Guiyan Waterfall
It’s a tough time for mediocre architects. Middle Eastern countries like Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates have the world’s-tallest-building tug-of-war all locked down, so what are all the other skyscraper designers supposed to do? They run the venture. And China, in this respect, is not inferior to the advanced positions, trying to give through the architecture each of its cities its “business card” and form this way unique image and recognition at a glance. As more skyscrapers rise to fill the skylines of Chinese cities, it’s getting harder to come up with original designs to stand out.
The new architectural wonder of the world is a 350-foot waterfall that shoots out of the side of the Liebian Building in Guiyang, the administrative center of Guizhou Province in southwest China. The 397-ft. tall building is located at a public plaza in the city’s central business district.
The most challenging part of the project was to put the awareness in the helve to keep water within the boundaries outlined by the original plan. But the weight of the massive cascade of water plus the wind gusts at the 32 stories height were turned beyond the control of the project creators, and they were not able to come up with such a technology keeping the water contained.
“People in the southwestern city of Guiyang telephoned newspapers to report what they believed was a massive water leak,” describes the Times the start of the building operational commissioning.
Besides, according to the Kan Kan News, the waterfall has generated some local controversy because the electricity needed to power its four pumps costs 800 yuan, or about $118, per hour—although the building’s managers say that the waterfall will run only on special occasions and use recycled water from rain or the tap. Also it was decided that the falls are only turned on for special occasions, only used for 10-20 minutes at a time.
The company claim the project as a refreshing attraction in the heat of the summer as the water sprays into the surrounding area.
And although the building instantly gained top-of-mind awareness and glorified the city all over the world, not everyone shares the optimism of its creators and takes innovative development for an unsuccessful project of the collective shower in the middle of the city.
New York Post