Category:
Beijing
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bird's nest
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China
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Herzog and DeMeuron's Olympic Stadium
The Herzog and DeMeuron's Olympic Stadium, fondly referred by many as "Bird's Nest" is one of the most aesthetically fascinating structure created by man.
Location : Olympic Green Beijing China
Cost : $ 423Million
Design and Construction :
Beijing National Stadium was a joint venture among architects Jacques Herzog and Pierre de Meuron of Herzog & de Meuron, project architect Stefan Marbach, artist Ai Weiwei, and CADG which was lead by chief architect Li Xinggang. During their first meeting in 2003, at Basel, the group decided to do something unlike Herzog and de Meuron had traditionally designed. "China wanted to have something new for this very important stadium," Li stated. In an effort to design a stadium that was "porous" while also being "a collective building, a public vessel", the team studied Chinese ceramics. This line of thought brought the team to the "nest scheme". The stadium consists of two independent structures, standing 50 feet apart: red concrete seating bowl and the outer steel frame around it.
In an attempt to hide steel supports for the retractable roof, required in the bidding process, the team developed the "seemingly random additional steel" to blend the supports into the rest of the stadium.Twenty-four trussed columns encase the inner bowl, each one weighing 1,000 tons.Despite random appearance, each half of the stadium is nearly identical. After a collapse of a roof at the Charles de Gaulle International Airport, Beijing reviewed all major projects. It was decided to eliminate the retractable roof, the original inspiration for the "nest" design, as well as 9,000 seats from the design. The removal of the elements helped to bring the project under the reduced construction budget of $290 million, from an original $500 million. With the removal of the retractable roof, the building was lightened, which helped it stand up to seismic activity; however, the upper section of the roof was altered to protect fans from weather.Due to the stadium's outward appearance, it was nicknamed "The Bird's Nest". The phrase was first used by Herzog & de Meuron, though the pair still believes "there should be many ways of perceiving a building."The use is a compliment Li explained, "In China, a bird's nest is very expensive, something you eat on special occasions."
Ground was broken, at the Olympic Green, for Beijing National Stadium on 24 December 2003. At its height, 17,000 construction workers worked on the stadium. In January 2008, The Times reported that 10 workers had died throughout construction; despite denial from the Chinese government.However, in a story the following week, Reuters, with the support of the Chinese government, reported that only two workers had died.All 110,000 tons of steel were made in China, making the stadium the largest steel structure in the world. On 14 May 2008, the grass field of 7,811 square meters was laid in 24 hours. The field is a modular turf system by GreenTech ITM. Beijing National Stadium officially opened at a ceremony on 28 June 2008. (courtesy of wikipedia)
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