Lotus Temple, New Delhi, India

The Lotus Temple at dusk.

About five years ago, I wrote a piece to which I gave the presumptive title, "The Most Beautiful Building in the World." The focal point of that item was the Taj Mahal, located in Agra, India. That may have been a rather impetuous choice. Quite apart for dozens of other possibilities around the world, India itself, is home to a very strong competitor for such a title. Located about 130 miles south-southeast of Agra in the capital city of New Delhi, we find another similarly exquisite architectural masterpiece known as the Lotus Temple. Notable for its flowerlike shape, the Lotus Temple is a Bahá'í House of Worship which serves as the Mother Temple of the Indian subcontinent, and has become a prominent attraction in the city. Begun in 1980 and completed near the end of 1986, the temple takes its name from its lotus blossom shape. Around the blooming petals there are nine pools of water, which light up, in natural light. Creating a spectacular glow at dusk when it is flood lit.



New Delhi, India--location of The Lotus Temple.

The temple is actually in the village of Bahapur, Kalkaji, to the South of Connaught Place in Mandir Marg; a secluded area of the bustling center of New Delhi. The Lotus Temple has come to be known as the "Taj of modern India" owing to its distinctive lotus-shaped marble petals surrounded by a landscaped garden. This architectural marvel of the Bahai faith is essentially a symbol of peace. In the Bahai's Holy Writings great importance is given to prayers as is revealed in all the scriptures. But according to Bahai faith, the mere act of praying is not sufficient. The inspiration drawn from one's prayers must be translated into action which promotes the well being of humanity.

Regardless of the time of day (or night) the Lotus Temple is a "budding" rival in its beauty to the centuries old Taj Mahal.

Construction News, a technical journal from the United Kingdom, was the first to give the Lotus Temple the appellation of Taj Mahal of the 20th Century. The comparison brings to mind the words of the famous Indian poet and philosopher, Rabindranath Tagore, who described the Taj Mahal as "a teardrop on the cheek of eternity". Considering that the Bahai House of Worship is an affirmation and a celebration of man's love of God, the Lotus Temple could be described as "a dewdrop on the brow of eternity". The temple is a powerful icon of great beauty that goes beyond its pure function of serving as a congregation space to become an important architectural symbol of the city.

Bahai Lotus Temple, architect Fariborz Sabha

Fariborz Sabha, the architect of the temple, was given an award in 1987 by the International Federation for Art and Architecture. Further the temple itself received an award for its structural design from the Institute of Structural Engineers in UK. It also won a Citation Award for personifying the visual impact of the beautiful Lotus flower and received an accreditation for its outdoor illumination in the year 1988. The American Concrete Institute gave the temple an award for being one of the most artistically built concrete structures. In the year 2000 it received the "Glob Art Academy Award" from Glob Art Academy in Vienna. The Bahai House of Worship at New Delhi is one of the marvels of modern architecture. The temple gives the impression of a half-open lotus flower afloat, surrounded by its leaves. The shining pure white marble, the majestic dome, the petals clearly standing out create a sense of awe. The temple is surrounded by walkways with beautiful curved balustrades, bridges and stairs that surround the nine pools representing the floating leaves of the lotus. It is a remarkable tabernacle of peace and beauty and an engineering feat that will set standards for centuries.

Bahai Lotus Temple sectional plans. First conceived in 1976, the Lotus Temple was under construction for six years.

The temple complex consists of the main house of worship with a basement and the ancillary block, which houses a reception canter, a library and the administrative building. The library contains a rich collection of religious books along with an hourly introductory audio-visual presentation for the visitors. The inner dome is spherical and patterned after the innermost portion of the lotus flower. It is like a bud consisting of 24 petals. Light filters through these inner folds which is diffused through the central hall. While the flooring inside the auditorium is of white marble, the walkways and stairs of the outer portion are of red sandstone, offering a majestic contrast. The Lotus has three sets of petals. The outermost set of nine petals, called the entrance leaves, open outwards and form the nine entrances all around the outer annular hall. The next set of nine petals, called "inner leaves" appear to be partly closed and rise above the rest and form the main structure housing the central hall. Since the Lotus is open at the top, a glass and steel roof provides protection from rain and lets natural light into the auditorium.
 

The Lotus Temple under construction, ca. 1984.

The interior dome therefore is like a bud consisting of 36 petals and light filters through these inner folds and is diffused throughout the hall. Light enters the hall in the same way as it passes through the inner folds of the lotus petals. The central bud is ringed by three sets of nine petals as they appear in a natural flower--the just-opening petals, the semi-open petals and the completely open petals. The just-opening or inner petals constitute the external dome; the semi-open or outer function as high skylight; the completely open or entrance petals form a canopy over each of the nine entrances.


The temple superstructure is designed to function as a skylight. The interior dome is spherical and patterned after the innermost portion of the lotus flower.

In the architecture of India, perhaps more than in other places, it is possible to the see the religious roots in a clear and different manner. The representative symbols which can be seen on the buildings and in their decorations, and which include the surroundings in which they have been placed, are inspired by the religious convictions of the people; convictions which are integrated and form part of the way of life of the country. The bushes which grow in the corner of a temple courtyard or the color of its walls can indicate to us to which religion the temple is dedicated. In this way we can also discover the allegorical significances which the forms, colors or statues wish to convey to us, in such a way that we can consider Indian architecture as an architecture of story-telling and symbols, in which hidden meanings dwell in every form. These hidden meanings have an intimate and inspired connection with the lives of the people of this place.

Yes, there's a Lego version.

Art Authentication

The Bust of Napoleon, ca. 1904, Auguste Rodin

In 2014, the Hartley Dodge Foundation hired 22-year-old Mallory Mortillaro, with her undergraduate degree in art history, as a temporary archivist. Without a doubt, it was the smartest move they ever made. In Madison, New Jersey, (about 30 miles west of New York City) in an unusual space that feels more like a museum than a municipal hall, the Morris County Borough Council meets every other week to handle the usual affairs of a small suburb. Silver-plated chandeliers hang from the ceiling. Oil portraits of American forefathers line the walls, and by a window, is an old wooden desk that once belonged to Abraham Lincoln. It is a rare environment where a bust of Napoleon on a pedestal in the corner, chiseled from marble and weighing some 700 pounds, could easily blend in.

 

The Hartley Dodge Memorial Building and the
Morris County Borough Hall, Madison, New Jersey



The foundation, which owns and maintains the artwork, hired Mallory Mortillaro, to cre-ate an inventory of the art in the building. It’s a place where you have really nice things hiding among other really nice things. Her job was to examine the paint-ings, photographs, and sculptures, measur-ing and photographing them. It took her a few weeks to get to the bust. When she peeked behind the sculpture she found something that had apparently been over-looked for almost 80 years. The markings on the white marble were faint, but she saw a signature: A. Rodin (below).

 

 

Mallory Mortillaro

 

The artist's signature carved on the back.

The borough hall, named the Hartley Dodge Memorial Building, was built by the heiress Geraldine Rockefeller Dodge as a tribute to her son, Marcellus Hartley Dodge Jr., who was killed in a car accident in 1930. Mrs. Dodge filled the building with art from her own collection. A desk that had belonged to her father, William Rockefeller Jr., is now the mayor’s desk. A large portrait of her hangs in the council chamber, presiding over every meeting. She also left an endowment, funding a foundation that owns and maintains the art as well as well as the building itself (below). Ms. Mortillaro initially had her doubts. She found it difficult to believe that the foundation, which had hired her, did not already know the piece was a Rodin. She was reluctant to ask. At one meeting where she updated the foundation’s board on her work, she waited until the end to bring it up. There had been rumors over the years that the sculpture might be the work of Rodin or a protégé, but there were no records to support it.

 



The borough meeting hall. The Bust of Napoleon is in the back corner of the room on the far right.



Rodin and his Napoleon,
circa 1910.

As Ms. Mortillaro kept digging, progress proved difficult, meeting dead end after dead end. However, over time, she was able to stitch together the bust’s journey to Madison, working her way back to Rodin’s studio outside Paris. The piece had been commissioned in 1904 by a collector from New York City, but it went unfinished until the American financier, Thomas Fortune Ry-an bought the bust after seeing it in the sculptor’s studio several years later. Mr. Ryan kept it in his home before loaning it to the Metropolitan Museum of Art. There, Ms. Mortillaro found, the bust had been dis-played for more than a decade. After Mr. Ryan died, Mrs. Dodge bought it at auction. Ms. Mortillaro's break came when she discovered that the Comité Auguste Rodin in Paris, a group that could determine its authenticity. Jerome Le Blay, the head of the committee and a leading Rodin expert, recognized the Napoleon bust. He knew the piece existed, but its whereabouts had been unknown for decades. Mr. Le Blay traveled to Madison in 2015 to examine the bust. A thorough authentication process required more time and research in France, but as soon as he saw it, he knew it was genuine. The foundation announced that the bust, could be worth between $4-million and $12-million, and that it would be loaned to the Philadelphia Museum of Art.



A sample certificate of authenticity.

Sample bill of sale.

I cite this story with its happy ending to make a point. All of this could have been avoided had those who had custody of Rodin's misplaced sculpture made the effort to preserve what art authenticators refer to as provenance. Rodin was a professional sculptor and Thomas Fortune Ryan was likely an experienced art collector. Thus such "paperwork" was almost certainly created at the time of sale. Moreover, the Metropolitan Museum of Art would not (or could not) have sold the work, nor would Mrs. Dodge (a highly experienced collector herself) have purchased it without a bill of sale or certificate of authenticity signed by Rodin (probably both).

The two certificates of authenticity shown here and above were chosen because they incorporated photos of the work on the face of the document. If you are not in the habit of providing such provenance, these make ideal models in creating your own certificates.

Provenance is a chain of evidence documenting the ownership and whereabouts of art (often in great detail) from the artist to the current owner. It would appear that Mrs. Dodge, or the foundation she set up to maintain her art collection, was negligent in their record keeping. Or, as so often happens, when people die, valuable papers can, and do, get misplaced or destroyed. Even works by amateurs or relatively unknown artists can be worth far more (including prints, as seen above) when backed up with a conscientious chain of ownership. But, as in the case of Rodin's lost Napoleon, the major responsibility for maintaining a history of a work of art rests with future owners and their heirs...and their heirs.



Another outstanding certificate of authenticity model.

Even LEGO sees the value of a certificate
of authenticity for their models. (Notice
the size of their "limited" edition.)

 

White House Copies

No, it's not Donald Trump's plan to re-landscape the south lawn.
This White House copy really exists. It's in Dallas, Texas.

Millions of Americans would love to live in the White House. Only a couple handfuls are willing to pay the price. Along with the beautiful, white, Georgian mansion at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington, D.C. comes the most the most difficult job in the world. Just ask President Trump. Along with that job come a significant loss of privacy, incessant criticism, political intrigue, and more headaches than the "winner" of such a prize could ever have imagined. In effect, it's a dirty job, but somebody's got to do it. The plush mansion, the massive , black limousines, Air Force One, a Marine helicopter, a wooded retreat in the Catoctin Mountains, and a sizable White House staff simply makes the job possible and a bit more pleasant.

The White House in Washington, D.C. Look but don't touch.

However, if you have between four million and ten million dollars (depending upon the number of chandeliers desired) and you have a yearning to live in the White House (or a close substitute), without all the hassles of the job doing so entails, then look up a real estate agent just across the Potomac in McLean, Virginia, there are two pretty good White House replicas (below) you can snap up for about four million. They're not perfect. They've been scaled down to human proportions and modified somewhat to the tastes of the builders and numerous occupants since, but they should suffice to impress your friends and relatives.

Neither are pure white and both porticos are poorly proportioned, but only former presidents would notice.

A while back I placed the White House as number 8 in my list of The Ten Most Beautiful Buildings in the World. If imitation is the sincerest form of praise, then I should probably move it up a few notches on my list. However, the White House is the only building on my list which anyone is likely to build their own version. And if you think the examples I've pictured above are the only attempts to emulate architect James Hoban's White House you'd be wrong. Depending upon how much authenticity and the scale you might demand, there are probably at least a dozen others all over the world.

Leinster House, Dublin, Ireland, dates from 1745-47.

Actually, Hoban's design for the White House in Washington, D.C. is, in fact, an imitation of a similar such mansion known originally as Kildare House in Dublin, Ireland. It's referred to today as Leinster House (above). And, except for the majestic porticos, and several dozen coats of white paint (which were added after the 1814 fire) the two buildings bear a remarkable resemblance.

Built in 2001, the cost was a little less than $10-million.

Perhaps the most accurate privately own version of the White House is nowhere near Washington. It's in Atlanta, Georgia, at 3687 Briarcliff Road (sometimes listed as Decatur, Georgia). From the front, the match with the real White House is perfect, though the building has been reduced in size to 3/4 scale. However, despite the curved portico in the rear, the other elevation appears to be straight out of Hollywood or perhaps Palm Springs. The house was built by Atlanta home builder Fred Milani, an American citizen born in Iran. Inside the facade the Atlanta mansion departs from any semblance of White House replication with a hodgepodge of details including a number of religious images, American political iconography, and McMansion details like coffered ceilings, wrought iron banisters and a sweeping staircase. The home also includes an Oval Office with a replica of George W. Bush’s desk. There is also a Lincoln bedroom with a picture of Lincoln and the Emancipation Proclamation painted on a bedroom wall.

Chinese White House, Hangzhou, China

The great imitators of the best America has to offer also have their version of the White House (above). This one was built by Huang Qiaoling, one of the richest men in China, costing around $10 million. His replica of the White House is the centerpiece of his garden so that he can “meet business associates in the "Oval Office.” Huang made a few tweaks to suit his personal tastes. For example, in one cabinet, he has substituted tomes on American history with minibar bottles of Remy Martin and a gaggle of dime-store ceramic ducks. On the mantelpiece of the Green Room stands a statue of Genghis Khan, whom ‘President Huang,’ as his staff insists on calling him, counts as his personal hero. And outside the window of the Blue Room, which Huang uses as his office, is a one-third-size Mount Rushmore with employees’ quarters tucked in the back. Those Chinese think of everything, don't they?

President Franklin D. Roosevelt's "Little White House" in Warm Springs,
Georgia--barely a cottage as compared to its D.C. counterpart.

In Warm Springs, Georgia stands The Little White House. It was built in 1932 as the personal retreat of President Franklin D. Roosevelt, the 32nd President of the United States. Insofar as it being a replica of the Big White House, it's probably the worst copy ever copied. Not only is in much smaller, but bears only a passing resemblance to Roosevelt's presidential residence. Roosevelt kept the house after he became President, using it as a presidential retreat. Of all the White House replicas, this one has the closest connection to a president than any other. Roosevelt died there on April 12, 1945, three months into his fourth term. He was having his portrait painted at the time.

Lego White House, Legoland, Carlsbad, California

Though not private residences, the classical architectural lines of Hoban's Executive Mansion have also found there way into at least two tourist destination. The first is Legoland located in Carlsbad, California (above) where the White House is replicated totally in plastic Lego "bricks." In Corona California, John and Jan Zweifel have what is considered to be one of the world’s greatest miniature houses, a recreation of 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue which has taken over 38 years in building (below). It is updated with each administration. Built at a one-foot-to-one-inch scale, the touring model replica allows millions a glimpse into the off-limits life of each president.

John and Jan Zweifel's miniature masterpiece is not a dollhouse.  

And finally, a White House replication so monstrously silly I'm somewhat reluctant to include it among all these others. Tucked away (fortunately) in the Wisconsin Dells near Mt. Olympus Water & Theme Park, is what's called Top Secret. Basically it's an upside-down White House with the exterior architectural detail relatively accurate. Admission is $12. Kids love it, adults usually come away wondering why they wasted their time and money. It's actually a glorified haunted house with little or no tour guide references to the real White House. Trip Advisor review seldom give it more than one "star."

I'll hold off on the political wisecracks.

 

Cookies for Santa

Illustrator, Robert Sauber's Santa taking a break. Notice the
strategic product placement off to the right.

Hey, Grinch, you're no cookie.
How'd you get in here?

We are fortunate that Santa Claus has a sweet tooth. Otherwise, there would be no need for cookies and milk under the Christmas tree, and in fact, probably no such thing as Christmas cookies. Okay, that might be an exaggeration, but for me, one of the highlights of this holiday season, the number one staple on my food pyramid, is the Christmas cookie. In pondering a Christmas topic to write about, I suddenly pounded my forehead with the heel of my hand and muttered, "Of course, why didn't I think of that before? CHRISTMAS COOKIES." So I went in search of some of the most creative, the most artistic, the most exquisitely beautiful examples of this Santa Claus inspired art form I could fine. Here I pay little attention to what went into them and give only passing reference as to how they're made. For our purposes, we're going to assume that ALL Christmas cookies tastes good, that they're good for you, and that, as with most forms of art, taste is subjective and therefore largely pointless to discuss.

 

Cookies for Santa, Jersey Girl Graphics

Eat'em or hang'em on the tree.

For simplicity's sake, we're going to assume that all cookies this time of the year are baked for the benefit of fueling Santa's arduous, rein-deer-propelled jaunt around the world in twenty-four hours in an effort to reduce the ex-cess inventory of Mattel, Has-bro, Lego, Tyco, Nintendo, Fisher-Price, and Toys-R-Us. However, before you can bribe Santa with your sucrose-laden feast, you need a plate to place them on. Jersey Girl Graphics (above) has just what you need. Or, you can simply attach a ribbon and hang them on the tree as seen with the little jewels at right--no plate re-quired.

The recipe and instructions are listed below.

Use half of an Oreo cookie
as a base.

A few years ago, my wife began baking meringue cookies for our family get-togethers during the holidays. They were a big hit. In researching Santa Claus cookies, I came to realize that this light, airy, sugary substance has been turned to great creative advantage by pastry chefs (amateur and professional) in their pursuit of holiday cookie excellence. I won't say they're easy to make but then again, they're not as hard as they look, especially for anyone with an ounce of cake decorating skill. (The little white Christmas trees (right) uses the same basic meringue recipe...except for the food coloring, of course.) The recipe and especially the all-important instructions are below:
 

Meringue Christmas Poinsettia Cookies--

 

Ingredients: (about 25-30 medium-size flowers)

 * 4 large egg whites (no yolks)
 * 3/4 cup sugar (not powdered sugar)
 * pinch of salt
 * 1 1/2 tsp. extract (vanilla, mint, orange, or lemon..etc.)
 * red, green and yellow gel food coloring
 * rainbow luster dust (optional)
 * small brush (optional, used to apply disco dust)
 * 3"x3"parchment squares

* flower petals -tip Wilton #70
* green leafs - tip Wilton #352
* yellow dots - tip Wilton #3

* flower nail (if you don't have a flower nail, you can easily use a stainless steel meat thermometer covered with plastic wrap to protect the surface).

 

Mix and beat at high speed the first four ingredients for several minutes until stiff, then separate into three unequal masses before adding food coloring. The largest mass should be red, the second largest green, the smallest, yellow.

 

Piping and Baking:

 

1. Fit your piping bags with your tips (as indicated above) and fill them with meringue. Preheat the oven to only 180 F (extremely critical).

 2. Line baking sheets with parchment paper.

 3. Place a dot of meringue onto the flower nail and place a piece of parchment square on top to secure it.

 4. Pipe the first row of 5 petals (as seen above) using red meringue.

 5. Pipe the second row of 5 petals, slightly shorter and offset to the first row

 6. Add green leaves

 7. Add yellow dots

 8. Dip small dry brush into a disco dust and shake of the excess over freshly piped meringues (optional).

 9. Bake for 3 hours (also extremely critical), then turn the oven off and let the cookies cool in the oven.  You are not so much baking the meringue but simply drying it out. Store in an airtight container.

 

"And all through the house, not a creature was stirring,
not even a mouse."

These can also be used to
decorate other Christmas
cookies.
 

Perhaps more candy than cookie, the non-stirring rodents (above) are basically one and a quarter marshmallows melted together then with a slender strip of string licorice poked in the rear for a tail. The whole carcass is then dipped into a chocolate coating, and refrigerated to harden. Kids love eating such "gross" stuff. On a more elegant note, though still more candy than cookie, the delicate snowflakes (left) are created by piping fondant onto waxed paper and decorating with a candy silver bead. Just be sure to count the number of snowflake "arms." Those with more than six are in extremely bad taste. Accidents should be eaten as soon as possible.

 

Merry Christmas from Jim and Sharon Lane
(and Santa).

 

Found Object Art

Still-life with Chair Caning, 1912, Pablo Picasso

Is it art, or is it not? Pablo Picasso may have been the first, (or at least one of the first) to take an ordinary object and turn it into art. His Still-life with Chair Caning (above), from 1912, is said to have started the ball rolling along this line. In it he took wallpaper with a chair caning image and attached it to his canvas, working the pre-printed (found object) into his painted composition. It was innovative. Picasso called it "collage" (loosely translated French for "to paste"). I doubt very much if anyone (now or then) would not consider his oval abstract image to be art.

The Fountain (the date is that of this reproduction), Marcel Duchamp

Then, in New York. less than a year later and shortly before the famous 1913 Armory Show, Marcel Duchamp not only kept the ball rolling, but practically booted it off the field with his famous The Fountain (above), a urinal, laid on it's back, and signed, "R. Mutt." (This type of conceptual art is sometimes referred to as "readymade.") Like Picasso's wallpaper, it was a "found" object, though purchased by Duchamp specifically to become an art object. The show's jurying committee (of which Duchamp was a member), despite his spirited defense, consigned his "Fountain" to the back alley. The consensus was, he'd gone too far. Not only was it considered in poor taste (perhaps the primary objection) but it was manifestly not art in that Duchamp had not made the object but merely declared it to be art.

"If I say it's art, it IS art."
Picasso's "Bull" (uppermost image) is a bicycle seat
with handlebars welded to it.

Any argument along this line today is purely academic. Artists "make" art. If an artist "makes" a work of art by simply making an artistic statement pronouncing it to be art, then that alone makes it an art object though most academics would prefer the artist sign the work, title it intelligently, and make some changes to the object's appearance in doing so). Duchamp did all three. And before you discount any such art, be aware that a long line of well-respected famous artist such as Salvador Dalí, Jim Dine, Marcel Duchamp, Tracey Emin, Damien Hirst, Jasper Johns, Joseph Kosuth, Louise Nevelson, Pablo Picasso, Robert Rauschenberg, Man Ray, and Kurt Schwitters have created thousands of works of art using Picasso's "assemblage" formula (above). And when found "objects" (usually printed items) are used on a flat surface, with or without paint, the technique is referred to by Picasso's term, "collage" although British artist Jane Perkins blurs the line between the two considerably (below).



British artist, Jane Perkins, has a lot of patience. Since 2008,
she has been recreating classic artworks and portraits of iconic
figures using thousands of tiny found objects, such as buttons,
beads, LEGO pieces, and shells.

Sky light, Light Years Away,
Lynn Aldrichto 

Over the past few years I've written about sculpture made from paper, fire, steel, ice, snow, food, glass, ice, and water just to name a few. Some involved found objects, some not so much. In any case, found object art in the years since Picasso and his ilk has come a long way. Contemporary artist have taken an "adopt and adapt" path in following the footsteps of the art form's 20th-century pioneers.


Tim Holtz recycling time.

As with virtually all forms of art, the results range from the stunningly beautiful sponge painting, Sky light, Light Years Away (left), by Lynn Aldrichto, to the delicately feminine clock creation of Tim Holtz (below). Then there's the "macho" ugly Holy Cow by Sean O'Meallie (below).

Holy Cow, Sean O'Meallie

A recycled collage using scraps of paper.

 

The Ten Most Beautiful Buildings in the World

As much as I love "top ten" lists, and enjoy creating them; I realize that virtually no one is likely to totally agree with my choices, nor the order in which I have listed them. My choices are unavoidably subjective to some degree, but I like to think they are also both knowledgeable and reflective of at least a modicum of good taste. In listing the ten most beautiful buildings in the world, I have screened out those structures which, though once quite beautiful (such as the Parthenon in Athens), but which now lie in ruins. I've also not considered architectural/engineering structures, build entirely for show (such as the Eiffel Tower, the Statue of Liberty, or St. Louis' Gateway Arch. Beyond that, I've also not considered buildings that, while they may be architecturally daring, perhaps even pointing the way toward the future in architecture, are at this point problematical, and in some cases even downright ugly (here I'm not going to cite examples). The buildings I've selected, without exception, serve a purpose. They were built to house human activities. Only two are more than a hundred years old. If that shows a bias for the contemporary over the classical, then so be it. The same applies to the fact that two of my choices are works by the same architect. I've already written about several of the buildings listed so I've created links to them so as not to be redundant. I'm hoping some of my choices may be surprising, thus bringing to light some very beautiful creations which thus far may have slipped beneath the architectural radar (so to speak). By the same token, I've no doubt left out some excellent possibilities with which the reader may take issue. If so, by all means make your feelings known in the comments section at the bottom.

 

10.

10. The "Gherkin" Building, London

This one was a difficult choice. There are people, especially in London, who love it and an equal number who hate it (as indicated by it's nickname). Officially it's called 30 St. Mary's Axe. Completed in 2003, the gracefully curved structure rises some forty-one stories, or 591 feet (180 meters) above the street level. The architects were Norman Foster and the Arup Group. The top level contains a bar open only to those using the building and their guests (above, left) while a restaurant occupies the 40th floor just below. Incidentally, despite appearances, the only piece of curved glass in the entire building is the oculus seen capping the dome's pinnacle. The highly energy- efficient "Gherkin" is currently occupied by the Swiss Re, a global reinsurance company, who commissioned the structure.

9.

9. The United Nations Building, New York, NY.

In a city filled with iconic, often exquisitely beautiful architecture, the United Nations Building on the banks of New York City's East River, built during the early 1950s, has stood the test of time by several definitions of that phrase, not the least of which would be architecturally. Designed by an international team headed by American architect, Wallace K. Harrison, French architect, Le Corbusier, and Brazilian architect Oscar Niemeyer, the complex is the ultimate in "form follows function" design without resorting to bland, cost-efficient, "glass-boxiness" despite its monolithic secretariat building. One of the criteria I've used in selecting buildings for this list is whether the structure looks good from all angles and whether it is as attractive inside as it is outside. The UN Building manages both in is striking simplicity and noble form.

8.

8. Colonial Architect James Hoban's near perfect classical proportions have withstood fire, numerous remodeling, rebuilding, and additions, not to mention the ravages of time from the 1790s until today, with remarkable grace becoming more beautiful with every passing century.

Some buildings are considered great or beautiful because of the remarkable genius of their architects combined with the patient acquiescence of their owners. Others have become symbols of governmental, religious, or financial power, which color our feelings as to their physical presence. With no building is this more the case than the White House, the home/office of the President of the United States of America. Ever since our first president chose the site along the wooded banks of Tiber Creek in 1790, chose the architect, and then, in the role of "owner," heavily influenced and guided him (and the builders) in creating what we see today, virtually every temporary occupant (or his wife) of what may be the most beautiful public building in America, has left his mark on this American architectural icon. Tastes change, needs change, new technology supplants old, still classical beauty, in the protective embrace of men and women of refined tastes, not only survives, but thrives.

7.

7. The Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum of Art, New York, NY.

I've often criticized the Guggenheim Museum, not architecturally, but functionally. It's not that it doesn't serve its purpose. It does, extremely well, in fact. The problem is it's too beautiful for an art museum. I don't care what anyone says, no art museum should compete visually with the art it houses. But...having said that, as a work of art itself, the Guggenheim may well be the most beautiful museum in the world. It's final architectural masterpiece of Frank Lloyd Wright, whom I consider the greatest American architect of all time (which is only a little over two-hundred years, but who's counting). Completed in 1959 after his death, it contrasts sharply with every other museum in New York, both in style and its stunningly daring, swirling masses. Moreover the 1992 slab-like addition which myself and others have found rather jarring, in a more contemporary light serves as a visual backdrop, functional, relatively unobtrusive, and something of a guardian, blocking out the disturbing clutter of Manhattan "architecture." Its benign presence is welcomed simply because it is such a departure from the curvilinear lines of Wight's frontal showpiece. It's a museum wing that doesn't appear to be a wing.

6.

6. It's only appropriate the one Wright masterpiece should only be surpassed in its beauty by an earlier one.

No house ever dominated its environment, yet looked as if it had "grown" from that environment like Wright's Fallingwater. Imagine a house, that doesn’t even appear to stand on solid ground, but instead stretches out, hovering weightlessly over a 30′ waterfall. Such a structure captured everyone's minds even in the darkest hours of the Great Depression, foretelling a future brighter than even the most optimistic could imagine. Designed as weekend retreat for Pittsburgh's Kaufmann family, and finished in 1934, it continues to appear futuristic even some eighty years later. Since 1963 it has been open to the public. You know you have a thing of great architectural beautiful when you can buy a Lego building kit allowing kids to re-create and appreciate their own Fallingwater.

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5. The Taj Mahal, Agra, India

Some, myself included, have called the Taj Mahal most beautiful building in the world. In fact I headlined it in those terms when I wrote about it three years ago. Obviously, I've reconsidered that judgment in lieu of some more recent entries into this imaginary "contest," but that doesn't change the fact that this is the oldest dowager of architectural beauty on the list. Begun in 1632 and finished some twenty-two years later, if love was an architectural term, this temple/tomb would be its embodiment. I've traveled all over the world and seen many of the structures on this list. There's not much which would persuade me to travel to far-off India, but this ageless tribute to undying marital love is most tempting.

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4. Sydney Opera House, Sydney, Australia

I would someday love to see the Sydney Opera House in person. The problem is, like the Taj Mahal, it's on the wrong side of the world, and my "somedays" are starting to shrink down to a dismal few (I'm really not all that fond of opera, anyway). Rising out of the Sydney Harbor, the Sydney Opera House is not only the center of the arts scene in Australia but also stands out as a must-see for anyone visiting the area. In the late 1940’s Eugene Goossens, the Director of the NSW State Conservatorium of Music lobbied for a new venue for large productions. In 1955 a design competition was held by NSW Premier Joseph Cahill, and by 1958 construction had begun. Completion wasn't until 1973 When the Queen of England cut the ribbon. The winning design features several concrete shells and houses a concert hall, the opera theater, the drama theater, a studio, the Utzon room (named for the Danish architect, John Utzon), a broad forecourt, as well as a recording studio, five restaurants, four souvenir shops, and a guided tour operation. Hey, tourist attractions can be beautiful too.

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3.The Lotus Temple, New Delhi, India.

Lotus Temple can be found near New Delhi, India. As you may have guessed, the temple is built to resemble the lotus flower. It has twenty-seven "petals" created using white marble. It also has had over fifty-million visitors. Its twenty-seven, free-standing, marble-clad "petals" arranged in clusters of three, form nine sides of a structure some forty meters tall, and capable of holding 2,500 Bahá'í worshipers. Along with its nine surrounding ponds and the gardens, the Lotus Temple site comprises 26 acres in the village of Bahapur, a suburb of New Delhi. The architect was an Iranian, named Fariborz Sahba, who was approached in 1976 to design and oversea construction until completion in 1986.

2.

2. Dupli Casa, J. H. Mayer H. Architects, Ludwigsburg, Germany

My dream home...or perhaps more accurately, my fantasy house; and to my way of thinking the most beautiful house in the world. As hard as it might be to believe, what you see above is a remodeling of a pre-existing, already heavily remodeled house dating from 1984. Completed as it now appears in 2008, the villa has three floors. On the top level, each bedroom protrudes, from the core of the house. On this floor the windows are angled to reveal specific views of the surrounding landscape and buildings – one being David Chipperfield’s Museum of Modern Literature just across the valley. There are both outdoor and indoor swimming pools. The building’s middle floor is treated as a public space, with a big atrium in the lobby and large panoramic windows creating a sense of spectacle in a very futuristic style. White and dark colors are used hand by hand in the interior. Inside or out, it's impossible to take a bad photo of the place.

1.

1. Burj al Arab, Dubai, UAE

And finally, the moment you've all been waiting for, the most beautiful building in the world--the Burj Al Arab (Tower of the Arabs). This impressive thing of beauty is a luxury hotel in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. It claims to be the only seven-star hotel in the world. At 1,053 feet (280 meters) tall, it is only the fourth tallest hotel in the world. Burj Al Arab stands on an artificial island 920 feet from Jumeirah beach and is connected to the mainland by a private curving bridge. The shape of the structure is designed to mimic the sail of a ship (right). Designed by the London architect, Tom Wright (no relation to Frank Lloyd Wright), only superlatives are permitted by the Arabs in describing it. The lobby is the tallest in the world at 590 feet in height. Despite its size, Burj Al Arab holds only 28 double-story floors which accommodate 202 bedroom suites. The smallest suite occupies an area of 1,820 sq. ft. The largest suite covers 8,400 sq. ft. The Royal Suite, is billed at $18,716 per night.

--Incidentally, I considered including Barcelona's La Familia Sagrada on the list but didn't inasmuch as it's still under construction and will be for the foreseeable future. I also considered St. Patrick's Cathedral in New York, Oscar Niemeyer's National Congress Building in Brasilia, the old TWA terminal at JFK, and Bob Hope's former home in Palm Springs; but eliminated each on for a variety of reasons.