Jutting out of London's skyline in all its futuristic glory, the"Gherkin" building has managed in the last few years to embed itself in the city's psyche as an icon, an edifice that just looked as cool as a cucumber.
British architect Lord Norman Foster, who designed London's Gherkin tower and the dome on the Reichstag building in Berlin, described Niemeyer as an "inspiration" who "stood accepted wisdom on its head".