Pyramid of Peace (Astana, Kazakhstan)
Kazakhstan, a former Soviet republic in Central Asia, has air temperatures that range from minus 60 degrees Fahrenheit in the winter to 122 degrees Fahrenheit in the summer. The brutal climate must figure in any architect's calculus, if a building is to survive its ravages. When Kazakh President-for-Life Nursultan Nazarbayev commissioned a monumental building to serve as the site for a meeting of religious leaders, the assignment wasn't for the fainthearted. But British architectural superstar Lord Norman Foster, whose projects have included the gherkin-shaped 30 St Mary Axe office tower in London, and the Turkish firm of Tabanlioglu Architecture & Consulting had the imagination and chutzpah to tackle the task. The 203-foot-high Pyramid of Peace (also known as the Palace of Peace and Reconciliation) consists of five triangular stories of pale granite and stained glass, supported by a steel frame atop a concrete base. The structure is designed to expand and contract nearly a foot to cope with temperature extremes. The pyramid, which took 18 months to build at a reported cost of $73 million, opened in late 2006. Nazarbayev flew in Spanish soprano Montserrat Caballe to give an inaugural concert in the pyramid's basement, which contains an opera hall. In April 2007, the pyramid hosted a concert by the European Union Youth Orchestra.