This building in Austin, Texas sits 58 stories tall and is the tallest building across the whole city skyline. As some consider it and what it may also be referred to as the “Jenga Tower” can be noticed from miles away. This building to me encapsulates a certain kind of fun and also a very distinct design all in one. If you are ever in the area of Downtown Austin this building is one to behold and catch the eye of anyone at any age. Although very different and unique this building is one I could not ever miss and better yet one that I will never forget.

The Denver Public Library was a project Michael Graves worked on in the 90’s to renovate and expand the library built in the 50’s. The expansion was 390,000 SF and the renovation was 147,000 SF. I found the process for the construction really interesting as they wanted to keep the library open during the construction process. So to accomplish this they actually did the expansion first enveloping the original building, then the existing library was renovated once the expansion was complete. The original library was actually designed as a modernist building and Graves of course designed the expansion in a postmodernist style.

This is my favorite Graves building the exterior has a look like several scraps from other buildings were randomly used too put this building together. The exterior is full of different interesting elements the shapes, scale, and color is not uniform in any way but is still a very beautiful and inviting building. For the interior Graves took inspiration from Denver’s history of exploration for elements of the design.

Now, nearly 8 years later, I will finally start my senior year at OU. I feel that I’ve come far in life, learned a lot, and grown a lot. Despite this progression I know I still have more to learn and more growing to do. All during this time of growth the clock tower has stood ticking away and counting down until the time I walk beneath it to graduate, and all the time after it will continue to count. My life will change and I may move away from Oklahoma, but OU will remain here and with it a monument to my personal growth and struggles as a student and as a man. I will forever remember the clock tower, a starting place, an ending place, and everything in between and beyond for my life.

Michael Graves quickly became one of the most prominent architects of the postmodernist movement in the 1980’s known for his unique style. However, in the later half of the 1980’s the postmodernist style was starting to fall from favor. Yet during this time Graves seemingly found a home working for Disney. Disney’s board trusted Graves with the design on many properties including the Team Disney building which is whimsical to say the least. Graves combined his knowledge of modern building, classical architecture, and a freedom of design on Disney to offer to create this building. The building is actually designed around the idea of a sun dial and near twenty-foot terracotta figures of the seven dwarfs hold up a pediment that resemble something from Ancient Rome or Greece.

                The pictures above are of the Opryland hotel in Nashville Tennessee. This hotel was the first of its kind that I ever stayed at. This hotel really shows how you can create a completely indoor environment but make it feel like you are almost always outdoors. This hotel seamlessly blends hotel life with the beauty of nature. The hotel when I stayed there was split up into 4 different “biomes”. The hotel had areas all of which had different flora, watercolor, and even micro weather. You could walk only about 20 yards and feel a drastic change in humidity as you enter a different biome. I found the environment relaxing and gorgeous.

This made me feel as though we do not have to destroy nature for us to be comfortable. It is doable to blend nature and building in a way that benefits us as humans while also benefiting nature and the planet as a whole. While this isn’t the best way to design building to not impact nature as this one is mostly using foreign flora and is all indoors it gives people that exposure to what having different buildings in an outdoor space would be like. The hotel has many shops and restaurants inside which do not feel like they are outside, and they blend near seamlessly with the environment they are in. This is mostly due to the plant coverage that is blended into a lot of the indoor buildings. So, while the hotel may not be the best structure for the environment the way it is designed to make the guests feel like the hotel is blended with nature I feel could help influence people to start thinking about how we blend future buildings with nature.

Mont St. Michel is a tidal island in the Normandy region of France. There is a great gothic style Abbey built on top of the island that was founded in the 10^th century. The island is half a mile off the mainland of France and about 17 acres in area. The buildings on the island were built in a particular order, with the abbey and monastery on top, then below were great halls, then stores and housing. At the bottom, nearest the water were the fishermen’s and farmer’s housing. With only a population of 50 today, this once medieval walled city is now a tourist hub. Most of the buildings have been made into shops, restaurants, and hotels for tourists.

There were a lot of features of the island and within the Abbey that I found interesting. Entering the island through the medieval drawbridge was exciting. Another cool part was seeing the infrastructure they used to bring building materials from the base of the island to the top of the Abbey. Essentially, it was a really steep ramp with a cart on a pulley/hoist system. Also, the Abbey had fireplaces so large I could stand inside. Being surrounded by all the history and buildings that are more than 500 years old really has a way of making you feel small or insignificant.