The Shard

In many modern cities over recent years we have seen such wonderful new architecture changing the skylines with the construction of Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao, Spain by the wonderful Frank Gehry to the more recent Beijing National Stadiumin Beijing by Herzog & de Meuron. In the centre of London we have built some amazing new buildings too but nothing which seems to go up that much in height unlike the East of London in Canary Wharf, or America's Manhattan, Hong Kong and Dubai. I am not sure if this is down to planning permission, funding, politics or the fact that we have so many historically listed buildings it is hard to then construct something extraordinarily high without putting into shadow a 200+ year old building or shaking it's foundations.

However recently just a sort walk from where I live in London Bridge the construction has started on a new building which will change the skyline of not only the Southbank area but the whole of London. The Shard by Renzo Piano due for completion in 2012.Renzo Piano is an amazing architect and has been responsible for the Nemo in Amsterdam and the Centre Georges Pompidou in Paris. The Shard will look amazing and will rise out of the rather flat landscape of the river bank over the next few years. This design I find very ascetically pleasing, it is modern and I do belive that we need to leave our own modern architectural legacy in urban settings as long as it's harmonious to the surroundings. The design of this building will also be environmentally friendly and has an integrated Power Plant capable of delivering 1500kWe to power the buildings heating/ air-conditioning.

Having lived in this area for the past 3 years, this revitalisation of an area which has become very dated, run down and not user friendly for transportation or local residents is a welcomed change. Allthough currently an inconvenience during construction, I feel it will be a remarkable addition to the London skyline. I will report back with The Shard updates during construction.