BULDING REPULMION

Tatler rounds up some of the most iconic architecture in Asiafrom the historical to the contemporary

PHILIPPINES

National Museum of Natural History Located at the Agrifina Circle of Rizal Park, the National Museum of Natural History is an architectural marvel that has retained its original Neoclassical facade out front, but houses a spacious, airy, expertly-designed array of galleries and interactive learning spaces within. The structure housing the museum was originally built in 1940 to house the Ministries of Agriculture and Commerce. It is actually a twin of the Finance Building which now houses the National Museum of Anthropology, as both buildings were designed by the architect Antonio Toledo who also designed the Manila City Hall. The twin structures were destroyed during the Second World War and were subsequently rebuilt based on Toledo’ original plans. Today, the area where both buildings and the National Museum for the Arts are located has been officially designated as the National Museum Complex. The design of the Museum of Natural History is the result ofa collaboration between the architect Dominic Galicia and the interior designer Tina Periquet. In their concept, the structure is built around an atrium, referred to in the design statement as The Courtyard, whose focal point is a massive six-storey functional sculpture modelled after the DNA, the basic building block of life. Overall, Galicia refers to the design as The Tree of Life.