La Fenice is an opera house in Venice, Italy. It is a very famous and popular opera house that has been around since 1792. Unfortunately, a fire burned the opera house in 1996, it therefore had to be reconstructed and restored. Aldo Rossi was initially hesitant to participate in the restoration of La Fenice even though many people involved were hoping he would take the project on. However, Rossi agreed to designed and restored the current La Fenice. Rossi had the daunting task of restoring and recreating what he could but also reinventing what was no longer present or functional. To aid him in his endeavor Rossi captured images of the theatre from the Senso film and used those as inspiration for the reconstruction. Rossi did extend the seating of the building from 860 to 1,000 seats. Rossi’s plans helped revive La Fenice and bring it to it’s former glory. The outside of the building is more subdued and plain while the inside is anything but. The gold accents and painted ceiling bring you back to when La Fenice was originally built. The atmosphere inside transports to you to past while you enjoy the opera on stage. Rossi succeed in restoring the Grand Opera house if Venice, Italy.

image taken by Didier Descouens and retrived from: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/La_Fenice#/media/File:Teatro_La_Fenice_(Venice)_-_Facade.jpg

featured image taken by Pietro Tessarin and retrived from: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/La_Fenice#/media/File:La_Fenice_Opera_House_from_the_stage.jpg

references: https://allaboutvenice.com/teatro-la-fenice/ https://www.arassociati.it/en/progetto/teatro-la-fenice/ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/La_Fenice

The Bonnefanten museum is a museum in Maastricht, a Dutch city, and was designed by Aldo Rossi. The building itself is along a river that is central to the city. Aldo Rossi, an Italian architect was commissioned to create a new museum with a budget of 40 million Euros. Rossi created a simple and sleek design but it still contains great detail and beauty. The building is E shaped and has the notorious cylindrical piece with a dome on the top. The dome is coated in zinc and has windows to allow people to look onto the river, the windows and structure tie into the traditional Dutch countryside buildings. One notable detail of the museum is that Rossi designed it in a way that will allow enough daylight to come into the museum so that it can shine on the pieces of art, sort of as a natural spotlight. The materials Rossi chose to utilize for this project include brick, stone and wood, which add to the simple yet beautiful nature of the building. The most breath taking part of the building on the inside is the central staircase made of wood and bordered by brick walls and a ceiling of sky lights. This walkway is simple but brings a sense of awe to the space when one enters. As one of Aldo Rossi’s later pieces before he died it still manages to capture the eye and provide those who visit a peaceful experience.

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Photo retrived from: https://www.archdaily.com/786401/ad-classics-bonnefantenmuseum-maastricht-the-netherlands-holland-aldo-rossi/57210afbe58ecef747000075-ad-classics-bonnefantenmuseum-maastricht-the-netherlands-holland-aldo-rossi-photo?next_project=no

Photo taken by James Taylor-Foster

featured image retrived from: https://www.archdaily.com/786401/ad-classics-bonnefantenmuseum-maastricht-the-netherlands-holland-aldo-rossi/57210afbe58ecef747000075-ad-classics-bonnefantenmuseum-maastricht-the-netherlands-holland-aldo-rossi-photo?next_project=no

photo taken by Jim Forest

information retrieved from: https://www.archdaily.com/786401/ad-classics-bonnefantenmuseum-maastricht-the-netherlands-holland-aldo-rossi

information retrieved from:

Bonnefanten Museum

Aldo Rossi, an Italian architect build many interesting and inspiring buildings in Italy. One of the earlier projects he worked on was the Fagnano Olona Elementary School in Varese, Italy. The school was finished in 1976 and is built on top of what used to be a factory. There is a beautiful courtyard with a large brick fireplace that pays homage to the factory that once stood on the grounds. The school has a central patio that is a place for outside class meeting or playing. The building uses materials such as bricks and terra-cotta tiles. One identifying part of the school is the cylindrical library, which has a conical roof. The unique shape and structure of the school makes it eye catching and brings a sense of awe. The see through roof in the library brings a modern feel to the space and allows for lots of natural sunlight, which is important in schools. I personally believe that the white color of the outside of the building brings a more positive upbeat feeling to the viewer when compared to the common grey color schools in my hometown. By creating a more “happy” color scheme I believe this could boost spirits and encourage children to be more engaged in their learning.

work cited: https://en.wikiarquitectura.com/building/fagnano-olona-elementary-school/

images from: https://en.wikiarquitectura.com/building/fagnano-olona-elementary-school/

Aldo Rossi was an Italian architect with many interesting projects. One of these projects is a building in the Monte Amiata Housing Complex in Milan, Italy. This housing complex is for low-income individuals in Milan and was also started by another architect, Carlo Aymonino, who built the majority of the complex. Rossi took a modern approach to the Neo-rational thought process for design. Rossi designed the apartment building within the complex. the seemly simple design replicates the look of a city with different building heights. The cylindrical portions of the building add depth and intrigue to the building, along with the dotted pattern they have going up them. The more muted base color is contrasted with red trim and the famous yellow walkway. Additionally, the inside displays even more creativity with color as the red and yellow interior colors draw from the outside accents of color. Rossi’s design became “iconic” rather early on after it was complete. The building is now opened to visitors to tour and has been featured in magazines. The images includes, photographed by Luca Vegetti, show the creativity and playfulness of the building.

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reference: https://www.wallpaper.com/architecture/carlo-aymonino-aldo-rossis-iconic-housing-project-gallaratese-milan-italy

images retrieved from: https://thespaces.com/explore-milans-iconic-monte-amiata-housing-complex/

“Food, Fuel and Fizz” , the slogan of an interesting landmark on Route 66. This building, Pop’s, is a unique stop on Route 66. It has had a positive impact on me and how I view architectures impact on the ambiance of places. While a gas station/restaurant may seem like a weird building to be significant I have spent many summer nights there with friends and family. The modern design of the building was fascinating and eye catching, especially being from Edmond, Oklahoma. There are not many modern buildings in Edmond. “Pops” is a very unique stop on Route 66, while the outside of the building as a modern look and two walls made completely of glass the inside brings you back to a time when Route 66 was popular and well traveled. The building and ambiance always reminded me of the Cars movie I loved as a kid. Inside they have restaurant booths and serve the typical diner food like burgers and milkshakes. Another fun part of the building is the front glass wall is made up of shelves that are lined with colored soda bottles, which brings an artistic aspect to the building. One of the most unique parts of the Pops experience is the soda, outside there is a gigantic LED soda bottle, while inside you can find just about any flavor of soda. Pops is known for have outlandish flavors of soda such as dog drool, bacon or ranch flavors.

This place influenced me in a positive way because it sparked an interest of how architecture can affect the ambiance and experiences we have in buildings. This was the first experience I had where I saw that the entire building contributed to the experience people had here. Additionally, I have spent many family nights playing outside in their court yard after we got sodas with my cousins or setting outside drinking sodas with my friends on a cool summer night. Pops brings a special nostalgia to Route 66 and to the people who pass through its doors. The building represents the previous hustle and bustle that was once Route 66. It brings you back and allows you to see what it might have been like. I would recommend anyone near by stop in to see the unique architecture, design, and atmosphere that is Pops, and don’t forget to try a new flavor of soda while you’re there.

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header image retrieved from: https://live.staticflickr.com/5825/31424907235_39a5a8cea5_b.jpg

intext image retriver from: https://pops66.com/pages/about-us

When I was in high school I did not have much interests in any arts but that changed when I went to visit the Price Tower in Bartlesville, OK. My mom is an interior designer and loves architecture so she brought me to the Price Tower for a tour one day. When you pull up the tower in the Plains of Oklahoma brings a sort of awe to the building, made of concrete and copper that has turned green it leaves a lasting impression. When you enter inside there is a large beautiful geometric mural made of copper and colored glass. This building was designed by Frank Lloyd Wright which brings another point of intrigue to the building, Wright is a famous architect so to have his work in Oklahoma is cool. The inside also have geometric irregularly rooms instead of traditional rectangular rooms which brings another unique factor to the building.

The big “skyscraper” in the middle of small town Oklahoma brings a sort of awe from the ground. Additionally, the building seems to bring “The Big City” to Oklahoma. To me the meaning of the building is representative of big businesses that one normally thinks of in NYC or Chicago and bring it to Oklahoma. Being from Oklahoma I have always had a sort of intrigue with the bustle and glamor of big cities. Being in the Price Tower brings these big city feelings to Oklahoma which is a very cool atmosphere. The Price Tower was the first time I found interest in architecture and saw how architecture can affect mood and evoke feelings. The building transported me to a different place and time and brought a feeling of awe while I took in the buildings atmosphere and architecture. The Price Tower helped me realize that architecture is important to everyday life and actually can have a profound impact on how we feel.

heading image retrieved from: https://blogs.getty.edu/iris/a-key-to-preserving-our-architectural-past/

in text image retrieved from: https://franklloydwright.org/site/price-tower/

While I was never a fan of libraries growing up, the OU Bizzell Memorial Library, or “Bizz” was the first library I found interest in. The first time I saw the library on my OU tour I was impressed, the exterior architecture caught my eye. Inside, the Great Reading Room with it’s huge windows giving natural light and the dark wood left a lasting impression on me. This room became on of my favorite places to study. I felt comfortable, more than I had at other universities. I knew that OU was the college I wanted to attend. Something about the architecture within the original parts of the OU library makes me feel more motivated to knock out assignments and study for exams. However, to me this building means more than just a place to study, it has been a central location for much of my life at the University. After being at OU for over 3 years the library has become a building with many memories, from meeting up with my friends to freaking out the night before an exam. The library is a place that will always stand out to me not just because I like the architecture but because it is a place where I experienced the ups and downs of college life.

image retrieved from: https://libraries.ou.edu/content/learn-about-ou-libraries-self-guided-tour

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A building that had a positive influence on my is my elementary school building. The building affected me in a way that shaped who I am, the experiences, relationships and education I received in elementary school all had a big impact on me. The building isn’t the most attractive building, mostly made of concrete, but it has a lot of fun memories and the teachers I had were always good to me. The building has significant meaning to me because I learned a lot, made many friends and had fun there. When I graduated high school I got to go back and visit my elementary school, being there brought back so many sweet memories of going to the library, playing with my friends and performing plays for our parents. Some of my teachers in elementary school will forever be people I look up to. The school also took on an open classroom concept in many areas of the building which was unique to any other school I have been to. Because of this open classroom concept we were able to have a school assembly in the main area every Friday, these assemblies were one of my favorite activities in elementary school. I would say the experiences I had within the building shaped the person I am today, I am thankful for the experiences and memorize I have because of the building.

Image retrieved from: https://chisholm.edmondschools.net