London's famous skyline-Tower 42
London's famous skyline includes many of the well-known landmarks shown in the photo on Pages 86–87. The left skyscraper on Page 87 is Tower 42. The original name was the NatWest Tower, as it was built for the headquarters of the National Westminster Bank. The tower, designed by architect Richard Seifert and built between 1971 and 1980, is 183m high and it was the tallest building in the City of London for 30 years, until it was surpassed by the Heron Tower in December 2009. Today it contains offices and restaurants.
Watch the video "London gets tallest tower in Europe"
Further information
1. Do you know Chicago School? (It is not the University of Chicago.)
It is related to the architecture of Chicago, which has influenced and reflected the history of American architecture. Chicago buildings are noted for their originality rather than their antiquity. Numerous architects have constructed landmark buildings of varying styles in Chicago. If you want to learn more about it, visit the following websites.
https://www.thoughtco.com/architecture-in-chicago-178487
https://www.choosechicago.com/blog/architecture-history/10-iconic-buildings-in-downtown-chicago/a
2. Everyone calls Chicago the "Windy City": visit the following website to learn more.
https://www.history.com/news/why-is-chicago-called-the-windy-city
3. Enjoy the video "Chicago Sears Tower unveils ledge"
Further questions:
1. Which of the five buildings in passage 2 do you like most?
2. Can you name at least 3 architectural styles and give brief presentation of them? Visit the website, you can learn more about them. https://gobeyondbounds.com/architectures-styles-around-world/
Listen to the audio about Chinese architecture and think about the following questions.
1. How would you compare modern Chinese architecture with modern architecture in the West?
2. What aspects of Chinese architecture do you think Western people would find the most surprising or interesting?
