The 3rd of october will be the tenth anniversary of the Guggenheim Bilbao Museum opening.
Designed by the North American architect Frank O. Gehry, this unique Museum built on a 32.500m2 site in the center of Bilbao represents an amazing construction feat. On one side it runs down to the waterside of the Nervión River, 16 meters below the level of the rest of the city of Bilbao.
The building itself is an extraordinary combination of interconnecting shapes. Orthogonal blocks in limestone contrast with curved and bent forms covered in titanium. Glass curtain walls provide the building with the light and transparency it needs. Owing to their mathematical complexity, the sinuous stone, glass, and titanium curves were designed with the aid of computers. The glass walls were made and installed to protect the works of art from heat and radiation.
11.000m2 of exhibition space are distributed in 19 galleries. Ten of these galleries have an almost classical orthogonal look and can be identified from outside by their stone finishes. Nine other, irregularly shaped galleries present a remarkable contrast, and can be identified from outside by their unusual architecture and the covering of titanium.
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