مسابقه طراحی برج لندن در سال 1890
درست آوریل 1889 میلادی بود که در نمایشگاه جهانی پاریس، مهندسی فرانسوی به نام ایفل، برجی فلزی رو دقیقا در قلب شهر پاریس بنا کرد که اعتراض همگان رو برانگیخت. در اون سال‌ها هنرمندان و نویسندگان شهر نامه‌های سرگشاده‌ی بسیاری رو به مسئولان نمایشگاه نوشتند که «این برج مسخره، سرگیجه‌آور و بی‌مصرف که مانند دودکش غول پیکر کارخانه‌های صنعتی‌ست»(تاریخ معماری مدرن ، لئوناردو بنه ولو ، صفحه 190) رو از شهر پاریس حذف کنید. اما خب بعد از تمام شدن این نمایشگاه مثل این که اکثر مخالفین نظرشون رو تغییر دادن و این غول آهنی رو به عنوان نماد شهرشون پذیرفتن و به این ترتیب این بنا تا به امروز هم پا برجاست.
اما شاید تا به حال کسی از ما خبر نداشت که پس از ساخت ایفل در پاریس، انگلیسی‌ها هم تصمیم داشتند در رقابت با فرانسوی‌ها، برجی فلزی بلندتر از ایفل بسازند!
ماجرا از این قرار بوده که در سال 1890 میلادی مسابقه‌ی بین المللی طراحی برج لندن برگزار می‌شه و تعداد زیادی طرح از نقاط مختلف جهان به دست داوران می‌رسه و در نهایت طرح شماره‌ی 37 (اولین تصویر) که فقط حدود 65 متر بلندتر از ایفل بوده، برنده‌ی مسابقه می‌شه. اما خب در اون زمان هزینه‌ی ساخت این برج با این همه آهن بسیار بالا می‌ره و در نتیجه مسئولین پروژه نمی‌تونن از پس هزینه‌های ساخت بربیان و ساخت پروژه متوقف می‌شه. ولی خب انگلیسی ها امسال یعنی در ماه مارس 2012 بالاخره به آرزوشون رسیدن و برج حدود 310 متری The Shard اثر معمار معروف ایتالیایی Renzo Piano رو در شهر لندن افتتاح کردن.
در این پست تعدادی از تصاویر طرح‌های این مسابقه در سال 1890 به نمایش در اومده که حال و هوای معماری اواخر قرن 19 که اوایل شکل‌گیری معماری مدرن هم هست، رو به خوبی نشون می‌دهند.
© Descriptive illustrated catalogue of the sixty-eight competitive designs for the great tower for London compiled and edited by Fred. C. Lynde
While the Eiffel Tower was negatively received at first for its utilitarian appearance, it soon became a major attraction for Paris, France in the late 19th century. It represented structural ingenuity and innovation and soon became a major feat, rising to 300 meters of7,500 tons of steel and iron. Just three years after its unveiling, London sponsored a competition for its own version of the tower in 1890. The Tower Company, Limited collected 68 designs, all variations of the design of the Eiffel Tower. Proposals were submitted from the United States, Canada, Germany, Sweden, Italy, Austria, Turkey and Australia. Many of the designs are bizarre interpretations of utilitarian structures, following the aesthetics of the Eiffel Tower, only bigger and taller.
Join us after the break for more on the story of the Tower of London.
© Descriptive illustrated catalogue of the sixty-eight competitive designs for the great tower for London compiled and edited by Fred. C. Lynde
The winning proposal, submitted by Stewart, Maclaren and Dunn, surpassed the Eiffel Tower by about 215 feet and featured an octagonal plan and rising spire that would house exhibition halls, theaters, restaurants and all manner of entertainment. With the design in hand and construction on its way, the tower design never met its complete realization. Funding was a major issue from the very beginning. Sir Edward Watkin, managing director and developer of the tower, had trouble paying the full cost without city subsidies.
© Descriptive illustrated catalogue of the sixty-eight competitive designs for the great tower for London compiled and edited by Fred. C. Lynde
But the major breaking point in the project came when the weight of the iron structure caused its foundations to shift, stalling construction. The ambitious height of the tower eventually caused its demise. While the incomplete tower opened in 1902, it was soon closed for safety concerns. It was eventually demolished in 1907.
© Descriptive illustrated catalogue of the sixty-eight competitive designs for the great tower for London compiled and edited by Fred. C. Lynde
The Eiffel Tower still holds its eminence in Paris, France where it is to date the tallest structure. Meanwhile, London builds ever higher in the contemporary fashion of glass and steel skyscrapers. The Shard by Renzo Piano, completed in March 2012, stands at a height of 1,016 feet where it is the tallest building in the United Kingdom as well as the EU. Its silhouette still has a vague reminiscence of the Eiffel Tower pyramidal form.
© Descriptive illustrated catalogue of the sixty-eight competitive designs for the great tower for London compiled and edited by Fred. C. Lynde
© Descriptive illustrated catalogue of the sixty-eight competitive designs for the great tower for London compiled and edited by Fred. C. Lynde
© Descriptive illustrated catalogue of the sixty-eight competitive designs for the great tower for London compiled and edited by Fred. C. Lynde