Spotlight
Herzog & de Meuron and the Bird’s Nest
For Chinese, New Year’s Eve 2008 fell on February 6th, according to the lunar calendar, and for the occasion red lights were turned on in a massive building in Olympic Park located in the northeast of Beijing.
The warm light naturally attracted many passers-by, many of whom took the time to stop and take some photos.
Program Video
Episode 1
The official name of what everyone now knows as the Bird’s Nest is the National Stadium of China, and it is designed by two star architects: Jacque Herzog and Pierre de Meuron from Switzerland.
However, with their design of the National Stadium of China, Jacques Herzog and Pierre de Meuron were setting out to redefine what is possible in human architecture.
Episode 2
Four months later, the design competition for the National Stadium, the centerpiece of the Beijing Olympics, reached the critical moment.
The evaluating committee had narrowed the number of designs down from thirteen to just three and recommended these to the decision makers.
Episode 3
The fantastic outer appearance of the National Stadium of China, also known as the Bird’s Nest, was the biggest surprise of the 2008 Olympics.
However, this alone was not enough to enable Beijing to host one of the most successful Olympics in history.
Episode 4
According to the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF), the main Olympic stadium needs to be oriented north - south to prevent excessive sunlight irritating the eyes of the athletes.
On top of this, the field for the 100 meters sprint and the long jump must be located on the east side of the north - south oriented stadium.
