Colorful architecture: 7 cities in vibrant colors seen from above
Gorgeous, lively and colorful cities often attract not only the thousands of tourists who visit them every year but also many architects all over the world. From an aerial viewpoint – which happens to be how many visitors get their first glimpse of these cities from an airplane window – one can see the colorful image created by the many shades of different roofs and surfaces.
There are many different reasons for this color variation. Some cities use specific colors on roofs as a climate strategy, while others have a tradition of painting homes a certain way. In any case, these colorful cities are undoubtedly very attractive.
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The ancient city of Naples in Italy witnesses its past through its buildings. This aerial photograph of the area of the historic center of Naples shows differences between the brighter and dull colors of the roofs, revealing the buildings’ different construction periods.
The colorful island of Burano, also in Italy, is located about seven kilometers from Venice and attracts many tourists from all over the world every year. The origin of the polychrome houses is still undetermined, but some say that when the hunters returned home they were unable to identify them due to the mist, so they began to paint them in vibrant colors to make them easier to identify.
The architecture in Las Palmas, one of the Canary Islands, is famous for the colorful facades and rooftops, which are often depicted on the island’s postcards. In addition to their visual appeal, the colors of the rooftop terraces also reduce the sun’s heat on hot days, providing more comfort in the interior spaces.
A similar strategy was seen in Khlong Sam Wa, one of the 50 districts in Bangkok, Thailand, where roof tiles were painted in light colors to reflect sunlight and lower the homes’ interior temperatures. Established in 1997, this area includes many residential projects that are easily recognizable from an aerial perspective due to their distinctive colours.
From an aerial point of view, one can also note the diversity of colors of the rooftops of the Cite Djemaa neighborhood in Casablanca, Morocco. Despite what the city’s name (the White House, literally translated) suggests, many of the architectural styles found in the city allow for a wide range of shades to be built.
However, this colorful view of cities from above is not always due to architecture alone. Sometimes, the different colors of the roofs are combined with the natural shapes of elements such as canals, rivers, and plants. One such example is Samarkand, in Uzbekistan, where red, white, and blue roofs surround and accentuate the green of patios and gardens inside homes.
In Boynton Beach, USA, along with the greenery of the vegetation surrounding homes in planned communities, aerial photography also allows us to recognize the deep blue color of bodies of water, a recurring element in urban planning for cities in Florida. The many different colors of the roofs combined with these natural elements and the zigzag urban layout result in a great aerial view.
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