WHALE BONE ARCH BARROWWHALE BONE ARCH BARROW This arch, made from the ribs of a bowhead whale, is the signature spot in Barrow. It is a symbolic gateway to the Arctic Ocean as much as the Gateway Arch on the Mississippi River in St. Louis is an entrance to the American West. There is nothing particularly remarkable about the arch except that it symbolizes the dependence upon the whale for the very existence and survival of the Inupiat Eskimos who have survived and thrived in this harsh environment for five thousand years.

LOTUS TEMPLELOTUS TEMPLE Like all other Bahá'í Houses of Worship, the Lotus Temple is open to all regardless of religion, or any other distinction, as emphasized in Bahá'í texts. The Bahá'í laws emphasize that the spirit of the House of Worship be that it is a gathering place where people of all religions may worship God without denominational restrictions. The Lotus Temple, located in New Delhi, India, is a Bahá'í House of Worship completed in 1986. Notable for its flowerlike shape, it serves as the Mother Temple of the Indian subcontinent and has become a prominent attraction in the city. The Lotus Temple has won numerous architectural awards and been featured in hundreds of newspaper and magazine articles

THE FLOWER DOMEThe Flower Dome is the lower but larger of the two, at 1.2 hectares (3.0 acres). It replicates a mild, dry climate and features plants found in the Mediterranean and other semi- arid tropical regions (e.g. parts of Australia, South America, South Africa). The Flower Dome is 38 metres (125 ft) high and maintains a temperature between 23°C and 25°C, slightly lower at night. The Flower Dome features 7 different "gardens" as well as an olive grove with a bistro and a central changing display field has also been incorporated to enable flower shows and displays to be held within the conservatory. The final construction cost for the project, not including the price of the land but including an access road, drainage works, and soil improvement, was within a $1.035 billion allocated budget. The annual operating cost was expected to be approximately $58 million, of which $28 million was for operation of the Conservatory buildings. The project received 1.7 million visitors between June and October 2012, who had free admission to most portions of the park but were required to purchase tickets for entering the Conservatories.

THE GATEWAY ARCHThe Gateway Arch is a 630-foot-high (192 m) monument in St. Louis, in the U.S. state of Missouri. Clad in stainless steel and built in the form of a flattened catenary arch, it is the tallest man-made monument in the Western Hemisphere, Missouri's tallest accessible building, and the world's tallest arch. Built as a monument to the westward expansion of the United States, it is the centerpiece of the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial and has become an internationally famous symbol of St. Louis. DELICATE ARCH, ARCHES NATIONAL PARK

DELICATE ARCHDelicate Arch is one of Utah's most famous icons. You see images of it everywhere: on magazine covers, computer screen savers and license plates. But photos do not adequately convey the stunning beauty that hits you as you come over the ridge and see the arch in person for the first time-when you stand under it, the arch towering above your head, slickrock canyons falling away below you, the snow-covered La Sal Mountains in the distance. It is a spectacular sight. Delicate Arch has become the unofficial symbol of Utah. Towering eighty feet over hikers, Delicate Arch is one of the highlights of Arches National Park and is possibly the most beautiful arch in the world. This arch needs to be experienced in person to be really appreciated. This hike competes with Devils Garden as the best hike in Arches National Park. If you are looking for good photo opportunities this is the spot, Delicate Arch is probably the most photographed arch in the world. Resting on top of a huge Entrada Sandstone formation, the world-famous site offers a dramatic views.

THE CATHEDRAL OF BRASÍLIA The Cathedral of Brasília (Catedral Metropolitana Nossa Senhora Aparecida- "Metropolitan Cathedral of Our Lady of Aparecida" ) is the Roman Catholic cathedral serving Brasília, Brazil, and serves as the seat of the Archdiocese of Brasília. It was designed by Oscar Niemeyer, and was completed and dedicated on May 31, 1970. The cathedral is a hyperboloid structure constructed from 16 concrete columns, weighing 90 tons each.

SYDNEY HARBOUR BRIDGE

Sydney Harbour Bridge is one of Australia’s most well-known and photographed landmarks. It is the world’s largest (but not the longest) steel arch bridge with the top of the bridge standing 134 meters (440 feet) above Sydney Harbour. It took eight years to build and opened in March 1932. Because the steel expands or contracts depending on whether it is hot or cold the bridge is not completely stationary and can rise or fall up to 18 cm (7.1 inch).

MASÍA FREIXALa Masía Freixa es un edificio modernista de la ciudad de Tarrasa situado en el parque de Sant Jordi y adyacente a la masía. Construida en 1896 fue reformada entre los años 1907 y 1914 por Lluís Muncunill i Parellada. El arquitecto la convirtió en una de las joyas del modernismo egarense, con su estructura de arcos y bóvedas de inspiración gaudiniana con los muros pintados de blanco, y de la que sobresale una alta torre. Durante muchos años albergó el Conservatorio Municipal de Música que, actualmente, ha sido trasladado a otro edificio de nueva construcción en el Campus Universitario.

La masía estuvo ideada, originalmente, para servir como fábrica de hilaturas y el arquitecto Muncunill la transformó después en la residencia familiar del industrial textil Josep Freixa i Argemí.

SYDNEY OPERA HOUSEThe Sydney Opera House is a multi-venue performing arts centre in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Situated onBennelong Point in Sydney Harbour, close to the Sydney Harbour Bridge, the facility is adjacent to the Sydney central business district and the Royal Botanic Gardens, between Sydney and Farm Coves.

Designed by Danish architect Jørn Utzon, the facility formally opened on 20 October 1973, by Queen Elizabeth II, with members of the British Royal family in attendance[3] after a gestation beginning with Utzon's 1957 selection as winner of an international design competition. The Government of New South Wales, led by the premier, Joseph Cahill, authorised work to begin in 1958 with Utzon directing construction. The government's decision to build Utzon's design is often overshadowed by circumstances that followed, including cost and scheduling overruns as well as the architect's ultimate resignation.

JUSCELINO KUBITSCHEK BRIDGE Juscelino Kubitschek Bridge (Portuguese: Ponte Juscelino Kubitschek), also called President JK Bridge or JK Bridge, is a steeland concrete bridge crossing Lake Paranoá in Brasília, Brazil. It links the eastern shore of the lake to the center of the city, through the Monumental Axis. Inaugurated on December 15, 2002, the bridge almost immediately became a symbol of Brasília, with its distinctive silhouette.

It is named for Juscelino Kubitschek de Oliveira, former president of Brazil, who is generally considered the main figure supporting the construction of Brasília It was designed by architect Alexandre Chan and structural engineer Mário Vila Verde.[3]

The structure of the bridge has a total length of 1,200 metres (3,900 ft), a width of 24 metres (79 ft) and two carriageways with three lanes in each direction, two walkways on the sides for cyclists and pedestrians 1.5 metres (4.9 ft) wide, and three spans of 240 metres (790 ft). The main span structure has four supporting pillars submerged on Lake Paranoá, and the deck weight is supported by three 200-foot-tall (61 m) asymmetrical steel arches that crisscross diagonally. The decks are suspended by steel cables alternating at each side of the deck, interlacing in a twisted plane. The entire structure has a total length of 1,200 metres (3,900 ft), and it was completed at a cost of US$56.8 million .[4] The bridge has a pedestrian walkway and is accessible to pedestrians and bicyclists.

McDonald’s GOLDEN ARCHES

The Golden Arches are the symbol of McDonald's, the global fast-food restaurant chain. Originally, real arches were part of the restaurant design. They were incorporated into the chain's logo in 1962, which resembled a stylized restaurant, and in the current Golden Arches logo, introduced 1968, resembling an "M" for "McDonald's".

The new design has two 60-foot-tall arches that span much of the entire site and help support the roof of the two-story restaurant. Each large arc is comprised of two 20 x 12 tubes covered by plate on all four sides. The arches are 20 inches wide and vary in thickness from 36 inches at the base to 24 inches at the top. According to the fabricator and erector, Chicago Metal’s precision in tube bending helped them fit up and erect the structure on time. Two smaller arches made of 14 x 4 x 1/2 tube support the roof above the two-lane drive-through at the south end of the property.

XIDAYINGGANG TWIN BRIDGES

The Xidayinggang Twin Bridges by CA-DESIGN Architecture and Urban Planning are a beautiful landmark for Qingpu in Shanghai, China. They span a 50 meter wide canal flanked by two roads, and deliberately echo the forms of the sacred mountains. In order to more effectively simulate the mountains' fractal lines, the planes of the arches in the arch and cable suspension system are rotated. The stiffeners and cables therefore also twist and turn in response to the parabolic arches. The bridges' graceful curves also resemble a strand of DNA - a symbol of life that is a perfect metaphor for the rejuvenation of Qingpu.

THEME BUILDING

The Theme Building is an iconic landmark structure at the Los Angeles International Airport within the Westchesterneighborhood of the city of Los Angeles. It opened in 1961, and it is an example of the Mid-Century modern influenced design school known as "Googie" or "Populuxe."

The distinctive white building resembles a flying saucer that has landed on its four legs.[2] It was designed by a team of architects and engineers headed by William Pereira and Charles Luckman, that also included Paul Williams and Welton Becket. The initial design of the building was created by James Langenheim, of Pereira & Luckman.

The appearance of the building as a single homogeneous structure is a constructed illusion. The building's two crossed arches actually consist of four steel-reinforced concrete legs that extend approximately 15 feet above the ground, and a hollow, stucco-covered steel truss constituting the remaining lower arches and entire upper arches. To avoid changing the appearance of the structure with overt reinforcement, the Theme Building was retrofitted with a tuned mass damperto counteract earthquake movements

SAN BARTOLOMÉ DE CHILLÁN CATHEDRAL

The city of Chillán in central Chile, about 400 kilometers south of Santiago, is now home to almost 176,000 inhabitants. Founded in 1580 under the name of “San Bartolomé de Chillán”, it's one of the oldest cities in Chile, and also one of the most unfortunate. Since its founding, the city was repeatedly attacked by the Mapuche natives, abandoned and rebuilt several times.

The Cathedral is dedicated to St. Bartholomew, patron of the city. It is a single-nave church with side walls and roof shaped by ten parabolic arches about 20 meters high, spaced five meters from each other. The archers represent prayer and the interweaving of the hands while praying. The oblique arrangement, linking the lower curve of each arch with the upper curve of the other, allows lighting inside the church through its entire 52-meter length.