Shanghai World Financial Center

"The recently completed Shanghai World Financial Center (SWFC) has bagged the award for Asia’s “Best Tall Building” of 2008.

The Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat (CTBUH) gave the thumbs up to SWFC not only for its excellent architectural form and design but also for the integration and use of sustainable materials in the building’s construction.

Designed by Kohn Pedersen Fox Associates and developed by Mori Building Company, the 492m tall mixed use skyscraper, built at a cost of £640m, took 14 years to complete since the foundations were laid in 1997." to find out more...

Passage from http://www.luxury-insider.com/Current_Affairs/post/2008/11/13/
Shanghai-World-Financial-Center-Recognized-as-Asia-Best-Tall-Building
.aspx

Image from http://swfc-shanghai.com/

STADSKANTOOR, NETHERLANDS, ROTTERDAM, 2009

Statement by Rem Koolhaas:-
"What does Rotterdam really need?

After an impressive sequence of abrupt architectural transitions – from the stark modernity of the reconstruction, via the “new humanism” of the cubes, the repressed postmodern of the 90s to the current apotheosis of Dutch modernity – launched by the fireworks of the 1940 bombardment, all these ideologies coexist and interact in harsh juxtaposition, each successive layer oblivious and in contradiction to the previous ones.

What is now needed may be subtlety and ambiguity in the midst of an overdose of form. We propose a “formless” heap, consisting of smaller elements that are shaped to perform a number of major and minor responsibilities.

Where necessary the shape can be formal and impressive, almost symmetrical – for instance, from the Coolsingel, glimpsed between the two survivors – and where desired, it can be delicate and accommodating – for instance in its relationship with the existing monument, Stadstimmerhuis.

Our structural system – a three dimensional Vierendeel structure in steel – enables us to improvise and to liberate the ground almost in its entirety, to interpret the "Stadswinkel" as an unencumbered public space, in which we arrange the interaction between citizen and city in a dignified, spacious urban landscape, with an almost “Roman” scale and materiality."

to find out more...

Passage & Image from http://www.oma.eu/index.php?option=com_projects&view=
\project&id=1205&Itemid=10

Waterfront Town of the 21st Century from Singapore

"In September 2007, HDB exhibited the plans for Remaking Our Heartland to realise, rejuvenate and regenerate housing estates in Singapore. Under this initiative, Punggol will be developed into a Waterfront Town of the 21st Century."

With this development goal, Singapore had held competitions for it. The winning entry has been published at http://heartland.hdb.gov.sg/e-Exhibition-Nov-2009.html

A very competitive process for the firms engaged. to find out more...

Passage from http://heartland.hdb.gov.sg/e-Exhibition-Nov-2009.html
Image from http://heartland.hdb.gov.sg/win_event_pdf/d3/s2_p10.pdf

World Expo:Past&Present