Beijing’s New Face – Olympic Architecture

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Beijing’s New Face – Olympic Architecture

14 July 2008 by Bob

Beijing National Stadium

Beijing is a city reshaped, and the 2008 Olympic Games will leave a lasting impact on the landscape of one of the most historic cities in the world. Coming at a time of huge economic growth and large-scale

rural-urban migration (legitimate and unofficial) the Olympics has come as a spur for adventurous architecture on an ambitious scale.

For an introduction into the new landmarks reinventing Beijing’s identity check out a new interactive guide from NYT (thanks Rusk for pointing this out). Click ‘play audio’ for a succinct analysis of each project.

The Water Cube - Beijing Olympic National Aquatic Centre At Night

The slide show of the National Aquatic Centre (Water Cube) shows how the beautiful bubbles/cells were generated. One other thing that Bob didn’t know was that there is a water park within the Water Cube that will remain in use after the Olympics – a definite must on the Beijing to do list!

Apart from the Water Cube and the National Stadium – aka the Bird’s Nest – the guide also covers the new Airport terminal, the National Theatre and the CCTV tower.

For more information on the Water Cube and comments from one of the architects of the Bird’s Nest take a look at these past posts.

The Bird's Nest - Beijing's National Stadium

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Posted in Architecture, Beijing, Culture, Legacy | Tagged Architecture, beijing architecture, bird's nest, national aquatics center, national stadium, olympic architecture, water cube | 6 Comments

6 Responses

on 15 July 2008 at 2:16 am | Reply Beijing » Emerson will go to Beijing Olympics opening ceremony

[...] Beijing’s New Face – Olympic ArchitectureBeijing is a city reshaped, and the 2008 Olympic Games will leave a lasting impact on the landscape of one of the most historic cities in the world. Coming at a time of huge economic growth and large-scale … [...]
on 18 July 2008 at 10:32 am | Reply Jean

The Bird’s Nest that I’ve seen in Beijing look very huge and beautiful. And I like the colors of the National Aquatics Center, I found it very unique.
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on 22 July 2008 at 11:22 am | Reply abiy

i wish i could see it in person. i wish.
on 1 August 2008 at 4:58 pm | Reply chucky

only one word 4me is FANTASTIC!!! birdnet national stadium. i love it… i love china……
on 9 July 2009 at 9:13 pm | Reply Gold Medal Architecture | Cult Modern

[...] but as home to incredible modern architectural as well. Click on the link to see more photos of the Beijing Olympic buildings, additional photos here. Submit this to Script & StyleShare this on BlinklistShare this on [...]
on 30 March 2010 at 5:27 am | Reply Nicki Nelson

I am looking for a photobook of the Bird’s Nest as a special gift for a friend. Does such an item exists?