The Best New Skyscrapers On The Planet
The Renzo Piano-designed building was selected by a panel of international experts from more than 300 skyscrapers (at least 100 meters high) that were completed during the previous calendar year.
The Shard has not been without its fair share of controversy: Londoners hated the building when it first appeared on the city' skyline, and a design flaw in the building apparently lets guests see into each other's rooms at The Shard's Shangri-La Hotel.
Even so, the building is an impressive sight. "Construction of The Shard was complicated by the particularly tight site and therefore needed innovative planning," an Emporis jury member said. "This makes the result all the more impressive: A skyscraper that is recognized immediately and which is already considered London's new emblem."