Quote:
Originally Posted by arkhitektor
Please don't take this personally, Londoners, but everything about the 2012 games looks like its going to turn out a bit odd.
The logo is horrible, the venues designs are off-putting, and now this? I always look forward to the Olympics and seeing how the city presents itself and looks during the games, from the people to the buildings, venues, signs, wraps, etc.
Personally, from what I've seem so far, London is going to be remembered as the city that tried too hard to be different, without a budget to do so properly (Beijing) and failed.
When I saw the bizarre the London portion of the closing ceremonies was in 2008, I figured it was just because I still had the spectacle of the Beijing ceremonies on my mind. 2 years later, it looks like the whole of London 2012 is going to turn out the same way.
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Public art/tower aside the London 2012 Olympics will indeed be odd; to be odd is to be British and the reason why we have a knack for being one of the most culturally inventive societies about ranging from sports, art, music, film and architecture.
As such, the Olympics is an event requiring a much needed makeover; out goes the corporatised image of the logo, mascots and white elephant stadiums, and in comes a model for a sustainable legacy that the city will actually benefit from. Most importantly it will be one giant party - a complete contrast to Beijing
If there is one thing I can be certain of it is that the venues will be far more impressive in London than they were in Beijing;
- Wimbledon for tennis
- Wembley for football
- the Dome for gymnastics
- The Royal Artillery Barracks for shooting
- Lords for archery
- Horseguards Parade for Volleyball
- Greenwich Park for the Equestrian events
- Hyde Park for the Triathalon
The most interesting development could be that of the proposed 1,000m x 30m recycled polymer screen, that would wrap-round the Olympic Stadium - essentially turning the stadium into one giant 360 degree screen broadcasting events inside and elsewhere.
We also have to remember that London doesn't want a repeat of Beijing where the city is left with a stadium that sees little use in legacy mode. The London stadium has been designed to see a capacity reduction to 25,000 after the games; this will ensure that the stadium is a viable athletics-centered venue.
Of course come the closing ceremony the whole thing could end up a complete mess, but you don't judge a book by its cover. To prove the point, compare the Athens-Beijing handover ceremony to the Beijing opening ceremony.