Robert Barnes

Standing at 36m above the busy Henderson Road, Henderson Waves Bridge is Singapore’s highest pedestrian bridge, connecting Mount Faber Park to Telok Blangah Hill Park. What makes this pedestrian bridge unique is its stunning wave-like structure made up of seven undulating curved steel ribs that alternately go above and below its deck.The curved ribs form alcoves that function as shelters with seats within, making them nice places to hang out. Thousands of yellow balau wood slats were used to compose the deck.

This architectural wonder is a 274 meter-long and 8m-wide part of the Southern Ridges, a beautiful 9km (5.6 mi) trail in a lush open space that connects the hills of Mount Faber Park, Telok Blangah Hill Park and Kent Ridge Park.

[pull_quote_center]The bridge takes on a different look at night, when it is illuminated with attractive LED light from 7pm to 2am daily.[/pull_quote_center]

Designed by IJP Corporation and RSP Architects, Planners, and Engineers, the worm-like structure was completed in 2008. Made of steel and timber, the bridge was built for $25.5 million by the Urban Redevelopment Authority in the Southern Ridges. It is about 900-feet long and is the highest pedestrian bridge in Singapore at 118-feet above the ground.

Smoothly integrated into the landscape, the Henderson Waves Bridge provides a great outdoor experience, as you can walk through the top of the forests and see a rich variety of flora and fauna, including birds in their natural habitats. It is also one of the best spots in Singapore to catch panoramic views of the city, harbor and the Southern Islands.

Located on the edge of the Pearl River, the 138-metre Guangzhou Circle was designed by Di Pasquale of Milan studio AM Project to provide an iconic headquarters for Chinese companies Guangdong Hongda Xingye Group and GDPE Guangdong Plastic Exchange

The total height is 138 mt for 33 floors, 85.000 square meters of floor area and about 50 million euros of global investment. The inner hole is a unique space that has no equal in the world with its almost fifty meters of diameter (48 mt).

Architect Joseph di Pasquale has said the hole is key to the structure because the empty centre would evoke an emotional response from its viewers.

Some local residents made the trip from the city centre to take a look at the newest icon in town. “I think he (the architect) is very brave. He made something that other people did not have the courage to make. It’s a circular building, which is really unique in Guangzhou,” said architecture student, Ash Sze, 18.

Chinese netizens have lashed out at the building, calling it a crass symbol of wealth and nicknamed it “Tuhao Circle” or “Copper Coin Building.”

[quote_box_center]”It’s quite unusual. I’m quite intrigued to see a building with a circular hole in the middle. Personally, I think it’s for the flashy rich people,” said one unidentified resident.[/quote_box_center]

Hongdaxingye Group, which funded the building, hosted a naming competition for the building earlier this year. In September, it gave the unidentified winner, who came up with the name “Guangzhou Circle”, 100,000 yuan (US$16,500).

The architectural concept is inspired by the strong iconic value of jade discs and numerological tradition of feng shui. In particular, the double disc of jade (bi-disk) is the royal symbol of ancient Chinese dynasty that reigned in this area around 2000 years ago. The building reflected in the water of the river creates exactly the same image: a double jade disc.

This figure also corresponds to the number 8 and infinity symbol that Chinese culture has a strong propitiatory value. Just remember how the date and time of the start of the Beijing Olympics was for the same reason fixed to 8:08 am of the ‘8-8-2008.

The Dongdaemun Design Plaza, designed by Iraqi British architect Zaha Hadid, will house a fashion design information center with seminar rooms and a lecture hall. There will be a multi-purpose convention hall and a number of exhibition halls.

The DDP has been designed as a cultural hub at the centre of Dongdaemun, an historic district of Seoul that is now renowned for its 24-hour shopping and cafes. DDP is a place for people of all ages; a catalyst for the instigation and exchange of ideas and for new technologies and media to be explored. The variety of public spaces within DDP include Exhibition Halls, Convention Halls, Design Museum, Lab and Archives, Children’s Education Centre, Media Centre, Seminar Rooms and Sky Lounge; enabling DDP to present the widest diversity of exhibitions and events that feed the cultural vitality of the city.

View full article here – design boom

Zaha Hadid, founder of Zaha Hadid Architects, was awarded the Pritzker Architecture Prize (considered to be the Nobel Prize of architecture) in 2004 and is internationally known for both her theoretical and academic work. Each of her dynamic and innovative projects builds on over thirty years of revolutionary exploration and research in the interrelated fields of urbanism, architecture and design.

Hadid studied architecture at the Architectural Association from 1972 and was awarded the Diploma Prize in 1977.

Hadid’s interest lies in the rigorous interface between architecture, landscape and geology as her practice integrates natural topography and human-made systems, leading to experimentation with cutting-edge technologies. Such a process often results in unexpected and dynamic architectural forms.

Currently Hadid is working on a multitude of projects worldwide including: the London Aquatics Centre for the 2012 Olympic Games; High-Speed Train Stations in Naples and Durango; the CMA CGM Headquarters tower in Marseille; the Fiera di Milano masterplan and tower as well as major master-planning projects in Beijing, Bilbao, Istanbul and Singapore. In the Middle East, Hadid’s portfolio includes national cultural and research centres in Jordan, Morocco, Algeria, Azerbaijan, Abu Dhabi and Saudi Arabia, as well as the new Central Bank of Iraq.

Zaha Hadid’s work of the past 30 years was the subject of critically-acclaimed retrospective exhibitions at New York’s Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum in 2006, London’s Design Museum in 2007 and the Palazzo della Ragione, Padua, Italy in 2009. Her recently completed projects include the MAXXI Museum in Rome; which won the Stirling award in 2010. Hadid’s outstanding contribution to the architectural profession continues to be acknowledged by the most world’s most respected institutions. She received the prestigious ‘Praemium Imperiale’ from the Japan Art Association in 2009, and in 2010, the Stirling Prize – one of architecture’s highest accolades – from the Royal Institute of British Architects.

Other recent awards include UNESCO naming Hadid as an ‘Artist for Peace’ at a ceremony in their Paris headquarters last year. Also in 2010, the Republic of France named Hadid as ‘Commandeur de l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres’ in recognition of her services to architecture, and TIME magazine included her in their 2010 list of the ‘100 Most Influential People in the World’. This year’s ‘Time 100’ is divided into four categories: Leaders, Thinkers, Artists and Heroes – with Hadid ranking top of the Thinkers category.