Bilbao
is the new modern face of the Basque Country. The city has been able to successfully mix traditional Basque culture with a new vision for the future. It is an absolute must for design and culture lovers. We also love that Bilbao is surrounded by green hills and is within close proximity to the coast. Bilbao is the beating heart of the Basque Country and its largest city. It is the most cosmopolitan of the cities in the region and is constantly evolving. Bilbao ballooned in population during industrialization and prospered through steel production, shipping, ship building and banking. However, by the 1970’s the city had developed into a gray smokestack and a serious economic crisis had arrived. A new plan was devised and Bilbao started its journey of rebirth. Old industrial complexes along the river Nervión were torn down and new projects to improve infrastructure and the overall growth of the city were started. Bilbao now boasts having the Guggenheim Museum designed by architect Frank Gehry, a timeless Metro system designed by Sir Norman Foster, an airport from Spanish architect Santiago Calatrava and a community center (Alhondiga) designed by Philippe Starck. The list goes on and on. source: http://www.euskoguide.com
is the new modern face of the Basque Country. The city has been able to successfully mix traditional Basque culture with a new vision for the future. It is an absolute must for design and culture lovers. We also love that Bilbao is surrounded by green hills and is within close proximity to the coast. Bilbao is the beating heart of the Basque Country and its largest city. It is the most cosmopolitan of the cities in the region and is constantly evolving. Bilbao ballooned in population during industrialization and prospered through steel production, shipping, ship building and banking. However, by the 1970’s the city had developed into a gray smokestack and a serious economic crisis had arrived. A new plan was devised and Bilbao started its journey of rebirth. Old industrial complexes along the river Nervión were torn down and new projects to improve infrastructure and the overall growth of the city were started. Bilbao now boasts having the Guggenheim Museum designed by architect Frank Gehry, a timeless Metro system designed by Sir Norman Foster, an airport from Spanish architect Santiago Calatrava and a community center (Alhondiga) designed by Philippe Starck. The list goes on and on. source: http://www.euskoguide.com
Guggenheim Museum
Hailed as the most important structure of its time when it opened in 1997, Frank Gehry’s Guggenheim Museum Bilbao has changed the way people think about museums and continues to challenge assumptions about the connections between art, architecture, and collecting. A spectacular structure made of titanium, glass, and limestone. Located in the Basque city of Bilbao in northern Spain, the museum features exhibitions organized by the Guggenheim Foundation and by the Guggenheim Museum Bilbao, as well as selections from the permanent collection of the Guggenheim Museums.Source: www.guggenheim.org
Hailed as the most important structure of its time when it opened in 1997, Frank Gehry’s Guggenheim Museum Bilbao has changed the way people think about museums and continues to challenge assumptions about the connections between art, architecture, and collecting. A spectacular structure made of titanium, glass, and limestone. Located in the Basque city of Bilbao in northern Spain, the museum features exhibitions organized by the Guggenheim Foundation and by the Guggenheim Museum Bilbao, as well as selections from the permanent collection of the Guggenheim Museums.Source: www.guggenheim.org
Airport
The new terminal is designed by the architect Santiago Calatrava and is the result of an investment of 43 million Euros ($39 million). It covers an area of 25,000m² and will be able to handle up to 3 million passengers per year. Work on the airport started in the early 1990s but did not reach completion until late in the decade. The airport was fully operational by 2000. Santiago Calatrava's design is regarded by the company as 'operatic' and the development is known locally as la paloma (the dove). Aesthetics are very important because the airport is the gateway to the Basque capital and the area has recently seen the addition of some spectacular new buildings, such as the Guggenheim museum. The layout of the airport has been designed to limit the impact of ancillary buildings on the vista of the main building. The four-storey car park, for instance, is tucked into a grassy embankment, out of sight and mind once the vehicle has been parked. Inside the building there is a similar aesthetic concern. The floors are of shining marble and passengers reach the aircraft by way of the departure hall and the four-storey departure gallery that lies beyond it, connected to the aircraft by steel gangways. source: www.airport-technology.com
The new terminal is designed by the architect Santiago Calatrava and is the result of an investment of 43 million Euros ($39 million). It covers an area of 25,000m² and will be able to handle up to 3 million passengers per year. Work on the airport started in the early 1990s but did not reach completion until late in the decade. The airport was fully operational by 2000. Santiago Calatrava's design is regarded by the company as 'operatic' and the development is known locally as la paloma (the dove). Aesthetics are very important because the airport is the gateway to the Basque capital and the area has recently seen the addition of some spectacular new buildings, such as the Guggenheim museum. The layout of the airport has been designed to limit the impact of ancillary buildings on the vista of the main building. The four-storey car park, for instance, is tucked into a grassy embankment, out of sight and mind once the vehicle has been parked. Inside the building there is a similar aesthetic concern. The floors are of shining marble and passengers reach the aircraft by way of the departure hall and the four-storey departure gallery that lies beyond it, connected to the aircraft by steel gangways. source: www.airport-technology.com
Zubizuri Bridge
(Basque for "white bridge"), also called the Campo Volantin Bridge or Puente del Campo Volantin, is a tied arch footbridge across the Nervion River in Bilbao, linking the Campo Volantin right bank and Uribitarte left bank of the river. The design consists of an inclined structural steel arch linking two platforms, with access ramps and stairways on both banks. Architect: Santiago Calatrava. source: www.mimoa.eu
(Basque for "white bridge"), also called the Campo Volantin Bridge or Puente del Campo Volantin, is a tied arch footbridge across the Nervion River in Bilbao, linking the Campo Volantin right bank and Uribitarte left bank of the river. The design consists of an inclined structural steel arch linking two platforms, with access ramps and stairways on both banks. Architect: Santiago Calatrava. source: www.mimoa.eu
Kursaal Auditorium and Congress Center, San Sebastian
The beauty of San Sebastián is largely due to its environment, to its landscape. Few cities are endowed with more favorable natural conditions. The site of the Kursaal Auditorium and Congress Center at the mouth of the Urumea River is a geographical accident and must remain as such. Hence, Moneo proposed to erect a building that would not violate the presence of the river in the city. The auditorium and the congress hall, the key programmatic elements of the scheme, are conceived as separate autonomous volumes, as two gigantic rocks stranded at the mouth of the river forming part of the landscape rather than belonging to the city. All other facilitiesthe exhibition halls, meeting rooms, offices, a restaurant, and musicians' servicesare located in the platform, the base that gives due importance to the cubic volumes. source: www.gsd.harvard.edu
The beauty of San Sebastián is largely due to its environment, to its landscape. Few cities are endowed with more favorable natural conditions. The site of the Kursaal Auditorium and Congress Center at the mouth of the Urumea River is a geographical accident and must remain as such. Hence, Moneo proposed to erect a building that would not violate the presence of the river in the city. The auditorium and the congress hall, the key programmatic elements of the scheme, are conceived as separate autonomous volumes, as two gigantic rocks stranded at the mouth of the river forming part of the landscape rather than belonging to the city. All other facilitiesthe exhibition halls, meeting rooms, offices, a restaurant, and musicians' servicesare located in the platform, the base that gives due importance to the cubic volumes. source: www.gsd.harvard.edu