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Four walls and a roof are all that’s
needed to create a building. That is, if you want to stick to the basics. But when
you’re aiming to design a building the world will look at- with admiration, disbelief
or whatever- you’ve got to be different. You’ve got to come up with something
people will come from across the globe to gape at.
So this is it. The definitive list of the strangest, most unusual edifices on
Earth. Some are architectural marvels- beautiful, impressive buildings which dominate the
skyline; others are downright bizarre. A combination of the weird and the wonderful, the
loopy and the lovely: the one-of-a-kind buildings.
- The Corn
Palace, Mitchell, South Dakota, USA
- Guggenheim Museum, Bilbao, Spain
- Troglodyte Dwellings, Matmata, Tunisia
- Lloyd’s of London
Building, London
- The Bah’ai
House of Worship, New Delhi, India
- Trulli Houses, Alberobello, Italy
- The Burj-al-Arab Hotel, Dubai
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The Corn Palace, Mitchell, South Dakota
| This is the prime
example of what an architect with a corny sense of humour can do, given the time and the
space- and the material, of course! The town of Mitchell in South Dakota has always prided
itself on the fine corn it grows, and they’re so proud of the stuff they actually
decided- way back in 1892- to make a building to honour the source of their daily bread.
What emerged from the collective thinking of so many corn lovers was a building as bizarre
as can be- the Corn Palace. |
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Originally built in 1892 as the `Corn Belt Exposition’ building, the
Corn Palace is a huge auditorium, constructed of steel and decorated all over the outside
with murals which are made primarily of corn. Every year, kilos and kilos of corn- and
plenty of subsidiary materials, including grasses, grains, wild oats, rye, straw and
wheat- are painstakingly arranged in huge designs which cover all of the exterior.
You’ll see some interesting murals here: pictures of the Wild West, of the South
Dakota countryside, of anything that shows you what Mitchell is all about. Annually, the
last year’s murals are stripped and replaced by new designs. Photographs of previous
designs can be seen in the gallery of the Corn Palace Convention Centre.
The Corn Palace is at 601 North Main, Mitchell (Tel: 605-996-5031 or
1-866-273-2676) and is open to visitors from 8 am to 5 pm throughout the year, free of
charge. The gift shop attached to the Corn Palace has plenty of corn memorabilia on sale,
and a special Corn Palace Festival, featuring a series of entertainment and sports events,
is held every year in August or September.
Click here for
more information on the USA.
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Guggenheim Museum, Bilbao
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Bilbao, in Spain,
is a city of many faces- and the most contemporary of them is the Guggenheim Museum.
Inside it is one of Europe’s best collections of modern art; but what we’re
concerned with is the building itself, and that is truly spectacular. The Guggenheim
Museum sits, like a metallic rose, on the bank of the Nervión River, one side of the
building being actually pierced by the Puente de La Salve bridge. Designed in 1997 by
Frank Gehry, the museum was modelled on a blossoming flower- petals and all. A solid frame
of limestone and steel supports an exterior sheathing of titanium, shimmering and
glittering in the sunshine (or the illumination, depending upon what time it is). The
sheath consists of half-inch thick titanium `fish-scale’ panels which are supposed to
last for a hundred years. |
As you approach the Guggenheim Museum, you’re greeted by a 10mt tall
figure of a dog, crafted from flowering plants. It stands at the entrance to the museum
and is called, rather unimaginatively, `Puppy’. Beyond this canine efflorescence
towers the gleaming bulk of the museum, all white and silver and very futuristic. The roof
curls, curves and billows in a row of breathtakingly beautiful swirls; glass walls and
skylights let in light. Inside, a series of curving pathways and glass elevators connect
the 19 galleries which form the Guggenheim Museum. Walk through the museum if you must;
but do spend some time looking at the building- it’s one of the best around.
The Guggenheim Museum is situated at Abandoibarra Et. 2, Bilbao (Tel:
34-9443590 80). It’s open between 10 am and 8 pm, Tuesday to Sunday, and from 9 am to
9 pm during July and August.
Click here for
more information on Bilbao.
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Troglodyte Dwellings, Matmata
| A long time
ago, in a galaxy far, far away… If you’re a Star Wars fan,
you’ll probably be wondering what Matmata in Tunisia could possibly have in common
with this sci-fic flick. Well, the galaxy far, far away wasn’t really that far: a lot
of the shooting happened right here on earth, in some of the most interesting traditional
buildings in the world: the troglodyte dwellings of Matmata, Tunisia. |
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Troglodyte dwellings- cave houses made by carving out rock or earth- are
found in Libya and Morocco too, but the ones in Tunisia are the best known; and of those,
Matmata is foremost. Matmata is 450 km south of Tunis, and worth a visit if only to see
these unusual homes. A distinctively Saharan form of architecture, troglodyte
dwellings in Matmata are made by the Mammama des Matmata Berber tribes, who carve
vertically downwards into the ground. The soft, porous rock of Matmata allows easy cutting
into large circular pits, from which passages lead into the houses themselves. Each house
is equipped with a central courtyard, and has separate rooms for living and storage, all
of them connected by a labyrinth of passages. Originally made for the natural insulation
they offer, troglodyte dwellings today are really hep: with up to eight rooms each,
air-conditioned and heated. TV antennas sprout above them, and some homes have fitted
furniture.
Seen from above, Matmata certainly looks eerily lunar- a dry, barren stretch
of land, potholed with dozens of craters. But venture below ground level, into a friendly
household or one of the local hotels, and you may just find yourself wondering if you
haven’t wandered onto a different planet after all.
Click here for more information on Tunisia.
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Lloyd’s of London Building, London
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St Paul’s and
the Houses of Parliament may have typified London’s architecture a century ago, but
the contemporary face of Britain’s capital is definitely the spectacular Lloyd’s
of London Building. Leadenhall Street in central London is where this magnificent building
stands- a shimmering tower of polished steel and glass.
At night, carefully placed lighting transforms Lloyd’s, making it sparkle and shimmer
in a dozen colours. The buildings around are the usual office blocks- sedate and
functional; but Lloyd’s is different.
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Designed to house the offices of insurance giant Lloyd’s, this building
was designed by Richard Rogers & Partners (one of Britain’s leading architectural
firms) in 1979, and was completed in 1985. The main philosophy behind the design was to
build an intelligent building- which the architects certainly managed to achieve.
What is most fascinating about Lloyd’s is the fact that every structural detail of
the building is on full display. Huge steel pipes for water, drainage and ventilation
climb up the outside of the building, instead of being hidden away within walls. Inside,
the tower is divided into 16 floors- all carefully arranged in the form of concentric
galleries, so that if you’re standing in the atrium on the ground floor, you can
actually look straight up, at the ceiling 84 mt above. Glazed elevators and moving
conveyor belts connect different levels, and functional areas- kitchens, toilets, fire
escapes and more- sit in a separate tower for convenient maintenance.
The building
of the 21st century? Lloyd’s definitely qualifies.
You can visit Lloyd’s only if you have a prior booking; and you might be
charged an entry fee for the privilege. Call 44-0-207623 7100 if you’re interested.
Click here
for more information on London.
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The Bah’ai House of Worship, New Delhi
| The youngest of
the world’s independent religions, the Bahá’í faith came into existence only
about a century ago, and though it’s still a fairly little-known religion, it has to
its credit one of the most beautiful religious buildings on Earth: the Bah’ai House
of Worship in New Delhi. |
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The
Bahá’í faith has seven houses of worship, scattered across the continents, and the
newest- as well as the best known- is the one in Delhi. Designed by Canadian architect
Fariborz Sahba, the Delhi House of Worship was inaugurated in 1986. Since then, it’s
received a number of accolades and architectural awards, with some even referring to it as
`the Taj Mahal of the 20th century’.
Call it
what you will, it’s undoubtedly lovely. More popularly known as the Lotus Temple, it
was inspired by the lotus flower, and is easily the most distinctive feature of
Delhi’s skyline. Like all the other Bahá’í houses of worship, the temple in
Delhi is nine-sided and topped by a central dome. A dazzling white structure, it stands in
the form of a 27-petalled lotus, its petals arranged in groups of three along the nine
sides of the edifice. Each petal is crafted from white concrete, reinforced with
galvanized steel, and clad with fine white Greek marble. Nine arches surround the central
hall, and beyond the arches are nine pools of blue-green water, encircling the temple. The
Lotus Temple towers to a height of 35 mt, and is surrounded by green lawns, occupying a
total of 26 acres. Seen from above, the resemblance to a lotus blooming amidst green
leaves is unmistakable, if a little abstract.
The Lotus Temple is located at Bahapur, Kalkaji (Tel: 6444029) and is open
seven days a week from 9 am to 7 pm from April 1 to September 30, and from 9.30 am to 5.30
pm the rest of the year.
Click here for
more information on New Delhi.
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Trulli Houses, Alberobello, Italy
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Tucked away in the
`heel’ of Italy’s boot is the province of Apuglia- and here, along the long
coastline, pockmarked with karsts and cliffs, is one of the most interesting architectural
styles you’re likely to see in Europe: the trullo. The trullo (`trulli’ is
plural) dates back to the 14th century, and is a brilliant example of drywall,
mortarless masonry- no cement, no water and no concrete was used to build these
distinctive houses, with their cone-shaped roofs. |
South-east of the historic city of Bari lies the town of Alberobello, a
region of olive groves and ancient villages, dotted with the trulli houses typical of this
area. Trulli homes are seen all across Apuglia, but Alberobello has the greatest
concentration of these unusual buildings: almost 1500 houses. Aja Piccola and Monti are
the two main quarters where you’ll see trulli. The houses, hand-made from blocks of
limestone, have white-washed walls and a conical vaulted roof, with a hole at the top to
allow smoke out. Originally, the limestone blocks used to construct a trullo were
collected from the Apuglian countryside, then skilfully placed one atop the other without
any mortar being used.
No new trulli houses have been built for the past fifty years, but that
doesn’t mean the art has died out. Trulli masters in Apuglia still practice their
craft, passing on the knowledge from father to son, and usually using their craft to make
repairs to existing structures.
Click here for more information on Italy.
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The
Burj-al-Arab Hotel, Dubai
| Whether this building should figure
in `Striking Structures' or `Room with a View' was something we couldn't really decide on-
for it's a bit of both. A stunning edifice, literally the leading light on Dubai's
skyline; and a hotel with a difference. The Burj-al-Arab hotel is the place to stay in
Dubai (if you've got the money for it) and the place to photograph in Dubai (if you
don't). Designed by the British
architectural firm W S Atkins International, the Burj-al-Arab Hotel is everything you'd
expect of a building in wealthy, flashy Dubai. |
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Towering to a massive height of
321 mt, this hotel's the tallest in the world, and also lays claim to the world's tallest
atrium. It stands off the shore of the Persian Gulf, on a manmade island- a distinctive
sail-shaped structure, made from Teflon-coated fibreglass, highly reminiscent of the
ponderous dhows which once sailed these seas. But that's where the similarity ends, for
the Burj-al-Arab is the ultimate in swank- and looks it.
Every surface reflects-in more ways than one- the glitter and wealth of Dubai. Rare
Brazilian granite forms the basis of the hotel's 202 suites, each of which spreads over
two floors; a below-sea level restaurant offers diners a peek onto the coral reef outside;
and some 9,000-odd square metres of gold leaf, marble, granite and crystal decorate the
building. Lifts travelling at the speed of 7 mt a second take guests up the hotel, while
leaping flames across the hotel entrance greet visitors to the hotel.
Stunning? You bet it is. And you can visit it, even if you aren't staying there- but watch
out: the fee to cross the private bridge which connects Burj-al-Arab to the mainland is a
hefty $55. The hotel's situated 15 km south of Dubai city, and can be contacted at
971-4-348-0000.
Click here, for more
information on Dubai.
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