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Iconic Glass Structures – Emporia Mall, Malmo Sweden

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If your conception of glass is a rigid plane that’s best reserved for windows, don’t go to the Emporia Mall in Malmo, Sweden. The mall, which was designed by Wingardhs, actually houses retail stores, a supermarket, office space and residential space. Emporia was built to appeal to commuters that need to reach a nearby train station.
And it’s a little weird.

Malmo is the third largest city in Sweden, so it’s already got a lot going on. Malmo is also an economic engine for southern Sweden, so it’s a busy port city. It takes a little work to catch people’s attention. And Emporia’s unique glass façade does just that.

Emporia is a huge project, and only a portion of it has been completed. The so-called “Amber Entrance” pays homage to Sweden’s historic amber deposits. The “Blue” entrance recalls the country’s relationship with the sea. The 1,000,000 square foot mall is a tubular steel structure with a glass “skin.” Each of the 804 glass panels on the exterior of the building is custom built and colored.

World-renowned glassmaker Cricursa built each of the building’s glass panels and bent them using high heat to give the building it’s unique outer appearance. The amber and blue themes continue inside the building, which makes liberal use of glass and color to attract and delight all visitors who enter the building. Lush greenery, high-lustre glass spaces and bright colors dominate and visually divide the building’s interior spaces.

The frame of the building was built in Spain and shipped to Sweden for assembly on site. The double-curved center entry to the building is unmistakeable and virtually unique among world architectures. The outer walls have a more regular appearance, which only lends to the visual appeal of the building.

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: Maria Elkind, via Flickr.com

Iconic Glass Structures – Philharmonic Hall, Szczecin, Poland

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Iconic Glass Structures – Philharmonic Hall, Szczecin, Poland

Iconic Glass Structures – Philharmonic Hall, Szczecin, Poland

Philharmonic Hall in Szczecin, Poland was opened in 2014 as the second home of the Mieczysław Karłowicz Philharmonic Orchestra, which was founded in 1948. The building received the 2015 Mies van der Rohe Award, the European Union Prize for Contemporary Architecture. The building’s unique translucent ribbed glass façade and multi-pointed roofline give the building a visually striking, ghost-like appearance.

The building was built as a permanent replacement for the Konzerthaus, a building that was destroyed during World War II. The Philharmonic Hall is built on the former site of the Konzerthaus.The architects, Barozzi Veiga, of Spain, designed the building to blend in with much older existing structures that had survived the war. The building is 13,000 square meters and its exterior is covered with glass panels.

While the shape of the building was designed to complement existing structures, the translucent glass cladding and aluminum stripping allows the building to stand out. During the day, the building appears to be opaque white. At night, the lights from the hall illuminate the building, giving it a warm glow. The interior of the building makes heavy use of white. The majority of the interior is white. The symphony hall and the chamber music hall are two exceptions. The symphonic hall is predominantly gold. The chamber music room is mostly black.

The building – minus the symphonic space – is lit by skylights and natural light during the day. The auditorium is sculpted to enhance the orchestral experience. In addition, the building also has a smaller space for chamber music and spaces for conferences and exhibitions. The orchestra hall seats about 950 guests. The chamber music room seats about 200 guests.

The history of Szczecin is long and complicated, but the city was given to Poland in 1945 as a reparation for land lost to the Soviet Union. Most of the city’s population at that time left the city, and Poles resettled there following the war. The majority of the city’s residents would have no recollection of the original Konzerthaus, but welcome the Philharmonic Hall as a part of the city’s evolution.

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: Maciek Lulko, via Flickr.com

Iconic Glass Structures – R&F Yingkai Square

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Iconic Glass Structures – R&F Yingkai Square

Iconic Glass Structures – R&F Yingkai Square

This week, we look at R&F Yingkai Square a newly constructed glass and steel tower in the Guangzhou Province in Zujiang. Its shifty shape is a visual treat because it’s a departure from the standard “four square” building. The tower is a mixed-use environment, and it’s nearly full.

The tower’s design is inspired by bamboo plants. It features asymmetrical “corners” that, when combined with the steel strips on the outside faces, make the building appear to move. The steel facing at the base gives way to glass at top of the building. The change in texture and the building’s faceted corners draw the eye ever upward, also lending to the notion of a building in motion.

The building tenants include the Park Hyatt Guangzhou on the upper floors, and a host of offices on the lower floors. The building also includes residential spaces. The tower extends 66 floors (nearly 1,000 feet) up and five floors below grade, and overlooks the Pearl River. Hotel guests can take advantage of spectacular views from the hotel’s infinity pool, and enjoy a meal in the hotel’s rooftop eatery and garden.

R&F Yingkai Square is currently the 9th tallest building in Guangzhou and the 49th tallest structure in China. It’s brand new construction, having been designed by Goettsch Partners of Chicago in 2008. Construction on the building was completed in 2014 and the building was formally opened earlier this year.

The building is owned by Guangzhou R&F Properties Co., Ltd., which also provided structural engineering services and was the primary contractor for the building’s construction.

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: 1st image via CTBUH

Iconic Glass Structures – One Vanderbilt

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Iconic Glass Structures – One Vanderbilt

Iconic Glass Structures – One Vanderbilt

Usually, we take some time each week to look at an iconic glass structure. This week’s entry is a little different because it’s the first “iconic” glass building that hasn’t actually been built yet! The fact that One Vanderbilt isn’t lighting up the skyline yet doesn’t stop us from admiring the plan for this 63-story tower.

One Vanderbilt will reside in East Midtown Manhattan, right next door to the Grand Central Terminal. It was designed by Kohn, Pedersen Fox Associates for SL Green Realty Corp. The finished height of the tower will be 1,401 feet, which makes it slightly shorter than the 1,454-foot Empire State Building and about 350 feet taller than the Chrysler Building.

Construction on the glass tower is expected to completed by 2021, but the project has had a slow start. It was held up for more than a year by a lawsuit that claimed the One Vanderbilt tower infringed upon the air rights of the Grand Central Terminal. The lawsuit was settled out of court, and the settlement cleared the way for construction on the tower to begin.

The lawsuit wasn’t the only challenge for the building. The City Council needed to approve a five-block rezoning for the tower and other proposed construction projects. Both the designers and city officials hope the tower and the other planned projects will inject new life into the area’s aging office district.

When it is complete, the new glass tower will be the home of anchor tenant TD Bank, and will feature nearly a quarter of a billion dollars in transit improvements as well as a pedestrian plaza. The tower will cost an estimated $3B. When completed, the glass and steel structure, comprised of four distinct, interlocking sections, will offer 1.75 million square feet of occupiable office space.

One Vanderbilt tower will come to a point, similar to the Chrysler Building and the Empire State Building. It will have direct connections to the city’s subway system, and will be designed to give street level pedestrians a complete view of the historic Grand Central Terminal building’s façade. The view of the Grand Central Terminal has been obscured for years by other construction around the building, which was demolished to make room for One Vanderbilt Tower.

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: KPF

Iconic Glass Structures – Lipstick Building

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Iconic Glass Structures – Lipstick Building

Iconic Glass Structures – Lipstick Building

New York City is known for its skyscrapers, but one of its most iconic buildings really isn’t that tall. Standing in at a relatively modest 34 floors is Manhattan’s 53rd at Third Building, known more informally as the Lipstick Building. Located at 885 3rd Avenue, the building is a steel, granite and glass structure that was completed in 1986.

Designed by architects Philip Johnson and John Burgee, the building earned its nickname based on its stacked, rounded shape and red color, which are reminiscent of a tube of lipstick. The building’s unusual rounded shape takes up less space than a traditional square footprint. Additionally, the rounded base, along with support columns, provide additional pedestrian space in a tightly packed urban landscape.

The building is “stacked” in four sections to allow sunlight to penetrate to the lower floors. Unlike contemporary buildings, that are made predominantly from steel and glass, the building features ribbon windows and bright red, enamelized steel that coils around the building.

One of the building’s most famous tenants was none other than Bernard L. Madoff Investment Securities, which occupied floors 17, 18 and 19. Although the firm leased three floors, Madoff’s $65 million fraudulent Ponzi scheme was run exclusively from the 17th floor – a space that was occupied by about two dozen of Madoff’s closest employees.

The building’s designers, John Burgee and Philip Johnson occupied the building for about five years, beginning in 1986. Their partnership split apart in 1991, and Johnson elected to occupy a different space in the building. The building has changed ownership a number of times since it opened. In 2010, the building was foreclosed on by the Royal Bank of Canada after the owner at the time – Metropolitan 885 LLC – defaulted on a $210 million loan.

Earlier this year, the ground underneath the building was sold for nearly a half-billion dollars. While this arrangement sounds like a little bit of real estate intrigue, the building’s operator had an option to buy the land under the building at certain prescribed points in the lease. The building operator still maintains the option to buy the land and can exercise it once every 10 years, beginning in 2020, the owner of the land has changed. If the operator does not elect to buy the land, the land owner can renegotiate the lease rates for the building.

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: Demitri Parides, via Flickr.com

Iconic Glass Structures – Crystal Cathedral

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Iconic Glass Structures – Crystal Cathedral

Iconic Glass Structures – Crystal Cathedral

No discussion of iconic glass structures would be complete without looking at the former Crystal Cathedral, now known as Christ Cathedral in Garden Grove, CA. The cathedral was originally built between 1977 and 1980 for the Garden Grove Community Church. The building has an area of about 75,000 square feet and seats about 2,750 people. The building was originally designed by architect Philip Johnson and was built at a cost of about $18 million. The church was dedicated in 1980 by Robert Schuller, a minister in the Reformed Church of America.

In 2010, the congregation ran into severe financial trouble, and ultimately declared bankruptcy, claiming more than $43 million in liabilities. The church was purchased by the Roman Catholic Diocese of Orange for about $57 million, and is undergoing major interior renovations. The exterior of the building will remain largely unchanged. The Diocese of Orange intends to move its operations onto the campus wjem reconstruction is complete.

The outer structure of the building is made from steel and more than 10,000 rectangular glass panels that are not mechanically fastened to the structure. Instead, the panels are glued in place using a silicone adhesive. The building was designed to withstand an 8.0-magnitude earthquake. The 1857 Fort Tejon earthquake remains the strongest recorded earthquake in California. That quake had a magnitude of 7.9. The largest-ever recorded earthquake is the 1960 Valdivia earthquake, which occurred in Chile. That quake had a recorded magnitude of 9.5.

One issue the renovations address is solar heat gain, which can be intense in the building. The new interior design will feature quatrefoil shades and tall walls that will line the sanctuary area. The interior has been completely redesigned in part to shift the focus of the worship from the pulpit to the altar. The walls and floors will be made of walnut and limestone, and the altar will include travertine and Italian marble.

As a side note, the building houses the fifth-largest pipe organ in the world. The organ was actually constructed from two different organs and was prominently featured in the Hour of Power television show that was produced by the Garden Grove Community Church. The organ will continue to occupy its traditional space, but the Diocese took the opportunity to refurbish the organ during construction. The organ was dismantled and sent to Italy to be repaired. It has since been shipped back to California and will be re-installed following the completion of the interior construction.

The construction of the worship space is expected to be finished in 2018, and final construction on the campus is expected to be complete by 2019.

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: radiobread , via Flickr.com

Iconic Glass Structures – Petronas Towers

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Iconic Glass Structures – Petronas Towers

Iconic Glass Structures – Petronas Towers

No series on iconic glass structures would be complete without discussing Petronas Towers in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The twin towers were classified as the tallest building in the world between 1998 and 2004, and remain the world’s tallest twin towers, according to the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitats (CTBUH).

The Petronas Towers were designed by Argentine architect Cesar Pelli. The original design for the project was conceived in 1992, and underwent significant simulation testing to ensure that it could withstand wind and other forces that would act upon the structure once it was built.

Construction of the glass and steel towers began in 1993 and continued for seven years, although tenants occupied parts of the project before construction was entirely complete. The site for the building originally hosted a racetrack. Before construction began, tests showed that about half of the site was covered in decayed limestone. The entire building site was shifted about 200 feet to ensure that the project could be built on a suitably strong foundation.

In addition to being one of the world’s tallest structures, the Petronas Towers also hold the distinction of having the world’s deepest foundations. In some areas, the building’s foundations, which rest on more than 100 concrete pilings, extend nearly 375 feet into the Earth.

The 88-floor towers are clad in glass and steel. The towers were constructed simultaneously by two different construction crews in order to meet the Malaysian government’s requirement that construction be completed within 6 years.

The towers feature nearly 600,000 square feet of laminated glass, and a two-story bridge that connects the two towers at the 41st and 42nd floors. Despite the high profile of the Petronas Towers, a considerable amount of unused space is available for lease in the second tower. The first tower is completely filled. Retail space is available on the lower levels of the towers. The upper floors of the tower are reserved for office space.

The towers also feature two-level elevators. The lower floor of each elevator stops at the towers’ even numbered floors. The upper level of the elevator car stops at the odd numbered tower floors. The towers are made available to visitors. Visitors are required to purchase tickets.

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: eltpics, via Flickr.com

Iconic Glass Structures – One World Trade Center

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Iconic Glass Structures – One World Trade Center

Iconic Glass Structures – One World Trade Center

The One World Trade Center is the primary building in the World Trade Center complex. The building is the focal piece of the WTC, which was rebuilt after the devastating attacks of September 11, 2001. The building is the sixth-tallest building in the world. It has an architectural height of 1,776 feet, and a decorative tip extends the building’s height another 16 feet.

The building has a functional height of 1,268 feet and has 94 floors usable floors, even though the top floor is designated as Floor 104. The combined occupied area of the building exceeds 3.5 million square feet. Construction on the tower was completed in 2013, and the building was opened to tenants in late 2014. Even though it has fewer occupied floors, the rebuilt tower is slightly taller than the original twin towers.

David Childs and Daniel Libeskind designed the building in 2002 as a replacement for the destroyed Twin Towers of the original World Trade Center. The building was rebuilt by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey and the construction was completed by Tishman Construction, which also completed the construction on the original World Trade Center towers.

Minoru Yamasaki designed the original World Trade Center, which featured two 110-story towers. The North Tower was completed in 1970. The South Tower was completed in 1972. By the mid-1980’s, the complex had grown to include seven buildings of varying heights, none of which were as tall as the twin towers. Originally, the World Trade Center was intended as a neighborhood revitalization project for Lower Manhattan. On a typical weekday, as many as 250,000 people could be in the towers at one time.

The rebuilt tower design was selected following a competition held in 2002. The winning design underwent a number of modifications before being finalized in 2005. The modifications increased the height of the tower, and made changes to the base of the design to improve its appearance and security. Despite the design delays, a symbolic cornerstone for the building was laid on July 4, 2004.

Construction on the base of the new tower was begun in 2006. The structural steel was completed in 2008. Glass window installation began in 2010. The building uses 2,112 insulated, laminated Viracon glass windows. Glass plays a major role in the shape of the building, and its design was changed a number of times before being finalized. In addition to its glass windows, the building incorporates 13-foot pairs of glass fins at the base. The original design called for prismatic glass to be used at the base of the tower, but this proved to be impractical, and this design element was dropped due to safety concerns. The base of the tower was deliberately designed with no windows, and is surrounded by concrete.

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: Jean-Christophe Bruneau, via Flickr.com

Iconic Glass Structures – The Shard

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Iconic Glass Structures – The Shard

Iconic Glass Structures – The Shard

The Shard is a 95-story retail, office and residential building in Southwark, London. The glass pyramidal tower is considered part of the London Bridge Quarter development. It is the tallest building in the United Kingdom and the fourth-tallest building in Europe. Construction on the building began in 2009 and was completed in 2012.

Although the building has 95 stories, only 72 have usable floor space. In addition, the building features a publicly accessible, open-air observation deck on the 72nd floor. The Shard replaced Southwark Towers, a 24-story office development that was built in 1975. The building is partially owned by the State of Qatar.

The building was proposed and designed by Italian architect Renzo Piano in 1998. By 2003, the building’s design had been finalized and approved for construction. The developer secured financing and bought out the existing leases from the occupants of Southwark Towers. Southwark Towers was demolished and construction on The Shard began in 2009.

While the site was being secured and prepared for construction, concerns arose about the project’s financing. Originally, the cost of the project had been estimated to be £350 million, but in the interim, projected costs had increased to £435 million. The project developer, Sellar Properties, secured additional funding from Qatari investors.

The glass building was designed to appear as though it were emerging from the River Thames. The designer said he was inspired by the church steeple in the historic London area where the construction was proposed. When the building design was initially revealed, it was roundly criticized. The English Heritage Trust claimed that the building would be “a shard of glass through the heart of historic London.” The imagery stuck and gave the building its popular name.

The building is energy efficient, and contains its own natural-gas fired electric power plant. Waste heat from the plant is used to supply domestic hot water for the building. The Shard was one of the first buildings built post-9/11, and features a number of structural design modifications designed to help the building retain stability under an attack.

The Shard is covered by 11,000 angled glass panels that combined cover 56,000 square feet of exterior surface area.

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: Gordon Joly, via Flickr.com

Iconic Glass Structures – Capital Gate, Abu Dhabi

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Iconic Glass Structures – Capital Gate, Abu Dhabi

Iconic Glass Structures – Capital Gate, Abu Dhabi

Abu Dhabi is the home of a number of iconic glass structures. One of the most recognizable buildings is the Capital Gate. Built in 2010, the Capital Gate is a 35-story hotel and office complex that has a pronounced, 18° lean. The Capital Gate holds the distinction of being the world’s furthest leaning manmade tower.

Structure leans more than any building in the world

The glass and steel structure is built using a pre-cambered core, which allows the building to lean without the danger of collapse. The core is built slightly off-center and anchored with nearly 500 pilings buried nearly 100 feet underground.

The building also uses a “diagrid” technique to counteract seismic forces and the effects of wind. The first 12 floors of the building are built directly on top of each other. The remaining floors are offset between .3 and 1.4 meters to achieve the building’s signature swirl shape. The building is part of the larger Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre, which is owned by the Abu Dhabi National Exhibitions Company.

The Capital Gate is not the tallest building in Abu Dhabi, but it is distinctive, nonetheless. The building’s lean is nearly four times that of the Leaning Tower of Pisa. It also features a “splash canopy” that helps to shield the office tower from the sun. By shielding the glass on the sunny side of the building, the splash canopy reduces energy consumption and makes the office floors more comfortable. The building is a combination of architecture and engineering, and has won numerous design awards since its opening.

The Capital Gate is home to the Hyatt Capital Gate Hotel, a 189-room luxury hotel, which occupies the upper floors of the Capital Gate building. The hotel rooms feature floor-to-ceiling windows, an outdoor lounge and spa area.It is also attached to the largest convention and exhibition venue in the Middle East.

If you’re looking for glass inspiration, please visit the rest of our site. If you’re ready to purchase Glassprimer™ glass paint, please visit our online store .

Photo Credit: Djordje Radovanovic , via Flickr.com