The Beijing Water Cube Is Almost Done!

I still don't like it. I think the architects overreached creating a structure that will not age gracefully. It's my opinion that form was placed well before function with this project and consequently this aquatics center may be very hard to maintain. The Water Cube has lots of nooks and crannies that could collect dirt or mold, the facility has a flat roof with bubble protrusions which to me does not seem conducive to proper rain runoff. It could suffer from ventilation issues since it does not seemingly appear to have large wholesale vents. An open or ventilated roof is the best way to ventilate an aquatics arena.

Here is a gallery of photos from Wired Magazine: [Link]