Sydney's Opera House

On our final morning in Sydney, Bob, Ingrid and I took one last stroll around Sydney's Famous Opera House. It was a beautiful summer day in downtown Sydney and we were joined by many other tourists out to photograph the iconic image we have all seen so many times in school text books, travel magazines, and Olympic memorabilia.

Bob and I strolled around the building and talked back and forth about what we knew of the Architect and the challenging circumstances that surrounded the construction of the project. But mostly we were there to take pictures of our 14 month old daughter next to one of the world's most distinctive modern structures. The design came from the imagination of Jorn Utzon a Danish architect and engineer who's concept was chosen in 1957 from 233 entries and 32 countries. It amazes me to think about this building being built fifty years ago because it is so eye catching and challenging to build that it would seem to be a cutting edge piece of new construction even today. I really like it, and as a Danish descendant myself, I guess that means Great Danes think alike!

The buildings "shells" are made up of a series of 2400 precast ribs and 4000 roof panels that are then covered by a million plus glossy white and matte cream tiles in a chevron pattern. Construction went way over budget and took way longer than planned. Years were added to the timeline in order to redesign a more economic way the roof structure could be built and tens of millions of dollar were added to the budget. Enemies were made in the building process and from what I have read Utzon was greatly mistreated by the city governing powers and ultimately forced out of the project. The interior was then completed but not to the architect's original design. Seven years later in 1973 the Opera House was formally opened with crowds of millions in attendance. The architect Jorn Utzon was neither invited nor mentioned.

It is shocking to think that an architect that designed a building said to be "as representative of Australia as the pyramids are of Egypt and the Colosseum of Rome" did not receive credit many years ago. It is even more shocking to think that as we were exploring his master piece the 90 year old himself had never returned to Sydney to soak in the finished product. And so it goes that on Saturday morning November 29th, 2008 we were on the steps of the Sydney Opera House enjoying the magnitude of Jorn Utzon's great imagination only later to learn that Jorn Utzon passed away in his sleep early that same morning in Denmark.

It has been said by Louis Kahn a world-renowned architect that "the sun did not know how beautiful its light was until it was reflected off this building." On that summer morning as little Ingrid danced around in front of this miraculous piece of architect the suns reflection off the roof tiles brightened her white dress to an almost spiritual glow. And as she pranced around the Opera House steps glowing, smiling and confident we couldn't have agreed with Mr. Kahn more. In a serendipitous way the three of us shared something with Jorn Utzon that morning.