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Tadao Ando's "head-out Buddha" creates ample opportunities for reflection, both spiritual and literal

2017-08-03T13:39:00-04:00

While Tadao Ando has built religious structures before--famously, the Church of the Light--he has rarely worked with figurative icons of religion, preferring a more abstract approach. This has changed with his open-air prayer hall in the Makomanai Takinoreien Cemetery in Sapporo, Japan, where a previously unsheltered statue of the Buddha has now been reverently housed in Ando's masterful design.

Image: Shigeo Ogawa/Makomanai Takinoreien Cemetery

Prior to Ando, the 44-foot-tall statue had been sitting in a field for 15 years without any additional ornamentation. The scale and placement of the Buddha served less as a spiritual inspiration than a lonely beacon, prompting the commission of Ando to create a suitable home for the Buddha. The resulting open-air prayer hall both shelters the Buddha without disrupting its connection to the sky.

Image: Shigeo Ogawa/Makomanai Takinoreien Cemetery

From afar, visitors can't see the Buddha, only a landscaped exterior shell. Once they enter the tem...

'Walkie Scorchie’ building given permanent sunshade

2014-05-16T14:13:00-04:00

The Walkie Talkie – or 20 Fenchurch Street – became known as the Walkie Scorchie because of its apparent ability to bounce heat from the sun on to buildings in the next street in the City of London. Yesterday, the developer, Land Securities, said that it had received planning permission for a “brise soleil” sunshade to be attached to the building to replace a temporary system erected last summer. Work is due to start this month.

Rafael Viñoly-designed "Walkie Talkie" skyscraper melts car with light reflections

2013-09-03T12:29:00-04:00

Developers have promised urgent action to “cover up” the Walkie Talkie skyscraper in the City after an ultra-bright light reflected from the building melted a Jaguar car on the streets below. The 525ft, £200 million building has been renamed the “Walkie Scorchie” after its distinctive concave surfaces reflected a dazzling beam of light which blinded passers-by and has now caused extensive damage to vehicles parked beneath it.