I think the New 7 Wonders idea was an interesting one, as was its voting procedure. But is anyone else surprised by what did and didn't make the final list? 6 of the final 7 I can see. But the Christ Redeemer statue in Brazil? It struck me that both that and the Statue of Liberty were unlikely finalists. Is there "wonder" in these large statues that I don't appreciate? They are impressive, sure - but as impressive as some of the other structures that didn't make the cut? Maybe I have some anti-statue bias or something, but I just don't see that work in the top 7.
Posted by armand at July 9, 2007 04:54 PM | TrackBack | Posted to ArchitectureI thought the exact same thing when I looked at that. I have to think that "wonder" has to have some element of "wow, that's just so amusing that people actually built that." It is most certainly not amazing that either the Christ statue or lady liberty were built. Neither are in a unique style or were particularly technologically difficult. Wow, a statute built of re-enforced concrete in the late 1800s thats 38 meters high. Obviously this is motivated by catholics voting. Although, one has to wonder why the catholics wouldn't have picked a better symbol for themselves, like St. Peter's basilica or Notre Dame.
Personally, I cannot believe that the Moai on Easter Island were excluded. Now thats something that says "wonder" to me.
Posted by: ryan at July 10, 2007 10:49 AM | PERMALINKWell there's also the "why on Earth do that?" form of wonder - appreciating an amazing folly - which is one of the reasons why I'd have preferred to see the Eiffel Tower on the final list.
Though if I was replacing the Christ Redeemer statue with just one of the other finalists I would likely have taken your approach to "wonder" and voted for Angkor Wat. Though yeah, Easter Island makes sense too.
Posted by: Armand at July 10, 2007 12:47 PM | PERMALINKI find Angkor Wat to be a completely acceptable alternative as well. I don't think I realized that wasn't on the list. Although I think huge useless stone heads also qualify for the "why on earth do that?" type too. Although as we know I love France, especially late 19th century France, so I wouldn't mind the Eiffel Tower at all.
Posted by: ryan at July 10, 2007 12:57 PM | PERMALINK