1. National Grand Theatre, China
Made completely of glass and titanium and surrounded by an artificial lake to resemble a dome-like shape, this truly is an architectural masterpiece!
2. Dancing House, Prague
The curved glass building is supposed to represent famous dancers, Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers, dancing. A stark contrast to the more historical, traditional architecture in Prague.
3. Farnsworth House, Chicago
Known by many as the ‘famous glass house in the woods’, the extensive use of clear glass makes this house appear almost transparent.
4. Louvre Pyramid, Paris
Probably one of the most famous and well recognised glass buildings worldwide is the Louvre Pyramid that stands in front of the Louvre Museum in Paris, France. The pyramid stands tall at 70 feet and consists of 673 glass sections from tip to base.
5. Basque Health Department HQ, Bilbao, Spain
Made of glass and steel with a polyhedral glass facade that allows light into the interior to make it a transparent, luminous space that appears almost surreal.
6. La Estancia Glass Chapel, Mexico
Whilst not the largest or the grandest glass building, this beautiful open glass chapel is set in the peaceful gardens of Cuernavacova and is an extremely popular place for weddings. What makes this chapel clever is that the four facades are wrapped with U-profiled glass, each spaced 10cm apart, to ventilate the small space without a requirement for air conditioning.
7. The Glass Home by Carlo Santambrogio, Milan, Italy
You definitely wouldn’t want to throw stones near this house as this cubed concept home, designed with a blue hue, features glass walls, ceilings, stairways and doors. The home makes small spaces appear larger because even the furniture is made out of glass.
8. The Netherlands Institute for Sound and Vision
Wrapped in a skin of colourful glass panels, this is one seriously eye-catching building!
9. Selgas Cano Architecture Office, Spain
This glass capsule set in the middle of a quiet Spanish forest is definitely a bit different from the usual office building. A clear curved wall of glass means the walls and ceiling of the office are completely open to the nature that surrounds it.
10. The Gherkin, London
And, finally, one that’s a little closer to home is London’s striking skyscraper, The Gherkin. The skin of the building is double glazed and the space between the glazing is ventilated to help control temperature and ventilation. Surprisingly, most of the panes of glass are flat and the only curved glass is the ‘lens’ at the top.
What’s your favourite glass building in the world?
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