London’s Best

Architecture

Ravensbourne

College

Ravensbourne College

• This college for design and communication was designed by Foreign Office Architects, and it comprises a façade of 28,000 anodised aluminium tiles. These are all different shapes and colours to give the building a textured look.

• Round windows offset the geometric style of the tiles, and these have been balanced from the north to south sides to provide maximum light levels.

• The building is 17,000m² and contains open-plan working spaces over four storeys, which are interconnected by stairs.

• Steel girders have been used to create a public and private atrium, and the building has deliberately been constructed to be as open as possible.

London

City

Hall

London City Hall

• This unusual-looking building has received mixed votes on popularity from the public, with some of its comparisons including Darth Vader’s helmet, a woodlouse, a misshapen egg and an onion.

• Its most striking feature is probably its internal walkway, a 500 metre helical structure which is similar to that of New York’s Guggenheim Museum. This feature was designed to promote clarity and transparency.

Royal Albert

Hall

Royal Albert Hall

• This beautiful building boasts an Italianate architectural style, with a large glass and wrought-iron dome covering the top, which is 41 metres high.

• Externally the Hall has a striking mosaic frieze, which is an illustration of “The Triumph of the Arts and Sciences”. It surrounds the building entirely, and is a reference to Royal Albert Hall’s usage throughout time.

• It is also decorated with terracotta letters depicting bible descriptions.

• It was built with Fareham red brick, and was opened by Queen Victoria on 29 March 1871.

Lloyds of

London

Lloyds of London

• Occasionally known as the “Inside-Out” building, Lloyds’ headquarters is an example of Bowellism architecture – all of its services, such as ducts and lifts, are on the exterior façade of the building.

• It is the youngest building to ever be given the Grade I Listing status, and is hailed as one of the modern buildings of the current era.

• It was designed by Richard Rogers, and the glass lifts were the first in the United Kingdom.

• It boasts a barrel-vaulted glass roof, and a large open atrium space.

London

Metropolitan

University

London Metropolitan University

• The Graduate Student Centre of this university is quite distinct, and was designed by Daniel Libeskind.

• The 10,000 square foot building was opened in 2004, and is made up of three intersecting sections.

• The exterior façade is covered in embossed stainless steel panels.

• Windows are made up of large geometrical shapes, allowing natural light into the internal space.

The Shard

The Shard

• This astonishing building has also been referred to as the “Shard of Glass”, due to its shining exterior and pointed top.

• It is the tallest building in the European Union, and the second tallest freestanding structure in the United Kingdom.

• It contains 72 habitable floors and an open air observation deck at 244.3 metres high.

• Renzo Piano, an Italian architect, is responsible for its design.

• It is one of the first in the world to be build following the US National Institute of Standards and Technology’s guidelines to avoid tall building collapses such as that of the World Trade Centre.

The Gherkin

The Gherkin

• This strange-looking building is actually called 30 St. Mary Axe, but is colloquially referred to as “the Gherkin”.

• It was constructed by Skanska, and opened in 2004.

• It has special energy saving methods, such as a natural ventilation system and a double glazing effect, which leads to energy usage of a building half its size.

• The unusual structure is slightly convex to look at, but the only curved piece of glass is the lens-shaped dome at the top of the building.

• It has won prizes such as the 2004 RIBA Stirling Prize, the first to be won by a unanimous decision.

One

Canada Square

One Canada Square

• Situated on Canary Wharf, this imposing building was the tallest in the United Kingdom from 1990 to 2010 and is 235 metres tall.

• Principal architect Cesar Pelli designed the building to reflect the style of the World Financial Centre and Elizabeth Tower.

• The pinnacle of the building is a distinctive pyramid shape at the top of the building, which has a flashing light to warn aircraft of its presence due to its height.

• Approximately 27,500 metric tonnes of British steel was used in its construction.