Successfully assembling your barbecue can feel like an architectural triumph, but creating skyscrapers, buildings and housing units that inspire street conversation as easily as conversation inside them is tremendous. To honor architects’ efforts, we’ve put together a list of the top 10 architecture capitals in the world. These are the cities whose architecture either has a strong, classic, ancient style, a modern or post-modern style, or a mix of both. Those architecture capitals that have a good balance of classic and modern style appear higher on our list.
Want to keep your friends awake when you show them your vacation photos? Consider one of these top 10 architecture capitals as your next destination.
Number 10
Brasilia, Brazil
In less than four years, this place went from an idea to Brazil’s living and breathing capital city -- and our No. 10 architecture capital. Thought up by urban planner Lucio Costa in 1957, with buildings designed by architect Oscar Niemeyer, the city was laid out as a cross, but better resembles a butterfly or airplane shape when seen from the air. While some have criticized the design, it was declared a UNESCO World Heritage site.
Some of this architecture capital's more notable buildings include: Palacio da Alvarado (the official residence of the president of Brazil), the Cultural Complex of the Republic, Cathedral Basilica, and Three Powers Square (all government work buildings). For its classic designs inspired by Le Corbusier, a French architect considered a forefather of modern architecture, and because it went from imagination to blueprint to building at warp speed, Brasilia earns a spot on our architecture capitals list.
Number 9
Dubai, Unites Arab Emirates
Short a construction crane for a building project? Blame it on Dubai. It’s estimated that this architecture capital has 25% of the world’s cranes working around the clock. Already littered with skyscrapers, Dubai also has what some say is the world’s only seven-star hotel -- the Burj Al Arab. Created in the shape of a sail, the hotel is also the world’s tallest.
This pales in comparison, however, to other buildings on the horizon like: Hydropolis -- the world’s first underwater hotel; Burj Dubai -- the world’s tallest building; API World Tower -- the world’s highest hotel; and Dubailand -- a Walt Disney-style amusement park expected to crush Disney as the biggest and best thing in the world. Want a peek at the future? Here’s the place.
Number 8
Athens, Greece
The Acropolis, the site of early Greek civilization that also includes inspiration for our modern civilization, gives this city its architectural strength. You’ll see classic Greco-Roman columns supporting the Parthenon, plus ornate designs drawn into the tops of them. You’ll probably want to focus all your time here, but if you’re still hungry for more after this, check out the Academy of Athens -- a more modern version of classic Greco-Roman style -- plus the newly updated Athens Olympic Stadium. It’s no secret that this city’s attraction is its ancient architecture; for that it has earned a spot on our architecture capitals list.
Marvel at the structures in these architecture capitals…
Number 7
Florence, Italy
Many consider this architecture capital “ground zero” for the Italian Renaissance. So it goes without saying that its buildings largely reflect renaissance-style architecture. Well-known pieces include: Palazzo Vecchio -- the town hall; Academy of Fine Arts -- where Michaelangelo’s David stands; and Uffizi -- an art gallery with many renaissance works. Then you have the churches; the Santa Maria del Fiore is a famous cathedral and the fourth biggest church in Europe, plus the Basilica di Santa Croce is another large church. One of Florence’s most unique attractions, however, is the Ponte Vecchio -- a medieval bridge that has businesses built along it.
Number 6
Rome, Italy
Like Athens, Rome is an architectural highlight of early Western civilization. You know the classics: the Colosseum, the Pantheon, the Roman Forum, and the Temple of Venus and Roma. These compete with slightly newer (but not by much) buildings like: St. Peter’s Square in Vatican City, the Sistine Chapel, and the National Monument of Victor Emmanuel II. While it’s not greatly known for modern buildings, Rome’s abundance of ancient, classic and renaissance architecture is more than enough to give this city a deserving place on our architecture capitals list.
Number 5
Shanghai, China
China’s whipping its wheels of industry and Shanghai is one of its projects. The current scale of development is so extreme that construction approvals and decisions are being made in a matter of hours compared to months in Western countries. This explains the city’s Pudong district, considered the downtown core that includes the city’s tallest building, the Jin Mao Tower, plus the Oriental Pearl Tower, which is a mall, hotel and observation spot.
You’ll see more of the city’s past along its waterfront in The Bund area with more colonial architecture styles. Increasingly, this style is being displaced by modern pieces like the Shanghai Grand Theatre, and the future claim to the “world’s tallest” building -- the World Financial Center. Not sure where China is headed? Look up.
Number 4
Berlin, Germany
Since the Wall fell in 1989, Berlin focused on transforming its buildings. Some of the most notable include: the Reichstag, the one-time Nazi parliament that was recreated with a glass dome on top; the once -abandoned Potsdamer Platz district was redesigned and now includes the impressive Sony Center; and the DaimlerChrysler quarter that was built from new in five years. Other additions are a new, modern British embassy, and Jewish Museum designed by Daniel Libeskind.
There is also plenty of classic architecture to see, like the neoclassical Altes Museum, the Bode Museum (a historically preserved building), and Das Rotes Rathaus (an old town hall).
Visiting these architecture capitals is worth the airfare…
Number 3
Chicago, Illinois
More than just a great place for yummy hot dogs and die-hard sports fans, The Windy City is also considered the birthplace of modern American architecture. After the Great Fire in 1871 torched over 2,000 acres of buildings, Chicago largely had a blank slate to work from. Architects moved in and created some of the most memorable buildings in the world. To give you an idea what the city looks like, note that the word “skyscraper” was coined in this architecture capital.
The city’s landmarks include: the Sears Tower -- the U.S.’s tallest building; Wrigley Building -- a triangular office building that is the HQ for the chewing gum company; and Marina City -- the aptly named “corn on the cob” building that was featured on the album cover of alt-rock Wilco’s Yankee Hotel Foxtrot.
Additionally, “Starchitect” Frank Lloyd Wright has his Home & Studio here plus a large collection of his homes, and Frank Gehry created the centerpiece for the city’s huge Millennium Park.
Number 2
Paris, France
Walking this city’s streets can feel like you’re in the middle of one big art museum. For all its medieval, renaissance, neoclassic and art nouveau buildings, Paris is also remarkable for its modern pieces that mix with its classic ones to remind people it is more than just a museum. In fact, former French President Francois Mitterrand felt so strongly about the idea that he sanctioned a modern architecture project called ”Grands Travaux” in the ‘80s to update the city’s classic style. The results include the Louvre’s glass pyramid entrance, plus other modern projects.
2008’s Pritzker Architecture Prize (considered architecture’s Nobel Prize) was awarded to Parisian architect Jean Nouvel. His pieces include Musee du quai Branly, a quirky modern building. If you’re a sucker for the classics, however, the list is endless: the Arc de Triomphe, Notre Dame Cathedral, Musee d’Orsay... You may need a few trips to this architecture capital to see it all.
Number 1
Barcelona, Spain
Are you snap happy with your camera? Then you’ll need to pack another memory card for this visit. Some of the greatest architects in the world, from past to present, have made this city’s bricks and mortar look like nothing else in the world. Start with the Hospital de Sant Pau and Palau de la Musica Catalana where you’ll find traditional work from late Catalan architect Lluis Domenech i Montaner. These buildings have both been designated UNESCO World Heritage Sites.
You should also check out work from the city’s other celebrated Catalan architect -- Antoni Gaudi. His more famous pieces include: Casa Mila, Park Guell and Temple Expiatori de la Sagrada Familia. From there, see the contemporary work of Santiago Calatrava at the Montjuic Communications Tower, plus Frank Gehry’s “Fish” at the opening of the city’s Olympic Port. Finally, stroll down Las Ramblas, a huge market street in the Gothic Quarter, and view its ancient buildings. For its variety of classic and modern architecture, Barcelona tops our architecture capitals list.
under construction
“Architecture begins where engineering ends,” the famous German architect Walter Gropius once said. This idea runs through our top 10 list of architecture capitals, whose buildings represent a lot more than the sum of their parts. From the eclectic style of Antoni Gaudi’s buildings in Barcelona to the steel and glass wonderland that is Dubai to Shanghai’s futuristic monoliths, our architecture capitals each impress visitors with their own wonders. Oh, and if you feel foolish looking up at all the buildings around you, just check out everyone else -- it’s a safe bet they’re doing the same thing.
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