Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C., by Pei Cobb Freed…
Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C., by Pei Cobb Freed & Partners Architects.
140 Broadway, New York, by Skidmore, Owings & Merrill. …
140 Broadway, New York, by Skidmore, Owings & Merrill. Isamu Noguchi's striking red cube also graces the cover of Alexandra Lange's book,
Writing About Architecture: Mastering the Language of Buildings and Cities.
ASM International World Headquarters in Materials Park, Ohi…
ASM International World Headquarters in Materials Park, Ohio, by John Terrence Kelly and R. Buckminster Fuller.
The Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles, by Myron Hunt, featured a&n…
The Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles, by Myron Hunt, featured a lit cylindrical entry until its 2005 demolition.
"Water, Unique Resource" exhibition in Zaragoza, Spain…
"Water, Unique Resource" exhibition in Zaragoza, Spain, by Zaha Hadid, Hon. FAIA, with exhibit design by Ralph Appelbaum Associates.
Hearst Building Lobby, New York, by Foster + Partners, with Ice …
Hearst Building Lobby, New York, by Foster + Partners, with Ice Falls by James Carpenter Design Associates.
The Americana Hotel in Miami Beach, Fla., by Morris Lapidus. The…
The Americana Hotel in Miami Beach, Fla., by Morris Lapidus. The voids in the façade may have inspired the later Nakagin Capsule Tower by Metabolist architect Kisho Kurokawa.
Palace of Peace and Reconciliation, Astana, Kazakhstan, by Foste…
Palace of Peace and Reconciliation, Astana, Kazakhstan, by Foster + Partners with Tabanlioglu Architecture & Consulting.
The Tenerife Opera House, in Santa Cruz, Tenerife, Spain, by San…
The Tenerife Opera House, in Santa Cruz, Tenerife, Spain, by Santiago Calatrava, FAIA.
Sometimes the simplest forms yield the most impressive results, and with the help of ARCHITECT’s friends at Esto, we’ve come up with a selection of buildings and sculptures that celebrate pure geometric forms. This collection ranges from works by Santiago Calatrava, FAIA, and R. Buckminster Fuller, to the slightly lesser-known Americana Hotel by Morris Lapidus, which was imploded in 2007. This cluster of projects revolves around cubes, such as those of Isamu Noguchi, as well as spheres and pyramids—either on their own, or in concert—as a reminder that even the simplest building blocks can produce spectacular buildings.
To see more Esto Galleries, click here. Or you can browse Esto’s archives at esto.com.
Deane Madsen, Assoc. AIA, LEED Green Associate, is the former associate design editor for ARCHITECT, and still covers architecture and design in Washington, D.C. He earned his M.Arch. at UCLA's Department of Architecture and Urban Design. Follow Deane on Twitter at @deane_madsen.
