The Glass Godzilla in the City

The Museum Tower in Dallas, a giant glass condominium, rears its ugly head as it reflects glaring light onto the site it was named after.

1 minute read

June 26, 2012, 11:00 AM PDT

By Emily Williams


Following recent news from The New York Times and Dallas News, Rob Walker writes on the uproar being caused by the Museum Tower condos located across the street from the Nasher Sculpture Center designed by famed architect Renzo Piano, which is reflecting sunlight directly onto the museum and sculpture gardens, "threatening artworks in the galleries, burning the plants in the center's garden and blinding visitors with its glare." Located in the newly rebranded "Dallas Arts District", the development was built to attract a wealthy upper-class with its units ranging from $1 million to $5.4 million. The now infamous Tower was "constructed with no ill intent, but transformed by its design flaws into a civic menace."

Walker waxes poetic, comparing the Towers to a colossal monster like Godzilla ravaging an entire city, which seem to echo Piano's sentiments about the ongoing dispute. Walker states, "Piano refers to the light now threatening the museum as "radiation." And he warns that the condo will "kill the very thing [its owners] named the building after."

The most recent update on the ongoing dispute between Piano and the villainous Tower pegs Piano as "emotional" as he attempts to come to some sort of agreement. With the integrity of the museum's artwork under daily threat, one can only wonder if and when the villain in question will back down.

Monday, June 25, 2012 in The Design Observer Group

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