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Torre Agbar, Barcelona, Spain
- Designed by French architect Jean Nouvel for the Barcelona Water Company, the Barcelona skyscraper is of reinforced concrete, covered with a glass façade:
– With over 4,400 windows cut out of the structural concrete,
the building has two outer skins; The first one,
covering the concrete structure, is a layer of polished aluminum in 40 different colors.
The second skin is constructed of 59,619 sheets of clear glass.
- The building has a special lighting scheme;
some 4,500 LED’s give it a yellow, blue, red and pink coloring;
This lighting scheme illuminates Barcelona’s skyline on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday nights;
- The building has temperature sensors on the outside to regulate the opening and closing
of the glass blinds of the facade of the tower, reducing the consumption of energy for air conditioning;
- The shape of the tower is not circular, but slightly elliptical;
- Its shape, and to a little lesser extent its size, are similar to that of London’s 30 St Mary Axe;
- The Barcelona landmark goes straight up for the first 15th floors; the 16th to the 25th floors form a curve,
while the top eight floors form a dome;
- The total weight of the concrete and glass structure is 250 tons;
- The building costs were approximately 100 million euro (us$125 million),
and officially became part of Barcelona’s skyline in September of 2005.
Barcelona’s Modern Side
Barcelona has long been a favorite port of call for cruise ships sailing the Mediterranean. The architectural genius of Barcelona’s native son, Antonio Gaudi, has shaped the city’s skyline. Sculptures of extraordinary proportions by Juan Miro dot Barcelona’s parks. The Fundacion Juan Miro displays an expansive collection of the artist’s works, and Las Ramblas, a street with a boulevard park, cafes, and street entertainers gives Barcelona a special flavor. Now spectacular modern architecture has invaded Barcelona as well, giving the visitor a new reason to be in awe of this amazing place.
The super high tech Torre Agbar has taken its place beside architectural wonders, such as La Sagrada Familia Cathedral, in redefining the spirit of Barcelona.
Happy Cruising. Andrew Kruglanski, Cruisin Susan Cruise Blog.
Say “find me a cruise to Barcelona“. For travel advice, call Cruisin Susan Kruglanski, Expedia CruiseShipCenters, 1-866-794-2857.
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The facts about Barcelona’s Torre Agbar are derived from http://www.skyscraperpicture.com.
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