Finishes in 2009, the Galeo Building for the French property development company Bouygues Immobilier spans 24,000 sq. m, contains multi-program of offices, a business restaurant, retail, multi-function commercial spaces and a 5-level place car park.

This project is composed of three buildings along a street. The block has a public path crossing the site, and existing workers’ houses and mill houses are integrated into the whole. Along the street, two office buildings, Dueo and Trieo, are constructed in contrasting materials. The geometry of the Galeo Building has a “double skin” of glass scales which plays a practical role, insulating the office floors from fluctuations in external temperature and allows for the opening of broad windows. The interior consists of offices that are soft and light-filled. At night, this crystal exterior becomes a “lamp” visible from the highway, despite it being surrounded by large buildings. The entire project is HEQ® accredited for its high standard of environmental performance and efficiency.

Architect Christian de Portzamparc is a leading designer and urban planner who studied architecture in Paris and New York. Portzamparc became well known for his designs of the rue des Hautes Formes in Paris and a large-scale project for François Mitterrand called the City of Music in 1995. It consisted of music halls of different sizes and a music museum. The draw towards the arts comes from his enduring passion for music and has led him to participate in several series of music and dance-related architectural competitions prompting awards and spectacular architecture. His style is marked with distractive features such as bold designs that stem from being a watercolor painter. Most of his work is concentrated on concert halls, opera, philharmonies and urban planning.

One of the most recent projects is the Great Theater of Casablanca. It is the largest theater in Africa at 20,245 sq.m. The interior consists of a multipurpose hall with a flexible theater, an amplified music room, public rehearsal rooms, special events rooms, shops, restaurant, café, cyberspace, space for reading, a library, showroom and an art gallery. The exterior is a simple white façade with a large entry point providing shade from the sun and can be turned into an exterior stage. A fluid ensemble that is inviting to visitors and leads to a large public gallery formed from curved red staff pillars. The structure utilizes natural light from above and on the sides with open walkways. 

“Gives a complementary twist to classical composition”

The Perot Museum of Nature and Science is located in the district of Victory Park in Dallas, and it was designed by the architect Thom Mayne. The building was conceived rejecting the notion of museum architecture as a neutral background for exhibits. It was designed to inspire awareness of science through an immersive and interactive environment as the building itself can be used as a didactic tool for demonstrating scientific principles at work through various strategies, including revealing the building structure and mechanical systems. The institution not only aimed to enhance public understanding of natural systems, but also aimed to address and exemplify environmental responsibility through the building’s fore-fronting energy-saving and water-reuse technologies, as well as the integration of native Texan ecologies into landscaping. By integrating architecture, nature and technology, the Perot Museum of Nature and Science embraces its role as an educational resource for the Dallas area.