Eight Great Modern Pyramids
Here are some of the best pyramid-shaped buildings in modern architecture:
Louvre Museum Pyramid; Paris, France
The Louvre Pyramid (Pyramide du Louvre) is a large glass and metal pyramid, surrounded by three smaller pyramids, in the main courtyard (Cour Napoléon) of the Louvre Palace (Palais du Louvre) in Paris. The large pyramid serves as the main entrance to the Louvre Museum. Completed in 1989, it has become a landmark of the city of Paris.
Transamerica Pyramid; San Francisco, USA
The Transamerica Pyramid is the tallest and possibly the most recognizable skyscraper in the San Francisco skyline. Although the building no longer houses the headquarters of the Transamerica Corporation, it is still strongly associated with the company and is depicted in the company's logo. Designed by architect William Pereira, at 260 m (850 ft), upon completion in 1972 it was among the five tallest buildings in the world.
Tha Pyramid Arena; Memphis, USA
The Pyramid Arena is a 20,142-seat arena located in downtown Memphis at the banks of the Mississippi River. The facility was built in 1991 and was originally owned and operated jointly by the city of Memphis and Shelby County. Its unique structure plays on the city's namesake in Egypt, known for its ancient pyramids. It is 321 feet (98m, about 32 stories) tall and has base sides of 591 ft; it is the sixth largest pyramid in the world behind the Great Pyramid of Giza (456 ft), Khafre's Pyramid (448 ft), Luxor Hotel (348 ft), the Red Pyramid (341 ft) and the Bent Pyramid (332 ft), both in Dahshur. It is also slightly (about 16 feet) taller than the Statue of Liberty. A statue of Ramesses the Great stands in front of the pyramid.
Walter Pyramid; Long Beach, USA
Walter Pyramid, formerly known as Long Beach Pyramid, is a 5,000-seat, indoor multi-purpose stadium on the campus of California State University, Long Beach in Long Beach, California.
Palace of Peace and Reconciliation (also translated as the Pyramid of Peace and Accord); Astana, Kazakhstan
The Palace of Peace and Reconciliation (also translated as the Pyramid of Peace and Accord) is a 77 m high building in Astana, the capital of Kazakhstan. The structure was built by Sembol Construction at a cost of 8.74 billion Kazakh tenge (about $58 million) and opened in late 2006.
The pyramid portion of the building is 62 m high which sits on a 15 m high earth covered block. All of this construction is above ground level. Though the landscaping of the park rises up to cover the lower levels, these are not in fact basements.
It was designed by the British architects Foster and Partners (lead design). Turkish architects, Tabanlioglu Architecture undertook construction information packages for the Foster design and engineers Buro Happold undertook lead structural and services design. The Foster team was led by architects Nigel Dancey, Lee Hallman and Peter Ridley. Sembol Construction undertook a Design and Build contract, and were ultimately responsible for the final details and finishes, some of which varied considerably from the Foster and Tabanlioglu intent.
Ryugyong Hotel; Pyongyang, North Korea
The Ryugyong Hotel (Korean: 류경호텔) (sometimes anglicized as Ryu-Gyong Hotel or Yu-Kyung Hotel is a topped-out 105-storey skyscraper under construction in Pyongyang, North Korea. Its name ("capital of willows") is also one of the historic names for Pyongyang. The building is also known as the 105 Building, a reference to its number of floors. Construction began in 1987 with planned completion in 1989. However, after several delays, construction was eventually halted in 1992; the fall of the Soviet Union had resulted in widespread economic disruptions in North Korea and shortages of raw materials.
The hotel stood topped out but without windows or interior fittings for the next sixteen years. Construction resumed in April 2008 under the supervision of the Orascom Group of Egypt, which has invested heavily in the North Korean mobile telephony and construction industries. The company expected to complete exterior work on the building in 2010, with interior work on the hotel's 360,000 square metres (3,900,000 sq ft) of floor space taking until 2012 or later.
Triangle; Paris, France
Triangle, also known as Projet Triangle, Ramses Delanoë or Delanoë Tower, is a proposed skyscraper for Val de Seine, Paris, France. Designed by the Swiss agency Herzog & de Meuron, it will take the shape of a 180m tall glass pyramid with trapezoid base, wide from one side and narrow from another.
When completed, it will be the first skyscraper built in the French capital since 1977. Paris mayor, Bertrand Delanoë, was able to overturn the Parisian law that did not allow any building to be higher than 37 meters.
Steelcase Head Office; Grand Rapids, USA
It took five years, 300 meetings and a team of architects, designers, builders and psychologists to help the iconic pyramid-shaped Steelcase Inc. Corporate Development Center make its debut in 1989. When completed, the Steelcase pyramid was touted as the country's most comprehensive research center for the nation's largest office-furniture manufacturer.
The seven-story, 575,000-square-foot building has had testing laboratories, project team areas and even a sound-proof room for measuring the noise created by furniture. Designed by Grand Rapids architectural firm The WBDC Group and built by Barnes Construction Co., it was visited by Egyptian engineers, who appraised the structure's aesthetic and functional use of space.
Full list of modern day pyramids at Wikipedia
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