In 2018, the world of architecture had a great year, with more skyscrapers being built in China than anywhere else. Then there was the fact that, for the first time ever, an Indian architect won the highly coveted Pritzker Prize and curiously, an elderly housing project was titled World Building of the Year. Does that mean that 2019 can’t possibly top it? Not at all! There are numerous exciting and cutting-edge engineering and design projects that should come to completion in 2019. In the following post then, the team here at DotCom Magazine are going to highlight the 5 best building projects that should be completed in 2019.
Under, Lindesnes in Norway
When it is completed, Under, located 16-feet below the North Sea’s surface, will become the first underworld restaurant in Europe and the biggest of its kind in the world. It was designed by the team at Snohetta and it is 110-feet and capable of having 100 guests at the same time across its three floors. Obviously, the draw is the panoramic views diners will have. The architects have made sure it is strong and able to withstand the harsh weather conditions and pressure of the water. It should open, if all goes to plan in spring.
Beijing Daxing International Airport in Beijing, China
Looking like something from an alien planet in the movies, Daxing International Airport in Beijing covers 7.5m-sf and will serve around 72m people every year, eventually by around the year 2025. It has a six-pier, radial design that takes its inspiration from other structures in Chinese architecture. You will also find that a central courtyard is what connects all the different areas and spaces.
Wuxi Taihu Show Theatre in Wuxi, China
The firm Steven Chilton Architects are responsible for the breathtaking design of the new theatre in Wuxi. It takes its inspiration from the oversized bamboo forest that lies nearby the site. It has a shaded canopy design that symbolizes the forest and its natural leaves awning, while the buildings slim white columns are supposed to symbolize and represent the bamboo, wrapping around the perimeter of the building. Opening towards the end of the year, it will be home to a permanent feature – a water show that has been developed by Franco Dragone, a Belgian director.
National Museum of Qatar in Doha, Qatar
Doha, the capital of Qatar, is the home of a brand-new structure that will be 430,000-sq.ft. in area and will feature precious objects and artworks, such as the world-famous Pearl Carpet Baroda. It is thought that the Baroda was embroidered with the use of 1.5m Gulf pearls. The overlapping discs of the museum are there to represent the desert’s crystallizations and concretions’ mysteries, with the interlocking pattern created relating to the desert rose and its petals that look like blades. This museum should be opened by the end of March and has been designed by the Pritzker Prize winner who won it for his work on the Louvre Abu Dhabi, Jean Nouvel.
Norra Tornen in Stockholm, Sweden
Reinier de Graaf is responsible for the new Norra Tornen building. This features two pixelated and surreal looking towers in the capital. Although the Innovation Tower, all 410-feet of it, was completed during 2018, the project is only going to be complete once the Helix Tower has been finished.
