Certainly prolific, Sir Norman Foster has created clean, shiny buildings across the globe. From the groundbreaking and expensive Hong Kong and Shanghai Bank to the immensely popular Reichstag dome in Berlin to the, um, suggestive Swiss Re Building in London, his work is just about everywhere. In London alone he has worked on well over forty major projects (most of them realized), including the recent Great Court at the British Museum, the one time wobbly Millennium Bridge, the terribly fun, new London City Hall and the complete reimagining of Wembley Stadium.

Hong Kong and Shanghai Bank (HSBC) Building
(1996) Hong Kong, China

A massive, high tech exoskeletion and a massive budget propelled the HSBC Building and its architect into the forefront. The building itself has a large, open atrium that runs the entire height of the building, its floor is a curved glass plane that acts as roof to the empty lobby below. At the street, a dramatic pair of escalators rise up from the total void- a concession to a feng-shui happy state, allowing evil spirits pass unhindered through the building, at least at street level.

Reichstag Dome
(1999) Berlin, Germany

Santiago Calatrava lost the design competition for the New German Parliament in the all too historic Reichstag in Berlin. His design returned a glass dome to the building, one that would have the ability to physically open. His design lost to Norman Foster who proposed a large, horizontal canopy that would be built over the entire building. Foster may have won, but over time his design began to shift suspiciously close in spirit to Calatrava's. The result is a glass dome with an especially fun, tourist friendly ramp- an icon that tries to make you forget everything that happened there before.

Click here to visit the Bundestag site, including information about the dome, the chamber and everything in between

Millennium Bridge
(2000/2002) London, United Kingdom

It seemed like a good idea at the time. Norman Foster's "blade of light" bridge, connecting St Paul's Cathedral and the brand new Tate Modern, with handrails designed to deflect the river winds over pedestrians. The bridge opened but promptly closed, its Millennium debut proved too wobbly to be acceptable. In February 2002 the Millennium Bridge repened without incident to serve a patient public, after an additional £5m of design, construction and shock absorbers.

Great Court at the British Museum
(2001) London, United Kingdom

The Reading Room was already there (although not accessible) but it took Norman Foster's massive glass enclosed center court to bring it back to life. In reality not that much happens in the space- there are a few small shops, some cafes and seating (although not nearly enough), an information desk and a lot of generous, empty space. Around this empty space the museum feels suddenly more manageable, all those treasures from a once great empire now seem to be where they're supposed to be. The glass roof itself looks like an impossible geometry, a donut of triangles that is somehow both curved and flat.

Click here to finally start planning that trip to the British Museum- the Elgin Marbles, the Rosetta Stone and the Great Court are waiting

London City Hall
(2002) London, United Kingdom

The South Bank of the Thames' new landmark, a new City Hall for whoever it is that is really in charge of London. The building tilts away from the Thames, with a terribly fun ramp that twists with the building and leads from "London's Living Room" right down to the council chamber.

Click here to find out when the GLA lets you you can access all the good parts of the building

Norman Foster Works 4
by David Jenkins
(2004) Prestel Publishing

If you needed further proof as to how busy and prolific Foster and Partners has been recently then this is the book for you. Norman Foster Works 4 covers the 1990s... (read more)

Rebuilding the Reichstag
by Norman Foster, David Jenkins
Publisher: Overlook Press
(June 2000)

On Foster...Foster on
by Norman Foster (Editor), Deyan Dudjic (Introduction), David Jenkins (Editor), Deyan Sudjic (Introduction)
Publisher: Prestel USA;
Book and CD-ROM edition
(October 2000)

Sir Norman Foster
by Philip Jodidio
Publisher: TASCHEN America Llc (October 1997)

Norman Foster Works 1
by David Jenkins, Hashim Sarkis
Publisher: Prestel USA
(January 2003)

Norman Foster: A Global Architecture
by Martin Pawley, Norman Foster
Publisher: Universe Books
(December 1999)

See more recommended books at books.ArBITAT.com