Those are the words of Jørn Utzon, the Danish architect and father of one of the world's most iconic buildings -- the Sydney Opera House. Utzon died this week at the age of 96. He had a heart attack following surgery.
When the Sydney Opera Trust picked Utzon's design in 1966, they stunned the world. The relationship would be a stormy one, due to cost overruns, and Utzon's relationship to the project was terminated before the building was complete.
Pictures of the Opera House -- at dawn, at dusk, during the midday sun -- are mesmerizing, but simply do not do the building justice. When I traveled to Australia in 1988, I couldln't wait to see it and once in Sydney Harbor, I couldn't take my eyes off of it.
Here's a little film from The Guardian newspaper on Utzon and the building he designed. The Sydney Opera House is now a UNESCO landmark.
The Aussies pay tribute to an adopted son.
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| "I fought for a perfect idea." |
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bardnsage
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Dec 2 @ 1:34PM
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A very striking building, distinctive. No matter what photo is taken, you know what it is, and where it is. From that standpoint, a lasting tribute to Utzon. Utzon was also the first to use scale modeling for accoustic studies. Even though he could not solve the accoustic problem, this method of testing is still used today, and was used by Peter Hall to solve the accoustic problem of the Sydney hall.
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iglooo101
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Dec 2 @ 1:50PM
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the story is similar to the story of
Turning Torso, Spanish architect Santiago Calatrava, Johnny Örbäck, former CEO of the Turning Torso contractor
Johnny Örbäck was impressed by the design so he have chosen it to be built.
near the end, the owners did not like the cost overrun and kicked him out.
Very sad story. very sad stories
BUT
All this is not equal to the story of the Arab architect Sennemar.
The king Nornian-Al-Oouar reigned long, long ago at Hirah and After the architect have built the castle and the palace he promised the king that he will not build anything similr. But the king in order to ensure that nothing similar will be built ordered that he architect to be thrown off the building he helped build.
the architect Sennemar
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eastham
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Dec 2 @ 1:51PM
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Thank you both for your interesting comments.
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redtigr
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Dec 2 @ 6:07PM
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I well remember studying this avante-garde building way back in high school. My art teacher thought it hideous, while the majority of us students thought it grand.
Everyone I know who has visited Sydney calls it breathtaking - as well as having the most perfect acoustics.
The perfect idea lives on...
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