What is unusual about the Pompidou?

Its pipes and structure are on the outside

Renzo Piano Quiz: Pompidou, the Shard and Light-Filled Museums

This Renzo Piano quiz follows the Genoa-born architect from inside-out Paris to the London skyline. Play 10 interactive questions on the Centre Pompidou with Richard Rogers, the Kansai Airport terminal on an artificial island, the Shard, the Whitney Museum, the New York Times Building, the Academy Museum in Los Angeles, Genoa's new bridge and his Pritzker Prize.

Start Renzo Piano Quiz

🎯 Daily Trivia Challenge • 🧠 10 Questions • ⏱️ 150 Seconds

Question 1 / 10 Time: 150s

City
In which Italian city was Renzo Piano born?
Pompidou
With whom did he design the Centre Pompidou?
Inside
What is unusual about the Pompidou?
Airport
Which airport terminal did he design on an artificial island?
Shard
Which London tower did he design?
Whitney
Which New York museum's new building did he design?
Times
Which newspaper's New York headquarters did he design?
Film
Which museum about films did he design in Los Angeles?
Bridge
Which bridge did he design for Genoa?
Prize
When did Piano win the Pritzker Prize?

Explanations: answer key for all 10 questions

Q1: In which Italian city was Renzo Piano born?
Answer: Genoa
He was born in 1937.
Q2: With whom did he design the Centre Pompidou?
Answer: Richard Rogers
It opened in 1977.
Q3: What is unusual about the Pompidou?
Answer: Its pipes and structure are on the outside
Colors code the pipes.
Q4: Which airport terminal did he design on an artificial island?
Answer: Kansai International Airport
It is near Osaka.
Q5: Which London tower did he design?
Answer: The Shard
It opened in 2012.
Q6: Which New York museum's new building did he design?
Answer: The Whitney Museum
It opened in 2015.
Q7: Which newspaper's New York headquarters did he design?
Answer: The New York Times
Ceramic rods screen its glass.
Q8: Which museum about films did he design in Los Angeles?
Answer: The Academy Museum of Motion Pictures
It has a spherical theater.
Q9: Which bridge did he design for Genoa?
Answer: The San Giorgio Bridge
It replaced a collapsed bridge.
Q10: When did Piano win the Pritzker Prize?
Answer: 1998
It is architecture's top honor.

From Inside-Out Paris to a Glass Spire

Renzo Piano was born in Genoa, Italy, in 1937. With Richard Rogers he designed the Centre Pompidou in Paris, opened in 1977, which turned a building inside out with pipes and structure on the outside, color-coded by function.

He went on to design the terminal of Kansai International Airport on an artificial island near Osaka, the New York Times Building, screened with ceramic rods, the Whitney Museum's new home in 2015 and the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures in Los Angeles with its spherical theater.

His Shard, opened in 2012, became one of London's tallest towers. After the Morandi bridge collapsed in Genoa, he designed its replacement, the San Giorgio Bridge, opened in 2020. Piano won the Pritzker Prize in 1998.

What This Quiz Teaches

Architecture fans will enjoy these questions.

Where Piano is from
What the Pompidou is like
Which buildings he designed
What he built in Genoa
Which honors he won

Did You Know?

His studio is called Renzo Piano Building Workshop.
He favors light, airy museums.
The Menil Collection is in Houston.
He comes from a family of builders.
He is a senator for life in Italy.