Architecture

Petronas Towers

The Petronas Towers, the central element of the Kuala Lumpur City Center (KLCC) development, are a twin set of skyscrapers synonymous with the nation of Malaysia. The twin towers rise from a mixed-use base of cultural, commercial and public spaces set in a large park in the center of the city. Until 2004, they were the world’s tallest buildings. The photo is a team work with the Malaysian photographer Kah Sing Loh.

National Center for the Performing Arts

The most beautiful experience we can have is the mysterious. It is the fundamental emotion that stands at the cradle of true art and true science - Albert Einstein. In the last few years, China's investment in the arts has resulted in the completion of 20 new, large scale opera houses and multi-purpose arts centers around the country. Beijing's National Center for the Performing Arts is the largest and most expensive, costing $US 500 million and it is by far the most impressive.

Gold On The Ceiling

The heart of China's imperial power, the Forbidden City was once a universe unto itself. Situated in the centre of Beijing, it was home to 24 emperors of the Ming (1368–1644) and Qing (1644–1911) Dynasties, and the thousands of courtiers, servants, politicians and artisans that spent their lives within its walls. Today the palace complex is a national icon, a UNESCO World Heritage listed site, and a treasure house of Chinese culture and history.

Melaka Straits Mosque

Echoing the fleets of ships that have sailed through the Straits of Melaka for centuries, the white “sails” of the Melaka Straits Mosque curve gracefully as though to catch the wind, floating on the shores of Melaka island. This grand mosque is an impressive example of contemporary Islamic architecture although sails were probably not the intention of the architect as the vernacular should reflect god and nature not man made objects like ships. Regardless, the curved petals and golden dome are a striking sight. Completed in 2006, the design draws inspiration from both Malaysian and Middle Eastern styles. The cool white interior opens to the sea allowing the refreshing breeze to waft through lofty archways framed by jali decoration and stained glass. An oceanside platform offers a place for quiet contemplation as someone stares out to the horizon.

The Hassan II Mosque

This opulent mosque, built at enormous expense, is set on an outcrop jutting over the ocean with a 210m-tall minaret that's a city landmark. It's a showcase of the finest Moroccan artisanship: hand-carved stone and wood, intricate marble flooring and inlay, gilded cedar ceilings and exquisite zellige abound. Its dramatic location overhanging the ocean waves echoes verse from the Quran, which states that God’s throne was built upon the water. The mosque complex was designed by French architect Michel Pinseau, took six years to build and was completed for August 30th, 1993, the eve of prophet Muhammad’s birthday.

Hidden Beauty

Everything has beauty, but not everyone sees - Confucius

The Bird's Nest

Wonderfulness is right before you. Bird’s Nest is always with you proclaims a sign at the entrance to the still magnificent 2008 Olympic Stadium. The spectacular Bird's Nest stadium in Beijing, hailed as the finest arena in the world and the centre-piece of the most expensive Olympics in history, is full of hidden symbolism. In Chinese mythology, the sun is represented by a circle and the moon by a square, reflected by the shape of the bird's nest and the Water Cube aquatic centre opposite, reinforced when the venues are lit at night, red for the Bird's Nest and blue for the Water Cube. The forms also echo the Chinese symbols for male and female, and are built either side of the north-south axis road which runs in a perfect straight line for three miles through Beijing, centered on the Forbidden City. Located in the Olympic Green, the US$423 million stadium is the world's largest steel structure. The design was awarded to a submission from the Swiss architecture firm Herzog & de Meuron in April 2003. The design, which was inspired by a study of Chinese ceramics, implemented steel beams in order to hide supports for the retractable roof; giving the stadium the appearance of a "Bird's nest".

Guardians Of The Temple

Monkey god guardians of the Banteay Srei in Cambodia. Dedicated to the god Shiva, Banteay Srei was constructed from a local pink sandstone, which is easier than most of the other local stones to carve into exquisitely fine detail, but it is also quite hard and durable, so it has eroded less than most of the other temples’ intricate carvings. Consequently, the sculpted religious imagery here has kept its form better than many much later decorations.

The Umbrella Lady

Some people look for a beautiful place, others make a place beautiful - Hazrat Inayat Khan. A candid shot thru the gate connecting Terrace of The Elephants and Phimeanakas temple.

Corridor Of Mysteries

Secrets and mysteries provide a beautiful corridor where you can float out. The corridor expands and many, many wonderful things can happen... I love the process of going into mystery - David Lynch. A beautifully engraved entrance of a hallway in Ta Prohm.

Open Door

Stepping into the Pinang Peranakan Mansion is a step back 200 years in time. Back when Penang was a small community, with a bustling harbour trading in tin, areca nuts and spices. This ostentatious structure is among the most stunning restored residences in George Town. Every door, wall and archway is carved and often painted in gold leaf, and the grand rooms are furnished with majestic wood furniture featuring intricate mother-of-pearl inlay.

The Sanctuary

Chinese architecture has long complemented the culture of its society. The private family home offers a continuum of spaces in which residents can dwell. There is a sequence of dramatically differing transitions that occur upon entering the private Chinese dwelling from the streets outside, into the private garden, and then into the family home. Not only are the physical environments in distinct contrast with one another, but the mental state of mind is also shifted. On the outside of this entry is a city organized in a fixed, geometric plan. The sense of authority and rigid ceremony of society are clearly present. Upon passing through the doorway, the atmosphere becomes unrestrained and peaceful as a secluded garden. Nature reigns; escape is found. Once inside the home, one returns to order and cultural ritual, but in a more personal manner. Hierarchy of the family generations is respected, and the family as a unit is central to daily living.

The Journey

Life is a journey up a spiral staircase; as we grow older we cover the ground we have covered before, only higher up; as we look down the winding stair below us we measure our progress by the number of places we were but no longer are - William Butler Yeats.

The Door #41

Moroccan doors are made of a variety of materials (wood, brass, plaster, etc.) and colours. Intricately carved or rustic and basic, the doors are an attraction in themselves.

The Forgotten

All the things one has forgotten scream for help in dreams - Elias Canetti. The unexpected ornamental beauty of a decrepit portal, mixing arabesque and zellige, found in the Medina of Marrakech. Sadly, an endangered treasure.

Windows To The Past

Penang is the rare tropical island where hitting the town beats lazing on the beach. 
 Fortune-seekers from China, Europe and India have been drawn to this Malaysian island for more than two centuries, creating along with local Malays an eclectic mix that can feel both seductively familiar and exotic at the same time. The colonial capital they've left behind, George Town, oozes a hauntingly rustic charm, with colorful street art as much a draw as the heritage architecture. Its historical center is listed, along with Melaka, another enchanting Malaysian city further down the coast, on the UNESCO World Heritage list.

Stacked Living

Because of historical, political, and geographical reasons, only 23.7% of Hong Kong’s land is developed out of which only 6.8% land is used for housing. No wonder Hong Kong is one of the most densely populated places on the planet, with more than 6,400 people packed into every square kilometre. The city has spawned an array of remarkable solutions to its array of urban issues, ranging from one architect’s convertible apartment to the city’s desire to halt rampant property speculation. Perhaps the most important urban strategy that makes Hong Kong a celebrated exemplar of planning and design is the high-density residential architecture in Hong Kong.

Vortex

A relatively small territory with a growing population of 7.2 million, Hong Kong SAR's residents depend heavily on public housing projects, known as public housing estates. These residential structures are notorious for accommodating thousands of people, with stacks of apartments shooting into the sky. Previously stigmatized, the estates were deemed poor or lower-class establishments and often looked down upon. With affordable houses now scarce, local attitudes have done a 180° and these structures have become nowadays a symbol of pride: Regardless of their size, location or condition, people are more than happy to belong to these high-rise communities, rather than not having an apartment at all. Walking around the grounds of an estate provides an insight to these emotions, both visually and in their atmosphere.

Rhapsody In Steel

Located in Shenzen, China Resources Headquarters is a super-tall skyscraper designed the architecture firm Kohn Pedersen Fox Associates. The 400 meter tower features a tube and diagrid system based on prefabricated column and steel units. It affords column-free interiors, in turn allowing greater expression of the tower's radial symmetry and more boutique floor-plates as it rises. The 56 vertical columns converge into 28 columns at the tower and upper section of the tower, forming a series of entry portals at the tower's base and merging to a singular point at its peak.

Vertical Density

Give Hong Kong to an Artist. He can use it. It can be poetised – Baris Gencel. Hong Kong 60's heritage, a five connecting buildings in Quarry Bay, namely Oceanic Mansion, Fook Cheong Building, Montane Mansion, Yick Cheong Building and Yick Fat Building, are a perfect reflection of city’s famed urban density. The photogenic architecture of this housing complex has been featured in many Hollywood blockbusters.

Stairway To Unknown

Straits-born Chinese – the Peranakan (which means “born of”) – are largely the descendants of Chinese immigrants who came to Indonesia, Malaysia, ans Singapore in the 17th century and married local women. The Peranakan culture, a hybrid southeast Asian culture of Chinese, Malay and Indian influences, also has esoteric Portuguese, Dutch and Indonesian traces. Peranakan architecture or also known as Chinese Baroque, Tropical Renaissance architecture amongst many other names, consists of rich and wide range of architectural vocabulary derived from the hybrid of that western and eastern styles and traditions. Photo taken in Pinang Peranakan Mansion.

The Giant Egg

Architecture is a visual art, and the buildings speak for themselves - Julia Morgan. The National Center for the Performing Arts (NCPA) is located in the heart of old Beijing, close to the Great Hall of the People, Tian’anmen Square and the ancient Forbidden City. Colloquially described as The Giant Egg, this 149,500 square meter titanium and glass shell, in the shape of an ellipsoid, houses an opera house, a concert hall, and two theaters, as well as public spaces. The structure, surrounded by an artificial lake and green lawns and gardens, is seen as a cultural island in the middle of a lake.

Ad Infinitum

If the doors of perception were cleansed everything would appear to man as it is, infinite - William Blake. Besides its bas-reliefs, the Battle of the Gods gallery of Angkor Wat exhibits a mesmerizing architecture.

The Arch Of Caracalla

Visible from the nearby of Moulay Idriss Zerhoun, and from higher points throughout the valley, Volubilis is one of Morocco’s best-preserved Roman ruins located between the Imperial Cities of Fez and Meknès on a fertile plain surrounded by wheat fields. Established before the Christian era, at a time when the area was part of Mauretania, Volubilis was considered the administrative center of the kingdom of Mauretania and also one of the most remote cities within the Roman Empire, located in the far southwestern region. The remaining structures and mosaics tell the tale of a city that once thrived. The ruins that have been spared are beautifully preserved relics of the Roman era. The Arch Of Caracalla is one of Volubilis' most distinctive sights. It was built in 217 by the city's governor, Marcus Aurelius Sebastenus, to honour the emperor Caracalla and his mother Julia Domna. The arch is constructed from local stone and was originally topped by a bronze chariot pulled by six horses. Statues of nymphs poured water into carved marble basins at the foot of the arch. Caracalla and Julia Domna were represented on medallion busts, though these have been defaced. The monument was reconstructed by the French between 1930–34.

A Master's Work Of Art

The true work of art is but a shadow of the divine perfection - Michelangelo. Every work of art tells a story. In Cambodia, aesthetically stunning monuments and artifacts tell us about a rich tradition steeped in history and symbolism: the stone carving. Earlier Khmer art was influenced by the Indian culture and its Hindu themes. But, by the 7th century, Khmer sculpture began to drift away from its Hindu influences and, through constant stylistic evolution, came to develop its own originality, which by the 10th century, can be considered complete and absolute. During the golden age of the Khmer civilization (9th -12th centuries), Kings of Angkor launched a vast building plan of stone temples. So, the art of stone carving was both a passion and a livelihood for more than a Cambodian sculptor. However, after the fall of the empire, carving became limited in general to the handicraft-type projects we know today. That is, small Buddha sculptures and statues, deity carvings and so on and so forth. Photo taken in Banteay Srei.

¡No Pasarán!

The damaged western entrance of Pre Rup. Pre Rup is a temple at Angkor, Cambodia, built as the state temple of Khmer king Rajendravarman and dedicated in 961 or early 962. It is a temple mountain of combined brick, laterite and sandstone construction. The temple’s name is a comparatively modern one meaning "turn the body". This reflects the common belief among Cambodians that funerals were conducted at the temple, with the ashes of the body being ritually rotated in different directions as the service progressed.

Game Of Sandstones

Engineering is the art of directing the great sources of power in nature for the use and convenience of man - Thomas Tredgold. Angkor Wat is an amazing work of Khmer architecture. It shows that symmetry and repetition were very important to Khmer design: galleries with columns, towers, curved roofs, tympanums, steps and the cross-shaped plan occur again and again. Spreading over 30 years, the construction of the temple required about 6 to 10 million blocks of sandstone with an average weight of 1.5 tons each. The blocks were transported from Mount Kulen, a quarry approximately 40 km to the northeast, thru a series of canals.

The Sins Of Man

The Basílica i Temple Expiatori de la Sagrada Familia (English: Basilica and Expiatory Church of the Holy Family) is a large Roman Catholic church in Barcelona, designed by Spanish architect Antoni Gaudí. Passion Facade , on the theme of Christ’s last days and death, was built between 1954 and 1978 based on surviving drawings by Gaudí, with four towers and a large sculpture-bedecked portal.