The Grande Arche de la Défense is a building in the business district of Paris. Paul Andreu worked with Johan Otto von Spreckelsen, the lead architect, to design this building. The building is commonly known as the doorway between Heaven and Earth due to its large space in the middle of the structure. In the middle of the space, there is an elevator that takes people from the bottom all the way to the top without needing to enter the building itself. The open space in front of and around the building makes this spot a popular tourist attraction. The greenery also adds to the urban design for this spot in Paris, making it a place for locals to also visit and carry out their daily outdoor activities.

The overall cubed shape of the building gives the structure a very modern feel. As you can see, the building is lined with windows on the outside and on the inside. The backbone of the building is made out of concrete, which needs very strong support, especially at the top. Therefore, Andreu and the other architects on this project had to put in extra effort in figuring out how to support the building so that the top doesn’t collapse.