore in my pictures.”

http://photographyblogger.net/an-interview-with-sebastian-weiss-about-architecture-instagram-success/

 

Michael Graves/ Matt E

Michael Graves (1934 –2015) was an American architect. Identified as one of New York five,as well as Memphis group, Graves was known first for his contemporary building designs and some prominent public commissions that became iconic examples of Postmodernism , such as the Portland building and the Denver public library.

Early in his career, Graves was, along with four other architects was part of the New York five ,a group of New York City architects who dealt with the pure form of modernism. Graves spent much of the 1970s designing modernist residences in his later work Graves shifted away from modernism toward postmodernism and new urbanism. One of his most famous works, the Portland building, which opened in 1982, is regarded as the first major built example of Postmodernist architecture  .

Zaha Hadid

Zaha Hadid was born on 31st October 1950. In 2004 she became the first woman to get the Pritzker Architecture Prize. After that, receiving the Stirling Prize in 2010 and 2011. In 2015 she was the first woman to be awarded the RIBA Gold Medal. Hadid’s buildings are always Neo-futuristic. She describes her buildings as “powerful, curving forms with elongated structures” and “multiple perspective points and fragmented geometry to evoke the chaos of modern life”

Hadid designed the Heydar Aliyev Cultural Centre in Baku, Azerbaijan. Construction started in 2007 and was completed in 2010. This building won her the Museum Design of the Year award. She was the first woman to win the top prize in this competition. The building was named after Heydar Aliyev, the leader of Soviet Azerbaijan from 1969 to 1982, and president of Azerbaijan from October 1993 to October 2003. The building includes a conference hall (auditorium), a gallery hall and a museum. 

– Katie Graham

Frank Gehry -Robyn Holtzhausen

Frank Gehry was born in 1929. He is an American architect. A large number of his buildings have become world-renowned attractions. His worked cited as being among the most important works if contemporary architecture in 2010 world architecture survey. This led vanity fair to label him as the most important architecture of our age. His best known work include the titanium-clad Guggenheim museum in Bilbao, the Walt Disney concert hall. The Guggenheim museum was introduced in 1997, it was immediately hailed as one of the worlds most spectacular buildings in the style of deconstructivism. The curves on the building was intended to appear random. Frank Gehry said the randomness of the curves are designed to catch the light. The Solomon R. Guggenheim foundation selected Frank Gehry as the architect, and it’s director, Thomas Krens, encouraged him to design something daring and innovative.  

 

Leoh Ming Pei

The Chinese born architect came to study architecture in the United States as a teenager and later became one of the greatest architects of modern architecture. Almost 80 years later I.M. Pei’s work can be seen worldwide and are noted for their unique use of geometric forms and incorporating Chinese influences into his work. His National Center for Atmospheric Research in Colorado embodies Pei’s iconic geometric forms and unity with natural elements in their surroundings. Pei’s work graces some of the most prestigious government and acclaimed sites throughout the world
His most profound projects include: John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum in Boston, The National Gallery of Art in Washington D.C., Le Grand Louvre (The Pyramid) in Paris, The Bank of China Tower in Hong Kong and the Museum of Islamic Art in Doha.

George 

    

CHRISTOPHER WREN -Robyn Holtzhausen

 Christopher Wren was born in the late 1632 in Wiltshire, he was educated at Westminster school and moved on to study at Oxford university. He showed an early talent for mathematics and enjoyed inventing things. In 1657 he was appointed professor of astronomy at Gresham college in London and 4 years later professor of astronomy at Oxford. In 1662 he was one of the founding members of the royal society. His interest for architecture developed from studding physics and engineering. In 1664-1665 he was commissioned to design the sheldonian theatre in Oxford and a chapel for Pembroke college. Christopher wren designed 51 new city churches as well as the St Paul’s Cathedral. His designs for the Cathedral took a decade to make and the actual construction took a further 40 years.   

  

Oscar Niemeyer – Katie Patrick

The Museu de Arte Contemporânea de Niteroi (The Niterói Contemporary Art Museum ) is in the city of Rio De Janerio. It is one of the cities main landmark. it was completed in 1996 and was designed by Oscar Niemeyer. He was assisted by structural engineer Bruno Contarini. The building is 16 meters high, and has three floors. It has a capacity of 60 people. It is shaped like a saucer, and reflects a more modernist structure. This gives a panoramic view of the city of Rio De Janerio. The structure of the building rises from a water basin, this creates a sense of lightness and along with the curved structure gives the viewer the panoramic view. Although the MAC is often described as UFO-like, Niemeyer’s poetic intention was for the form to emerge “from the ground” and “continuously grow and spread,” like a flower that rises from the rocks
Oscar Niemeyer was a Brazilian architect who s considered one of the key figures in the development of modern architecture. He is best known for his design of civic buildings in Brasilia. His exploration of the aesthetic possibilities of reinforced concrete was highly influential in the late 20th and early 21st centuries. He said his architecture was strongly influenced by Le Corbusier. Niemeyer was most famous for his use of abstract forms and curves Throughout his seventy year long career as an architect, Niemeyer designed over 500 projects in Brazil (including the capital city Brasília) as well as in Algeria, France, Spain and Israel; however, he claimed that his museum in Niterói, along with the Congress and Cathedral of Brasília, was one of his favourite projects.

Jørn Ultzon – Amy Willis

Jørn Ultzon is a Danish architect born April 9th, 1918. He studies at the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts and was made famous from creating the Sydney Opera House, before this he has won 18 competitions but had never seen his work actually built.

The Sydney Opera House is a concert hall and is among the busiest art centres in the world, hostin over 1500 performances each year. The expressionist style building opened on October 20th, 1973 built from a concrete frame with a precast concrete ribbed roof which is described as looking like shell patterns and shapes. Since opening the building has become the most popular Australian tourist attraction and is now identified as one of the 20th centuries most distinctive buildings.

Jørn’s style shows a concern for nature with an emphasis on form and materials used, he described his work as “addictive architecture” because of the comparison to his creations and the growth patterns of nature.