Skyscrapers
A Globalized CBD Lanscape
Source 1: Skyscrapers and urban identity at the end of
the 20th century.
“A generation ago, it was still possible to speak of the
skyscrapers as an American phenomenon. Of course, there
were ta ll buildings eslsewhere, but few of them – they
seemed always to somewhat out of place, odd intrusions of
the American spirit into other cultures. [...] Now, it is no
longer so. [...] Other countries, other cultures, seem to
control more and more of its present and, it seems certain,
its future. [...]. Skyscrapers are now the culture of Hong
Kong, Shanghai, Tokyo, Seoul, Singapore and Bangkok,
not to mention of Frankfurt, Paris, Sao Paulo and Sidney.
[...] It appears now to be appropriately described as a a late
20th century way of building.[...] Skyscraper has become a
force for cultural homogeneity. [...]
Paul Goldberger, , preface of Skyscrapers, higher and
higher, Norma, 1995.
Source 3: Better than flying
“Sksyscraper are hard to build and even harder to make
money fro m. Perhaps that is why they hold such an
enduring fascination. ‘The problem of the tall office
building’, wrote Louis Sullivan in 1896, ‘is one of the
most stupendous one, one of the most magnificent
opportunities that the Lord of nature in His beneficence
has ever offered to the proud spirit of man’[...]. Sullivan
was observing Chicago, but he could have been talking
about New york in the 1920s, Hong Kong in the 1980s, or
one of the booming cities in Asia that, according to
Emporis, now lead a boom in h igh-rise building undauted
by the attack on the World Trade Center in 2001. [...]
Wether built as a statement of economic intent (as
in Dubai, where much of the building frenzy is financed
by companies backed by the government), or as a concrete
index finger held up to the ouside world (the 330-metre
high Ryugyong Hotel in Pyongyang, North Korea), any
city that aspires to be taken seriously wants a skyscraper or
two. [...]
Perhaps it is this defiance of gravity and the
ma rket that makes skyscrapers so alluring an expla in why
people continue to want to build them. Publicity for the
Emp ire State Building calimed the feeling of looking out
fro m its viewing gallery was better than air travel”.
After The Economist, June 3rd, 2006
©nicolas
lemas,
2006/7
Figure 2 : Eye Candies
a/ Pudong’s Skyline, Shanghai, Ch ina
Figure 2b : Sydney’s Opera Hall
2c: Totonto from its harbour:
2d: Dubai, skyscrapers in the desert:
Figure 4: New architectural landmarks joins Istanbul skyline.
“Istanbul gained a new arch itectural landmark as the opening ceremony of Istanbul Canyon took place on May 30, 2006, in fro nt of a
crowd of visitors amazed by the stunning lines of a contemporary masterpiece modern ist ideas and concepts which are purposefully
brought together to fit the new lifestyle of our period. […]Istanbul Canyon is a truly excit ing work of art wh ich preludes the
incoming new golden era of contemporary arch itecture in the city, in a time when fa mous architect Zaha Hadid is appointed as the
chief planner of Istanbul's new CBD develop ments. […] The design of Istanbul Canyon brings together a mall, office tower and
residential block around a man-made canyon which is also the namesake of the project. [...] Istanbul Canyon features a special
engineering technique which is used for the first time in the world: An air circulat ion system ventilates the open areas of the canyonlike mall and creates an invisible "thermostatic shield", making it possible for v isitors to enjoy open-air shopping regardless of the
weather outside. [...]The total construction area of the project is 250,000 m², with 30,000 m² of rentable office area, 37,500 m² of
rentable retail area, 180 residential flats, 160 stores, 9 theater halls with a capacity of 1,600 spectators and a parking facility for 2,300
vehicles.”
After: www.empo ris.co m, visited on june 8, 2006