Call us at 888.619.2226

Tag Archive for: iconic glass structures

Iconic Glass Structures – National Library of Belarus

/in , /by
Iconic Glass Structures – National Library of Belarus

Iconic Glass Structures – National Library of Belarus

In our ongoing series that looks at iconic glass structures, today we’ll look at the National Library of Belarus. The library was originally opened in 1922 and houses the country’s largest collection of printed materials. It’s also home to the world’s third largest collection of Russian language books.

The current building was opened in January 2006 and features 22 floors. The building holds about 2,000 visitors, as well as a 500-seat conference theater. According to the library, the building welcomes about 2,200 visitors each day. The building’s design features an unusual complex polyhedron known as a rhombicuboctahedron, which consists of 18 squares and 8 triangles perched on a stylobate. Read more

Iconic Glass Structures – China Central Television Headquarters

/in , /by

Iconic Glass Structures – China Central Television Headquarters

Iconic Glass Structures – China Central Television Headquarters

In our ongoing series on iconic glass structures, we’ll look at China Central Television Headquarters (CCTV) in Beijing. The CCTV Headquarters makes heavy use of glass, and was designed and built over a period of eight years, between 2004 and 2012. The building is actually three buildings that have been joined together, and reflects a desire to eschew the standard height-based evaluation of modern commercial architecture.

Construction on the tower was delayed by a massive fire that ripped through an adjacent structure in 2009. The fire caused extensive damage to the building under construction. The CCTV building was nearly complete at the time of the fire, and pushed back the building’s completion by about three years. Read more

Iconic Glass Structures – City Hall, London

/in , /by

Iconic Glass Structures – City Hall, London

Iconic Glass Structures – City Hall, London

In today’s installment of our series looking at iconic glass structures, we take a look at City Hall in Southwark, England. City Hall is the home of the Greater London Authority, but is not technically in London, nor is it a true municipal building. Although the building houses the Office of the Mayor and the London Assembly, the building is privately owned.

City Hall sits on the south bank of the River Thames and was planned and constructed between 1998 and 2002. The building was designed by architect Norman Foster, who was heavily influenced by Frank Lloyd Wright, Bauhaus architect Ludwig Mies Van Der Rohe and Swiss-French architect Le Corbusier. Foster, who initially studied at the University of Manchester, completed his graduate work at Yale University. For a period of time, Foster also collaborated with Buckminster Fuller, the futuristic architect and designer of the geodesic dome. Like Fuller, Foster often worked to design novel housing models for low-income and urban dwellers. Foster was also known for his industrial and commercial building designs.

Construction on City Hall was completed at a cost of about $54 million. The building was constructed on land that had been used for wharves. GLA occupies the building on a long-term lease. It features an unusual bulbous shape that is designed to reduce energy consumption. Although the design employs a double glass façade, tests have shown that the building is not particularly energy efficient.

The building has a generally round shape at the base, meaning that it has no designated front or back side. The interior includes a helical walkway that ascends from the base to the top of the building. The swirling walkway is reminiscent of two other Norman Foster creations, the reconstructed Reichstag Dome in Berlin and 30 St. Mary Axe in London. The open design of the building is meant to convey the transparency and accessibility that modern democratic processes require.

The building contains 10 stories, and provides nearly 20,000 square meters of office and meeting space. The building includes an open-air viewing deck that is sometimes available to the public. Although the claims of the building’s energy efficient design have been questioned, City Hall uses only about one-quarter of the energy of a typical, similarly sized building in London.

Glassprimer™ glass paint is a specialized glass coating that bonds permanently to glass surfaces. GlassPrimer also makes a glass surface molecular activator that is designed to work with UV-inkjet glass printing processes. Glassprimer™ glass paint can be used in both interior and exterior applications and can help reduce solar heat gain in some applications. For more information about Glassprimer™ glass paint, please visit the rest of our site. If you’d like to purchase Glassprimer™ glass paint, please visit our online store .

Photo Credit: Bill Smith, via Flickr.com

Iconic Glass Structures – General Motors Technical Center

/in , /by
Iconic Glass Structures – General Motors Technical Center

Iconic Glass Structures – General Motors Technical Center

This week in our ongoing series on glass construction, we look at the General Motors Technical Center in Warren, MI. The GM Technical Center was one of the very first buildings to make heavy use of architectural glass, when it was initially designed in 1949.

The Technical Center was designed by neofuturistic architect Eero Saarinen. Saarinen studied architecture in Paris, beginning in 1929. He completed his studies at Yale University in 1934. Saarinen’s design style was influenced by Bauhaus designers and architects, including Ludwig Mies van der Rohe. Although he did not study at the Bauhaus, Saarinen often designed furniture, some of which –like his Tulip Chair – is considered iconic for its time period.

Saarinen also designed buildings and other structure. One of his most recognizable designs is the iconic St. Louis Gateway Arch. In addition to the General Motors Technical Center, Saarinen designed a number of corporate buildings, including headquarters for IBM, Bell Laboratories, CBS and John Deere. He also designed the TWA Terminal at JFK Airport in New York, and the main terminal at Dulles International Airport.

The GM Technical Center is situated on a 700-acre campus and contains dozens of buildings. Its main building was added to the National Register of Historic Places, and has also been designated as a National Historical Landmark.

One of the features of Saarinen’s original site design is the “Design Dome,” a 185-foot diameter dome that is capped with interlocking aluminum panels and glass walls. Every GM product produced since 1956 has been introduced on the dome’s shadowless design floor. GM recently refurbished the Design Dome. One of the upgrades includes computer controlled white and colored LED lighting to accentuate the products on the Design Dome floor.

Glassprimer™ glass paint is a specialized glass coating that bonds permanently to glass surfaces. GlassPrimer also makes a glass surface molecular activator that is designed to work with UV-inkjet glass printing processes. Glassprimer™ glass paint can be used in both interior and exterior applications and can help reduce solar heat gain in some applications. For more information about Glassprimer™ glass paint, please visit the rest of our site. If you’d like to purchase Glassprimer™ glass paint, please visit our online store .

Photo Credit: Gabriel Jorby, via Flickr.com

Iconic Glass Structures – Flame Towers

/in , /by

Iconic Glass Structures – Flame Towers

Iconic Glass Structures – Flame Towers

When you think of iconic modern architecture, you don’t automatically think of Baku, Azerbaijan, but a steel and glass building complex known as the Flame Towers may just change that. Designed as a mixed-use office, residential and hotel complex, the Flame Towers tower over Azerbaijan’s capital city.

In Azerbaijan, historians have found evidence of human habitation that dates back 100,000 years. Roman inscriptions dating back to the first century AD have been found there. Azerbaijan has been a political crossroads throughout its history, and has intermittently been controlled by European, Asian, Soviet and Middle Eastern influences.

The discovery of rich oil reserves in Azerbaijan combined with the eventual fall of the Soviet Union left the country with a burgeoning economy and a desire to build. Construction on the Flame Towers began in 2007 and was completed in 2012. The buildings opened to tenants in 2013.

The complex consists of three curvaceous buildings, referred to as the South, North and West towers. The glass façades of each of the three buildings can be turned into massive display screens, thanks to more than 10,000 LED luminaires. The displays, which often take the visual appearance of fires or the Azerbaijan national flag, can be seen from any point in the city of Baku.

The three towers range in height from 161m to 182 meters. The tallest of the three towers, the South tower, is a 33-story residential facility. The North tower offers 30 stories of hotel space and the West tower, which is the smallest of the three buildings at 28 stories, is used for commercial office space. In its entirety, the complex contains more than 2.5 million square feet of usable space.

US-based Hellmuth, Obata and Kassabaum (HOK) designed the buildings. The buildings’ signature curves, which pay homage to the region’s historical worship of fire, are not just for aesthetics. Fierce winds blow through Baku, and the region is seismically active. The continuous curves of the buildings help them withstand the forces they encounter.

The glass used in the building façades is tinted both blue and orange, which allows the buildings to show a fire motif during daylight hours.

Glassprimer™ glass paint is a specialized glass coating that bonds permanently to glass surfaces. GlassPrimer also makes a glass surface molecular activator that is designed to work with UV-inkjet glass printing processes. For more information about Glassprimer™ glass paint, please visit the rest of our site. If you’d like to purchase Glassprimer™ glass paint, please visit our online store .

Photo Credit: Firuza, via Flickr.com

Iconic Glass Structures – PPG Place

/in , /by

Iconic Glass Structures – PPG Place

Iconic Glass Structures – PPG Place

PPG Place in Pittsburgh, PA is a complex of six buildings that serve as the headquarters for PPG Industries. The buildings are covered more than 1,000,000 square feet of PPG’s Solarban 550 Twindow glass– nearly 20,000 individual panes of glass and more than 230 glass spires. The glass panels give the complex a dark, mirrored appearance.

The complex is anchored by 1 PPG Place, a 40-story glass tower. The complex also contains a 14-story building and four 6-story buildings. The entire neogothic complex was designed by Phillip Johnson. Johnson’s design was inspired by the nearby Cathedral of Learning and Victoria Tower in London. Construction began on the complex in 1981, and the buildings were dedicated in 1984. PPG Place was one of the last buildings designed by Johnson, who is also credited with other iconic structures including the Crystal Cathedral in Anaheim, the Lipstick Building and the Sony Tower (formerly the AT&T Building), both in New York City.

The energy efficient design separates the building’s interior and its exterior. The exterior glass helps reflect infrared light, which reduces the overall energy consumption of the buildings. The complex also features an outdoor skating rink which is open to the public in the winter. In summer months, the ice rink area features seating and a fountain.

In 2011, the complex was sold to Highwoods Properties. Other retail and commercial tenants also occupy space in the complex, which is about 90% occupied. Highwoods has made a series of controversial changes to the street-level façade of the tower as concessions to its tenants. At the same time, the company has also made improvements and renovations that have been well-received.

Glassprimer™ glass paint is a specialized glass coating that bonds permanently to glass surfaces. GlassPrimer also makes a glass surface molecular activator that is designed to work with UV-inkjet glass printing processes. For more information about Glassprimer™ glass paint, please visit the rest of our site. If you’d like to purchase Glassprimer™ glass paint, please visit our online store .

Photo Credit: zharth , via Flickr.com

Iconic glass structures – Willis Tower

/in , /by
Iconic glass structures – Willis Tower

Iconic glass structures – Willis Tower

One of the world’s “can’t-miss” glass and steel buildings in the Willis Tower in Chicago. Originally named the Sears Tower, the building was constructed between 1970 and 1973 to provide office space for the Sears Roebuck & Co., the world’s largest retailer at that time. Sears vacated the Sears Tower entirely by 1995, however the company maintained the naming rights to the building until 2003.

The Willis Tower was the world’s tallest building for 25 years, and is the tallest building in North America. It is currently the second-tallest building in the world, and the world’s third-tallest structure. (The CN Tower in Toronto is the second-tallest structure in the world.) The tower was designed by Skidmore Owing and Merrill, and was the first structure to use the “bundled tube” design, which combined nine independent interior steel “tubes” that shared a single exterior superstructure. Most super-tall buildings use this basic design or a modification of it to achieve both height and stability.

The Willis Tower is 1,451 feet tall and offers 108 stories of office space. Television antennas on the roof extend the overall height of the building to 1,730 feet. Sears commissioned the building’s construction, although the tower – when complete – contained far more space than the retailer itself needed. Sears initially planned a smaller tower, but added floors to the design to provide opportunities for other tenants to lease space in the high-profile building. Sears sold the building to a Boston-based property management firm in 1994 and completely vacated the building in 1995.

In 1997, the building was sold to the same company that owned the CN Tower, and was the subject of a foreclosure in 2003. The name of the building was changed in 2009 to its current identity, the Willis Tower. The Willis Group, a UK-based insurance broker will hold the naming rights until at least 2024. The building was most recently sold in 2015 and the new owners have a number of plans to redevelop the property. Notably, the Willis Tower has never been fully occupied. It also survived a plan to paint the outside of the tower silver at a cost of $50 million. According to the owners at that time, the silver paint would have made the building more energy-efficient.

The Willis Tower has more than 16,000 tinted glass windows that give the building its signature bronze appearance. Six window-washing robots that are mounted on the roof clean the glass on all 108 floors. It also has an observation deck on the building’s 103rd floor. In 2009, four retractable glass-floored observation decks were added to the building that extend outward by about four feet.

Glassprimer™ glass paint is a specialized glass coating that bonds permanently to glass surfaces. GlassPrimer also makes a glass surface molecular activator that is designed to work with UV-inkjet glass printing processes. For more information about Glassprimer™ glass paint, please visit the rest of our site. If you’d like to purchase Glassprimer™ glass paint, please visit our online store .

Photo Credit: Rob Young , via Flickr.com

Iconic Glass Structures – EU Headquarters

/in , /by
Iconic Glass Structures – EU Headquarters

Iconic Glass Structures – EU Headquarters

The new European Union Headquarters, located in Brussels, Belgium, is getting ready to host European leaders for the first time. The building, which was originally scheduled to open in 2012, has been beset by delays and cost overruns that pushed the building’s opening back to 2017.

The building is known as The Europa, and is made from a mixture of old and new architecture. Belgium donated a building known as the Residence Palace. Originally built in 1927 as apartments, the building was purchased by the Belgian government and renovated into office space. The donated building was also used by Nazi forces in World War II. The building was incorporated into the new Europa design because it holds a historical designation and could not be razed.

The Residence Palace serves as an anchor for a new glass atrium that joins the building. The new atrium contains 3,750 windows of varying sizes that have been framed with recycled oak from building demolition sites in each of the 28 member states. At 11 stories, the new construction actually exceeds the height of the Residence Palace.

The atrium contains a large lantern structure that glows in the dark, thanks to reflective strips that catch low-energy spotlights focused on it. The “lantern” as it is known, is not simply something to look at. It expands the amount of available meeting space in the building for EU members.

The interior of the building is exceptionally colorful, but designers were careful to avoid any colors or patterns that could be interpreted as supporting one member over another, or that resemble any member’s flag or national identity symbols.

Another new addition to the Europa is a round table where EU leaders will meet. The current meeting table has sharp angles that sometimes prevent members from seeing who is talking. The members must sometimes rely on video screens to see who is speaking.

Members will begin using the building in January, and the site will host the first leaders’ summit in March.

Glassprimer™ glass paint is a specialized glass coating that bonds permanently to glass surfaces. GlassPrimer also makes a glass surface molecular activator that is designed to work with UV-inkjet glass printing processes. For more information about Glassprimer™ glass paint, please visit the rest of our site. If you’d like to purchase Glassprimer™ glass paint, please visit our online store .

Photo Credit: Samyn Partners and Associates

Iconic Glass Structures – Langen Foundation

/in , /by
Iconic Glass Structures – Langen Foundation

Iconic Glass Structures – Langen Foundation

The Langen Foundation is an art museum located in Berlin on the former NATO Hombroich-Neuss Missile Station. The Langen Foundation building is part of the larger Museum Insel Hombroich complex. It is made from reinforced concrete, steel and glass. The building’s design includes a double “skin” of glass and concrete.

First opened to the public in 2004, the Langen Foundation features two partially underground exhibition buildings housing three major exhibition spaces. The entire Langen Foundation Museum offers about 1,300 square meters of space, and its collection is focused on contemporary art.

The museum was designed by Japanese architect Tadao Ando. The museum was built to house the art collection of Viktor and Marianne Langen. The collection consists of about 500 pieces of Japanese art, the bulk of which were created between the 12th and 19th centuries. Viktor Langen was an automotive engineer and held a number of patents. He regularly traveled to Japan, and that spurred his wife’s interest in Japanese art.

Initially, the couple’s collection was housed in Switzerland, but Marianne funded the construction of the Langen Foundation building to effect the relocation of her collection. She died shortly before construction of the building was finished. In addition to their collection of Japanese art, the couple also collected works from European artists, including Cezanne, Picasso, Warhol, Kandinsky and Bacon, among others.

Ando built the building as a sculptural work. The building includes a large glass and concrete rotunda, a concrete cube and a long glass and concrete veranda. The entire complex is designed to integrate into its surroundings and offers a peaceful venue that facilitates the contemplation of the museum’s collection.

Visitors to the complex enter a narrow doorway in a semicircular concrete and steel wall. Once through the doorway, the museum building, surrounded by a contemplative pool awaits. The glass envelope covers the interior concrete core.

The greater museum complex was rehabilitated following its initial construction as a NATO missile installation. The base was purchased by Karl-Heinrich Müller following its decommissioning in 1993. Müller did not want to erase the facility’s military history, but wanted to create a new purpose for the space. The finished design preserved military elements, including the bunkers, the observation tower, the halls and the landscaping that had disguised the military nature of the base. Other parts of the initial design, including razor-wire fencing, spotlights and bullet-proof glass were removed to open the space and make it more welcoming to the public. In addition to the Langen Foundation building, other new construction has also been completed on the base, and several sculptures now complement the grounds.

Glassprimer™ glass paint is a specialized glass coating that bonds permanently to glass surfaces. GlassPrimer also makes a glass surface molecular activator that is designed to work with UV-inkjet glass printing processes. For more information about Glassprimer™ glass paint, please visit the rest of our site. If you’d like to purchase Glassprimer™ glass paint, please visit our online store .

Photo Credit: Andreas Lischka, via Flickr.com

Iconic Glass Structures – Sage Gateshead

/in , /by
Iconic Glass Structures – Sage Gateshead

Iconic Glass Structures – Sage Gateshead

This week, we look at Sage Gateshead, a glass and steel concert venue in Gateshead, UK. The building opened in 2004, and is currently leased to the North Music Trust. The uniquely styled building is part of a larger arts complex, which also includes the BALTIC Centre for Contemporary Art and the Gateshead Millennium Bridge.

While Sage Gateshead hosts its share of chamber music performances, the venue also serves musicians in a wide range of genres. The building was designed by Foster and Parters, which presented the winning design in a competition. Although the building did not open until 2004, planning for the space began more than 10 years prior to its inaugural performance. The final construction cost exceeded $86 million, and was paid for largely through government grants.

Initially intended as a chamber music performance hall, Sage Gateshead morphed into a more flexible venue to accommodate regional performers and a variety of musical styles. The venue has hosted classical, pop, rock, hip hop, jazz, indie and acoustical performances.

The building houses two main performance halls that seat 1,750 and 450 guests respectively. Sage Gateshead also has a smaller rehearsal facility. The three performance spaces are key to the rest of the building’s design. The rest of the building’s facilities were designed to accommodate the acoustics of the performance spaces.

While the complex is housed under a single glass and steel skin, the interior of the building reveals three distinct buildings under one roof. The glass and steel outer structure does not actually touch any of the three performance spaces. In addition, the interior buildings were constructed using a special, acoustic-friendly concrete mixture. Ceiling panels and curtains in the buildings can be moved or adjusted to change the acoustic profile of a performance space. Spaces are reconfigured based on the type of musical performance.

Aside from the performance spaces, the building also houses the Music Education Centre, where students of all skill levels take instrumental music lessons. The Music Education Centre also offers workshops and public programs. The building also houses a recording studio, a community space and a public audio library.

Glassprimer™ glass paint is a specialized glass coating that bonds permanently to glass surfaces. GlassPrimer also makes a glass surface molecular activator that is designed to work with UV-inkjet glass printing processes. For more information about Glassprimer™ glass paint, please visit the rest of our site. If you’d like to purchase Glassprimer™ glass paint, please visit our online store .

Photo Credit: Wojtek Gurak , via Flickr.com