Copper has earned a respected place in the related fields of architecture, building construction, and interior design. From cathedrals to castles and from homes to offices, copper is used for a variety of architectural elements, including roofs, flashings, gutters, downspouts, domes, spires, vaults, wall cladding, and building expansion joints.
The history of copper in architecture can be linked to its durability, corrosion resistance, prestigious appearance, and ability to form complex shapes. For centuries, craftsmen and designers utilized these attributes to build aesthetically pleasing and long-lasting building systems.
For the past quarter century, copper has been designed into a much wider range of buildings, incorporating new styles, varieties of colors, and different shapes and textures. Copper clad walls are a modern design element in both indoor and outdoor environments.
Some of the worlds most distinguished modern architects have relied on copper. Examples include Frank Lloyd Wright, who specified copper materials in all of his building projects; Michael Graves, an AIA Gold Medalist who designed over 350 buildings worldwide; Renzo Piano, who designed pre-patinated clad copper for the NEMO-Metropolis Museum of Science in Amsterdam; Malcolm Holzman, whose patinated copper shingles at the WCCO Television Communications Centre made the facility an architectural standout in Minneaoplis; and Marianne Dahlbäck and Göran Månsson, who designed the Vasa Museum, a prominent feature of Stockholms skyline, with  copper cladding. Architect Frank O. Gehry's enormous copper fish sculpture atop the Vila Olimpica in Barcelona is an example of the artistic use of copper.
Coppers most noteworthy aesthetic trait is its range of hues, from a bright metallic colour to iridescent brown to near black and, finally, to a greenish verdigris patina. Architects describe the array of browns as russet, chocolate, plum, mahogany, and ebony. The metals distinctive green patina has long been coveted by architects and designers.
This article describes practical and aesthetic benefits of copper in architecture as well as its use in exterior applications, interior design elements, and green buildings.