Skip to content

Top Navigation

Travel + Leisure Travel + Leisure Travel + Leisure Travel + Leisure
  • Trip Inspiration
  • Plan Your Trip
  • Travel Guides
  • World's Best
  • Destination of the Year
  • A-List Travel Advisors
  • Cruises
  • Travel Tips
  • News
  • Food + Drink
  • Travel Accessories
  • Check-In

Profile Menu

Your Profile

Your Profile

  • Join Now
  • Newsletters
  • Manage Your Subscription this link opens in a new tab
  • Give a Gift Subscription
  • Help
  • Logout
Login
Subscribe
Pin FB

Explore Travel + Leisure

Travel + Leisure Travel + Leisure Travel + Leisure Travel + Leisure
  • Explore

    Explore

    • World's Best

      The greatest islands, cities, hotels, cruise lines, airports, and more — as voted by you. Read More Next
    • The 50 Best Places to Travel in 2021

      Whether you're traveling solo or planning a family vacation, here are the 50 best places to visit in 2021. Read More Next
    • Let's Go Together Podcast

      Start listening to T+L's brand new podcast, Let's Go Together! Hosted by Kellee Edwards. Read More Next
  • Trip Inspiration

    Trip Inspiration

    • Trip Ideas
    • Weekend Getaways
    • Spring Travel
    • Summer Travel
    • Fall Travel
    • Winter Travel
    • Solo Travel
    • Romantic Getaways
    • Luxury Travel
    • Beach Vacations
    • Adventure Travel
    • Road Trips
    • Family Travel
    • National Parks
    • Holiday Travel
    • Travel Photography
    • Photo of the Day
    • Culture and Design
  • Plan Your Trip

    Plan Your Trip

    • Travel Deals
    • Attractions
    • Amusement Parks
    • Festivals and Events
    • Bus and Trains
    • Flight Deals
    • Budget Travel
    • Hotels and Resorts
    • Disney Vacations
    • Airlines and Airports
    • Ground Transportation
  • Travel Guides
  • World's Best

    World's Best

    • Top Hotels
    • Top Cities
    • Top Islands
    • Domestic Airlines
    • International Airlines
    • Tours
    • Safaris
    • All World's Best
  • Destination of the Year
  • A-List Travel Advisors
  • Cruises

    Cruises

    • Find A Cruise
    • Caribbean Cruises
    • River Cruises
    • European Cruises
    • All-Inclusive Cruises
    • Family Cruises
    • Alaskan Cruises
    • Disney Cruises
    • See All Cruise Vacations
  • Travel Tips

    Travel Tips

    • Travel Trends
    • Packing Tips
    • Points + Miles
    • Budgeting + Currency
    • Customs + Immigration
    • Responsible Travel
    • Travel Etiquette
    • Travel Warnings
    • Weather
    • Mobile Apps
    • See All Travel Tips
  • News

    News

    • Wellness
    • Celebrity Travel
    • Animals
    • Jobs
    • Offbeat
    • See All News
  • Food + Drink

    Food + Drink

    • Restaurants
    • Wine
    • Beer
    • Cocktails + Spirits
    • Bars + Clubs
    • Celebrity Chefs
    • Cooking + Entertaining
    • Food Fairs + Festivals
    • World's Best Restaurants
    • See All Food + Drink
  • Travel Accessories

    Travel Accessories

    • Travel Bags
    • Shoes
    • Travel Tech
    • Shopping
    • Style
    • Gift Guides
    • See All Travel Accessories
  • Check-In

Profile Menu

Subscribe this link opens in a new tab
Your Profile

Your Profile

  • Join Now
  • Newsletters
  • Manage Your Subscription this link opens in a new tab
  • Give a Gift Subscription
  • Help
  • Logout
Login
Sweepstakes

Follow Us

  1. Home
  2. Culture + Design
  3. Architecture + Design
  4. 17 Buildings That Prove You Don't Need to Be in Nature to Appreciate Flowers

17 Buildings That Prove You Don't Need to Be in Nature to Appreciate Flowers

By Erika Owen
May 03, 2017
Skip gallery slides
Save Pin
Credit: Getty Images
We’re constantly surrounded by architecture, and it can be hard to appreciate the finer details of our concrete jungles. While we spend our hard-earned salaries exploring cities for experiences and stories to tell loved ones at home, it’s all too easy to stroll right past some of the world’s most beautiful and storied elements without so much as a second glance.

Like spending the afternoon identifying cloud characters, your brain can do its own work finding the curiosities in architecture. But there’s one thing that we’re currently obsessed with: the floral elements in buildings in cities around the world. You read that right: There are metal, concrete, stained-glass, and wooden flowers gracing cities around the world in constant blooms.

Wondering what we’re even talking about? Read on and discover some of our favorite floral architecture elements. Warning: Once you see some of these, you’ll be seeing flowers all over the place.
Start Slideshow

1 of 17

Save Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Lotus Tower - Shanghai, China

Credit: Getty Images/iStockphoto

At night, the Lotus Tower lights up — or shall we say, blooms — putting on a show worth waiting to see. As its name hints, the top of the tower is designed to look like the Lotus flower, with two layers of metal petals that give the entire building an Art Deco vibe.

1 of 17

Advertisement
Advertisement

2 of 17

Save Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Nasir ol Molk Mosque – Shiraz, Iran

Credit: Getty Images/iStockphoto

Challenge: Count all of the flowers that show up in the dizzying — and we mean that in the best way possible — interior of this mosque.

2 of 17

3 of 17

Save Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Seattle

Credit: Martin Child/Getty Images

The installation created by Dan Carson proves that the top of the Space Needle isn’t the only place to find stunning views in Seattle.

3 of 17

Advertisement

4 of 17

Save Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Old Church Window – Hamburg, Germany

Credit: Getty Images/EyeEm

There are architectural surprises around every turn in Germany, but we’ve fallen for this aged church window, which has a few layers of floral intrigue in its brick and tile design.

4 of 17

5 of 17

Save Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Liuli China Museum – Shanghai, China

Credit: TAO Images Limited / Alamy

The corner of this already-stunning museum in Shanghai has been transformed into a fiery flower. At night, it’s lit in a bright orange, but during the day it blends into the silver façade making for the perfect double take as you pass by.

5 of 17

6 of 17

Save Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Gaudi's Casa Batlló – Barcelona, Spain

Credit: John Harper/Getty Images

The floral tiling on this masterpiece by Antoni Gaudí is worth taking a long moment to appreciate the details.

6 of 17

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

7 of 17

Save Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Arts and Sciences Museum – Marina Bay, Singapore

Credit: Getty Images

To get the full effect of this floral fixation, you’ll have to check out Marina Bay’s Arts and Sciences Museum from above — the rounded columns come together to form a gentle bloom.

7 of 17

8 of 17

Save Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Modern Building Design in the 19th Arrondissement – Paris, France

Credit: Getty Images

Game board or building? These golden clovers make this design stand-out among the crowded city.

8 of 17

9 of 17

Save Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

MAXXI Museum – Rome, Italy

Credit: Stefania Barbier / Alamy

From below, these cherry-colored petals are the perfect spot to catch some shade. From above, they’re blooms stretching for that extra bit of sunlight.

9 of 17

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

10 of 17

Save Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Lotus Temple – New Delhi, India

Credit: Tarun Chopra/Getty Images

Take some time to stop and enjoy the full view of this temple before checking it out up close — its lotus shape is a sight to see from afar.

10 of 17

11 of 17

Save Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Persepolis UNESCO World Heritage Site – Persepolis, Iran

Credit: Getty Images/iStockphoto

There's an ancient story to be told on the walls of Persepolis, but make sure to take a moment to appreciate the crown of flowers lining the bottom of some of these scenes.

11 of 17

12 of 17

Save Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Abu Dhabi, UAE

Credit: Tom Dulat/Getty Images

Don’t let all of the gold send your head spinning—the floral relief design on the ceiling of the Sheik Zayed Grand Mosque is easy to overlook, and most definitely worth your attention.

12 of 17

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

13 of 17

Save Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

La Sagrada Familia – Barcelona, Spain

Credit: Getty Images/RooM RM

Classic vacation advice: Don’t forget to look up! The ceiling of La Sagrada Familia in Barcelona is straight out of a dream.

13 of 17

14 of 17

Save Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Garden by the Bay – Singapore

Credit: John Harper/Getty Images

These colorful blossoms flower out of the ground, creating a massive industrial garden just waiting to be explored.

14 of 17

15 of 17

Save Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Art Nouveau Majolica Building – Vienna, Austria

Credit: Getty Images/Arcaid Images

Otto Wagner's Majolica Building shows off some of the prettiest tiled florets we've ever seen. Helllllo, Instagram.

15 of 17

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

16 of 17

Save Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Cathedral of Immaculate Conception – Chanthaburi, Thailand

Credit: Chakarin Wattanamongkol/Getty Images

This cathedral sits in the center of a giant blossom. Again, take some time to step back and admire this scene from afar, if you find yourself lucky enough to check it out in person.

16 of 17

17 of 17

Save Pin
Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message

Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque - Abu Dhabi, UAE

Credit: Getty Images/Perspectives

There are plenty of reasons to visit this site of worship, but don’t miss the floral-inspired stained-glass windows inside its walls. Get the light shining through at the right angle, and you’re in for a treat.

17 of 17

Replay gallery

Share the Gallery

Pinterest Facebook

Up Next

By Erika Owen

Share the Gallery

Pinterest Facebook
Trending Videos
Advertisement
Skip slide summaries

Everything in This Slideshow

Advertisement

View All

1 of 17 Lotus Tower - Shanghai, China
2 of 17 Nasir ol Molk Mosque – Shiraz, Iran
3 of 17 Seattle
4 of 17 Old Church Window – Hamburg, Germany
5 of 17 Liuli China Museum – Shanghai, China
6 of 17 Gaudi's Casa Batlló – Barcelona, Spain
7 of 17 Arts and Sciences Museum – Marina Bay, Singapore
8 of 17 Modern Building Design in the 19th Arrondissement – Paris, France
9 of 17 MAXXI Museum – Rome, Italy
10 of 17 Lotus Temple – New Delhi, India
11 of 17 Persepolis UNESCO World Heritage Site – Persepolis, Iran
12 of 17 Abu Dhabi, UAE
13 of 17 La Sagrada Familia – Barcelona, Spain
14 of 17 Garden by the Bay – Singapore
15 of 17 Art Nouveau Majolica Building – Vienna, Austria
16 of 17 Cathedral of Immaculate Conception – Chanthaburi, Thailand
17 of 17 Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque - Abu Dhabi, UAE

Share options

Facebook Tweet Mail Email iphone Send Text Message
Travel + Leisure Travel + Leisure

Magazines & More

Learn More

  • Subscribe this link opens in a new tab
  • Contact Us
  • Advertise
  • Content Licensing this link opens in a new tab
  • Sitemap
  • Travel Guide Sitemap

Connect

Follow Us
Subscribe to Our Newsletters
Other Travel + Leisure Sites
Other Meredith Sites

Other Meredith Sites

  • 4 Your Health this link opens in a new tab
  • Allrecipes this link opens in a new tab
  • All People Quilt this link opens in a new tab
  • Better Homes & Gardens this link opens in a new tab
  • Bizrate Insights this link opens in a new tab
  • Bizrate Surveys this link opens in a new tab
  • Cooking Light this link opens in a new tab
  • Daily Paws this link opens in a new tab
  • EatingWell this link opens in a new tab
  • Eat This, Not That this link opens in a new tab
  • Entertainment Weekly this link opens in a new tab
  • Food & Wine this link opens in a new tab
  • Health this link opens in a new tab
  • Hello Giggles this link opens in a new tab
  • Instyle this link opens in a new tab
  • Martha Stewart this link opens in a new tab
  • Midwest Living this link opens in a new tab
  • More this link opens in a new tab
  • MyRecipes this link opens in a new tab
  • MyWedding this link opens in a new tab
  • My Food and Family this link opens in a new tab
  • MyLife this link opens in a new tab
  • Parenting this link opens in a new tab
  • Parents this link opens in a new tab
  • People this link opens in a new tab
  • People en Español this link opens in a new tab
  • Rachael Ray Magazine this link opens in a new tab
  • Real Simple this link opens in a new tab
  • Ser Padres this link opens in a new tab
  • Shape this link opens in a new tab
  • Siempre Mujer this link opens in a new tab
  • Southern Living this link opens in a new tab
  • SwearBy this link opens in a new tab
Travel + Leisure is part of the Travel + Leisure Group. Copyright 2021 Meredith Corporation. Travel + Leisure is a registered trademark of Meredith Corporation Travel + Leisure Group All Rights Reserved, registered in the United States and other countries. Travel + Leisure may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice. Privacy Policythis link opens in a new tab Terms of Servicethis link opens in a new tab Ad Choicesthis link opens in a new tab California Do Not Sellthis link opens a modal window Web Accessibilitythis link opens in a new tab
© Copyright . All rights reserved. Printed from https://www.travelandleisure.com

View image

17 Buildings That Prove You Don't Need to Be in Nature to Appreciate Flowers
this link is to an external site that may or may not meet accessibility guidelines.