Brian Clarke has designed and produced the stained glass apex for the latest and most striking building on the skyline of Astana, the new capital city of Kazakhstan. The steel and glass pyramid was officially inaugurated on Tuesday, 12th September 2006 by the 2nd Congress of World and Traditional Religions.
Clarke's glass artwork is 900 square metres in area. It surmounts the pyramid and forms the apex of the structure, a building by Architects Foster and Partners. It is the latest in a long collaborative history between Lord Foster and Brian Clarke.
The pyramid has been designed to be a global centre for religious understanding, the renunciation of violence and the promotion of faith and human equality. In keeping with these aims Brian Clarke's apex glass depicts a flock of white doves in flight set against a background field of vivid blue and gold.
The composition uses artistic themes that Clarke has evolved through his work concerning the transillumination of light through naturally membranous materials such as petals, leaves and feathers. Like these materials the glass and composition manifest the same emotive beauty with stunning effect.
The space directly beneath the artwork houses a circular cradle that will be a meeting chamber for international religious Leaders. With vast white doves directly over their heads the delegates will inevitably be reminded of their responsibilities to harmony and world peace.
Architect: Foster+Partners
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