Al Manakh Dubai Guide Moutamarat
Gulf Survey AMO
Global Agenda Archis
Khalid Al Malik, CEO Tatweer Al Manakh was unveiled for the first time on the occasion of the
International Design Forum 27-29 May 2007, Dubai Organized by Moutamarat
Special thanks to Tatweer
A strategic partner of Moutamarat
Foreword When I explain my personal interest in design as an Arab CEO, I tend to give a straightforward business answer: business anywhere – including in the Arab world – is no longer ‘business as usual’. If as a CEO you expect to be successful, you need to develop new capabilities. If you expect your business to continue to be relevant and meet its clients’ needs, you need to understand how design will reshape their expectations and your business environment. Moutamarat’s International Design Forum and Initiative will deliver a clear message to CEOs in the Arab world and abroad: companies that incorporate effective design and harness creativity are more likely to succeed tomorrow. In a rapidly shifting environment, CEOs must adopt new approaches to address regional and, increasingly, global challenges. In order to do that, they need new, creative, innovative tools. One of the most interesting transformations of our era is the changing role of urban centers. The Arab world is experiencing an unprecedented expansion of its cities. As cities grow and evolve in our region, I find it fascinating to understand how the process will forever transform our business environment. For the first time ever, Al Manakh gathers together the insights of Arab and international experts on the new role of cities as engines of knowledge and exponential growth. Al Manakh is a reflection on the effect of urban design on our world and what it takes to be in greater command of our future. When solutions to complex problems like developing new industries for the Arab world or improving the quality of education are hard to find, CEOs will need to step forward with creative responses to the challenges ahead. Al Manakh demonstrates that there are opportunities for Arab CEOs and positive responses to change. Design and creativity are about forging new links and finding new solutions; in that context they speak directly to me as a business leader. As my decision-making process becomes more complex, I welcome the creative input of designers to better estimate the impact of urban center growth, demographics, culture, social change and the environment. New thinking on urban development in the Arab world is a positive signal and should always be welcome. Al Manakh offers unique know-how and engages business leaders like me in an interesting dialogue. It is time the Arab world joined the global debate on design and creativity in order to stimulate our capabilities and embolden us to embrace change, an act which is at times disruptive to our traditional business practices, but can ultimately be uplifting and rewarding.
Contents Al Manakh Edited by Mitra Khoubrou, Ole Bouman, Rem Koolhaas 3 6
Foreword Khalid Al Malik Introductions Ole Bouman, Rem Koolhaas
Dubai Guide Edited by Moutamarat 14 18 23 30 38 48 52 58 62 63 64 66
My Dubai Amer A. Moustafa An Arabian Night’s Fantasy, and that’s ok Mark Kirchner, Samia Rab Madinat Jumeirah and the Urban Experience in the Private City Fatih A. Rifki, Amer A. Moustafa Constructing Fact, Fantasy and Fiction Kevin Mitchell The Dubai Experiment George Katodrytis 1. Accelerated Urbanism 2. Tourism and Constructed Leisure-land 3. Transmitted Imagery The Cloud of Dubai Nadim Karam, Atelier Hapsitus Project with the Secret Name X-Architects, SMAQ The Necessity of an Enlightened City Jerry Kolo Designing Dubai’s Future I Rodney Fitch Designing Dubai’s Future II Elie Domit Design in Retail Tim Greenhalgh Branding the Gulf Majdoleen Till
Gulf Survey Edited by AMO / Todd Reisz, Kayoko Ota Gulf Atlas Regional Statistics Sizing the Gulf Economic Resources How Much is a Billion? A Region in Brief Rem Koolhaas Gulf Histories Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Sharjah, Ras Al Khaimah Makers I Drawn in the Sand John Harris, Dubai’s Pioneering Modernist Master Planning with a Land Rover John Elliott, Town Planner of Abu Dhabi Growth Management 50 Years of Transforming the Arab City Witness to Kuwait Jeff de Lange’s Extended Expat Contract Fairness Carlos Ott Forgets to Sign Frontline Rem Koolhaas Introducing… (Makers II) Mohammed Sadiyyah, K&A Babji Rao, KEO Rory Hopkins, WATG Botch: A Call To Design Cityscape 2006 Report Gulf Skyline Wake Up Sheikh Majed Al Sabah Wants to Save Cities Simplicity™ Theo Deutinger Regional Case Studies Vernacular is a Mirror Yasser Mahgoub Reflects on Kuwaiti Architecture Market Narrows A Visit to the Souk Todd Reisz
Reflections on a Regional Narrative Rasem Badran on Gulf Sensibility They Will Come to the Desert Al Areen Holding Company Creates an Oasis Ras Al Khaimah’s New Realism Izzat Dajani Shares a Vision for Total Lifestyle Package Sustainable City Ras Al Khaimah at a Crossroads Reinier de Graaf Terraforming Visiting The World The World Press Conference Export Dubai Emerging Qatari Diar Introducing an International Development Agency Import Expat Marketing Multi-Culturalism The Third Expat A Walk through Deira Sara Kassa, Natalie Al Shami Workers City Todd Reisz Education Diplomacy Branding Qatar Education City Bimal Mendis The Future of Knowledge Rem Koolhaas, Reinier de Graaf Palaces for the People After Bilbao Thomas Krens’ vision for Abu Dhabi as a ‘cultural destination’ Development Atlas
Global Agenda Edited by Archis 374 378 382 388 394 400 404 410 418 422 426 428 434 442 447 450 458 464 470 477
What Must Be Done: An Agenda for Design Ole Bouman Shelter Photo Essay Ursula Schulz-Dornburg Slum as Real Estate CRIT Co-Ownership Urban Think Tank Wild Dwelling Bart Goldhoorn Security Photo Essay Monica Nouwens Public Space Regained Jeroen Mensink Safety or Security Ricardo Devesa Sustainability Photo Essay Bas Princen Re-conceive Gulf Architecture Nader Ardalan Sharjah Biennale Global Warming and Other Matters Fairness Photo Essay Martin Roemers Empowerment Emiliano Gandolfi Feminist Sustainability Jose Maria Torres Nadal The Stockholm Syndrome Andreas Ruby Dialogue Photo Essay Roger Cremers Conflict as Practice Markus Miessen Slogan Urbanism Jiang Jun Meta Domus Meta Abitare Stefano Boeri
A Year in the Gulf – Diary Reinier de Graaf 11, 36, 61, 211, 229, 260, 279, 303, 315, 337, 373, 441, 487 482 484 486 496
Further Reading Biographies IDF Board Members Colophon
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248 250 252 256 266 272 288 296 298 304 320 326 330 334
Ole Bouman
An Awakening in Dubai You have been considered dead for years, leading a vegetative life, dependent on a life support system. Like a somnambulist you murmur words that make no sense and gaze at things that are not there. Not responding to any stimuli, doctors do not know how to resuscitate you. They take you outside, to see if fresh air will help. They try shock therapy. Then, finally, they find the place for you. The air may not be really fresh, but the locale is certainly shocking. Waking up, you find yourself where nothing is as you knew it. Things look familiar, but the system according to which they operate is very, very different. These differences do not preclude a learning experience, however. To make your time as productive as possible, we have provided a guide. After you have found your way from souk to mall, from pathway to ski dome, from desert to golf course, from mansion to skyscraper, you will have acquired an appetite for further navigation in this strange world. A guide will then no longer be enough. You’ll need an atlas. You start to see patterns, grasp relations, and enjoy connections. The awakening continues by resettling yourself in a region that shows unprecedented energies in land use and creation. You are going to have a hard time keeping track, so we will help you with mapping. Then, as soon as you have a profound understanding of the new realities around you, you finally feel a new urge to intervene again. The awakening has completed. The coma of a designer who has lost all relevance and inspiration has ended. Re-energized, you want to act, to make a difference. Looking back at the world from which you came, you see entirely new tasks and endeavors. We have started to list them for you. An agenda for design. Here it is: a guide, an atlas, an agenda... Here is Al Manakh
Rem Koolhaas
Last Chance? We live in an era of completions, not new beginnings. The world is running out of places where it can start over.
Sand and sea along the Gulf, like an untainted canvas, provide the ultimate tabula rasa on which new identities can be inscribed: palms, world maps, cultural capitals, financial centers, sport cities… Yet, much like Singapore in the 1980s and China in the 1990s, the recent development of the Gulf, particularly Dubai, has been met with derision: Mike Davis’ damning ‘Walt Disney meets Albert Speer’1 echoes William Gibson’s characterization fifteen years ago of Singapore as ‘Disneyland with the death penalty’.2 The recycling of the Disney fatwa says more about the stagnation of the Western critical imagination than it does about Gulf Cities. To be a critic today is to regret the exportation of ideas that you have failed to confront on your own beat, dragons you have been unable to slay; the vast majority of developments that critics deplore originated and have become the norm in their own countries. The tragic effect of architecture’s inability to recognize and think through modernization’s inevitabilities is a wistful language of perpetual disappointment with what is produced and the endless recycling of nostalgic panaceas as well-meaning but moribund alternatives… It is particularly cruel that the harshest criticism comes from old cultures that still control the apparatus of judgment, while the epicenters of production have shifted to the other end(s) of the globe. Is it possible to view the Gulf’s ongoing transformation on its own terms? As an extraordinary attempt to change the fate of an entire region? Is it possible to present a constructive criticism of these phenomena? Is there something like a critical participation? (To counter the problem of the workers’ accommodation, for instance, there is now talk of three-dimensional legislation, which would define an Arab Existenzminimum and mass-produce it…) The Gulf is not just reconfiguring itself; it’s reconfiguring the world. The Gulf’s entrepreneurs are reaching places that modernity has not reached before… Perhaps the most compelling reason to take the Gulf seriously is that its emerging model of the city is being multiplied in a vast zone of reduced architectural visibility that ranges from Morocco in the West, then via Turkey and Azerbaijan to China in the East. In each of the countries of this Silk Belt, the Gulf’s developers operate on a scale that has completely escaped ‘our’ attention. This burgeoning campaign to export a new kind urbanism – to places immune to or ignored by previous missions of modernism – may be the final opportunity to formulate a new blueprint for urbanism. Will architecture grasp this last chance? 1. Mike Davis, www.tomdispatch.com 2. William, Gibson, Wired September 1993
Edited by Moutamarat
Dubai Guide
Dubai Guide
OMA / Rem Koolhaas
Moutamarat
March 4, 2006
Dubai Guide Moutamarat
The first thing I recall is the warm blanket that engulfs you upon leaving the arrivals hall of the airport. We have just passed through a long regime of air conditioning, escalators and travelators from the gate to the hotel pick-up desk. Finally we’re outside. It’s February. If there is such a thing as an ideal climate, it is probably the Middle East outside the summer months. We will be coming back every month for at least a year, and I realize that the pleasant sensation of entering a mild summer day in mid-winter is the sensation we will be experiencing on most of our visits. I was here before, about fifteen years ago, on a stop over to Thailand. Except for people in the oil business, Dubai was not really a destination then. At the time the airside lounges served largely as a tax free shopping haven for those passing through. I remember the endless display windows with jewelry and a large, heavily discounted Bentley displayed on a podium in the transfer lounge. Both are still there: the Bentley has been replaced by a Lamborghini and the display windows have moved with time to contain a whole range of contemporary designer products. The heavy discounts have gone; the airport is a different one. The percentage-split of transfers v. arrivals has reversed. Since a fleeting moment on a journey elsewhere, Dubai has become the end of the road – no longer a passing stage, but a city here to stay. – RdG
Reinier de Graaf – Excerpts from a diary
A Year in the Gulf
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Dubai Guide Moutamarat 13
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Amer A. Moustafa
It is Hard Not to Fall in Love with Dubai!
Moutamarat
As an Arab who has taken the UAE as residence for over seven years, I have developed an intensely emotional attachment to this bewildering, untamable city. I have witnessed Dubai burgeon, turning itself into the locus of an exceptionally ambitious and patently unique enterprise at city making. It is a city where something is made out of nothing, where dreams can come true, where crazy ideas meet attentive ears, and where ‘impossible is [truly] nothing’. Not unlike Los Angeles, my home for the decade preceding my residency in the UAE, Dubai is quintessentially distinct: a frontier for adventures, inspiration, and trend setting. In so many ways, cities are akin to people – they have their own soul, personality, temperament, idiosyncrasy, and even ego. They may embody a set of ideal human traits: beautiful, friendly, ambitious, dreamy, creative, persistent, successful, or happy. Likewise, cities can have much less desirable qualities. And, like human beings, most cities care about their image, about how they see themselves, and about how they would like to be seen by others. Undoubtedly, contemporary Dubai has deeply understood the ‘psychology’ of cities and has taken such understanding to its utmost extent. In the past decade or so, Dubai has pursued a daring project most befitting of the twenty-first century global scene of extraordinary challenges anchored in the conditions of postmodernity. Mindful of its image, Dubai has deliberately sought to develop its self-esteem, its confidence in what it has accomplished and what is yet to be achieved. Dubai has (re-)invented itself from a sleepy desert town, to a town in the desert – an extraordinary town, indeed. What is constant in Dubai is change. There is always a new, discernable ‘something’ every time I drive around the ever-expanding metropolis. To me, no longer is Dubai in the ‘state of being’ – it is in the ‘state of becoming’. Like Los Angeles before it, Dubai continues to elude comprehension. It persists in defying truism, and refuses to fit neatly into the commonly recognized norms or intellectually constructed categories and compartments. Like other postmodern cities of the 21st century, Dubai is changing fast – too fast for my liking. As an architect and urban planner, fast change makes me jitter. Dubai has accumulated one fourth of the world’s construction cranes; the entire city is turned into a big construction site; around the clock, bulldozers and Indian subcontinent laborers choreograph as they reshape the landscape. Dubai today has more per-capita entries in the Guinness Book of Records than any other city on Earth – and more records are ‘under construction’: the tallest building in the world; largest shopping mall in the planet; the biggest airport ever built. Unabashedly, Dubai is a city of superlatives – and there is little hope that this drive for the [missing word] will change in the foreseeable future. Who could have imagined that a sleepy, desert edge city would turn itself, in three decades or so, into a serious contender of the club of global cities? Who could have imagined that the city has made itself with little natural resources but with remarkable ingenuity, adventure, and perseverance. Yet, in the haste to do too much in so little time, wise people have warned us not to rush to judgment. The Greek philosopher Sophocles pontificated: ‘One must wait until the evening to see how splendid the day has been.’ All admirable accomplishments notwithstanding, the jury on how Dubai will turn out to be is still out!
I Have a Dream!
My Dubai is a public city. While ‘public city’ may appear a redundant expression, the forces of globalization and the postmodern conditions they impose have increasingly privileged the private! The privatization of all aspects of urban life is evident in the proliferation of gated communities, exclusive shopping areas, and tourist-oriented leisure and entertainment facilities. My Dubai will assert its ‘public-ness,’ will balance its intransigent embrace of laissez-faire economics with its fervent commitment to the collective good. Dubai, like many good cities, must be peoplecentered, a place where people and the social life they produce is the driving impetus for its making. Henri Lefebvre, in Le Droit à la Ville (The Right to the City), likened the right to the city with the right to urban life, to renewed centrality, and to places of free encounters and exchange. My Dubai is a city of a vibrant civic life and exciting collective engagement. My Dubai is an environmentally sustainable city. It’s a city where residents must have an ‘inalienable right’ to fresh water, clean air, and tidy beaches. As we devise policies for urban growth, land must be viewed not as something we inherited from our forefathers but rather a resource we borrow from future generations. Dubai must be a city that wisely examines its energy consumption, recycling, and the ecological footprint required for its survival. It must be a metropolis whose reliance on recycling and sources of renewable energy will lead to minimized consumption and better balance with the resources with which we are provided. As Richard Rogers exhorts us in his monograph, Cities for a Small Planet, a sustainable city is the one that shirts from linear metabolism to a circular metabolism. Blessed with a sunny, hot climate, Dubai’s buildings must turn ‘green’: they should not only end their energy consumption – they must begin producing energy. My Dubai is a charming city. It is a city replete with inspiring architecture and memorable places. As such, Dubai will refocus its energy on place-making and not only on place-marketing. Dubai will not be, as Ian Parker declares in The New Yorker, an ‘advertisement for a city, as much as a city itself.’ The quality of its buildings, as well as the spaces between them, will be inspiring. It will be a city that is compact enough to support efficient public transport, big enough to allow for defined boundaries, and legible enough to ensure a ‘user friendly’ urban experience. Local heritage and natural context must provide guidance towards reinventing originality and reclaiming authenticity.
Dubai Guide
My Dubai
My Dubai is a Creative City
My Dubai is a just and inclusive city. It is a city where food, shelter, safety, education, and hope are fairly and equitably distributed among all people. Where people – all people – participate in its governance and contribute to an effective civil society in which decision-making is accessible to all people in matters central to their lives and livelihood. Dubai will be an attractive dreamland, but not a collage of Dreamlands. Am I too idealistic, too much of a dreamer? Probably so, I admit! But grand undertakings begin with dreams – big dreams. With big dreams, the sky’s the limit!
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OMA / Fernando Donis
Moutamarat
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Jumeirah Beach Residence. Beach and metropolis merged by urbanistic photoshop
Mark Kirchner, Samia Rab
Statistical projections may seem over-ambitious, but in a world struck by crises and terror, two qualities the Emirates offer make it irresistible to visitors and expatriates: cultural tolerance and a reputation for safety
Dubai’s urban form is unique in the Gulf as it is divided by a creek (Khor Dubai), separating three villages that over time merged into one city: Deira to the north, and Al Shindagha and Al Bastakiya in Bur Dubai to the south of the creek
The importance of ‘Big’ in Dubai is linked to its (a) historically transient and impermanent architecture and (b) the vastness of the desert landscape within which it exists
Bigger is better in Dubai, for a reason
Since the late 1960s, Dubai clearly has had an ‘edifice complex’
Public spaces in Dubai attract local Emiratis and other inhabitants of different origin
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Dubai is an Arabian Night’s fantasy. ‘Orientalists’1 hate it and ‘occidentalists’2 may find it uniquely radical. Referred to either as a Sin City of decadent consumerism or the leader in the Arab/Islamic Renaissance, Dubai is in fact both. Coming to terms with these seeming polar opposites as the defining character of Dubai is something that has taken us more than 6 years. As newcomers to the Middle East, we arrived here in 2000 with an ‘orientalist’ perspective. Our chosen careers as practicing architect (Mark Kirchner) and architectural historian/conservator (Samia Rab) serving the academy (American University of Sharjah) put us at natural odds with the Dubai phenomenon. Instead of an evolving architectural legacy, Dubai seems to have risen up from the sand through what appears to be a singular guiding vision that leads to obvious comparisons to Las Vegas and Disneyland. However, after working and living here for 7 years, we have – as much to our own surprise as anyone’s – stopped laughing at the outrageous pace and scale of architectural/urban development in Dubai. We have arrived at an understanding that while Dubai, like any resilient example of urbanism, is an unsustainable organism it is also one that is uniquely situated to achieve its goal of becoming a global trade and tourism hub that rivals any in the world. We recognize the collective aspiration to develop a city that functions around the year with outdoor and indoor public spaces, and re-invent a tradition of modernity, defiantly resisting the pessimism of post-modernity. Recent architectural projects most certainly reveal, what Sudjic calls an ‘edifice complex’3, but the importance of ‘Big’ architecture in Dubai is rooted in its historically transient and impermanent architecture, and the vastness of the desert landscape. While most metropolises aim to create a ‘24-hour’ city to maximize the potentials of urbanism, climatically challenged Dubai, where temperatures can exceed 50 degrees Celsius, struggles to create a ‘12-month’ city through mega-scale projects. The infamous malls in Dubai create controlled environments that provide usable public space for its permanent and temporary inhabitants, distant and regional visitors. During the first few years of our arrival, summers in the UAE were remarkably peaceful, its traffic emptying as most residents left for cooler places in Europe or elsewhere in the region. The foreign policy shifts of many Western nations after the 9/11 attacks in New York
Dubai Guide
An Arabian Night’s Fantasy, and that’s ok
Dubai Guide
Nearly five million visitors annually chose Dubai as their destination, and the UAE government is aiming for 15 million visitors by 2010
Burj Al Arab is now integrated into the antithetical skyline of the ‘neo-traditional’ resort, Madinat Jumeirah
Moutamarat
It’s an Arabian Night’s Fantasy, and that’s ok
The architecture of Burj al Arab is defiantly and theatrically modern
The local Emiratis accept the fantasy as a new reality. SkiDubai in the Mall of the Emirates provides inhabitants an incentive not to flee the country during the hot summer months
Dubai, like any emerging metropolis, is built on immigrant labor that participates in the construction of infrastructure and architectural icons
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and Washington offered Dubai both the economic opportunity (given the re-investment of regional funds divested from western countries) to realize grandiose mega-projects and the political will to invest, develop, and inhabit regionally. Given its position as a regional trade hub since the late nineteenth century, Dubai was ‘globalized’ early on in its history. Though never colonized, Dubai played an important role in mediating trade of goods between East India companies and the rest of the world. In 1903, the ruling Sheikh of Dubai abolished taxes on visiting merchants, making it the most attractive trading portal of the Gulf.4 Yet it’s only been the remarkable post-9/11 and oil-boom liquidity that has allowed it to become prosperous enough to both envision and realize the mega-projects that are either the punch line of jokes by critics of contemporary urbanism or the envy of aspiring cities in the developing world. In this portrayal of Dubai, we include images that oscillate between past and present; between the public and private visions underpinning an emerging metropolis. We will address our ‘Orientalist’ readers’ concerns (yes, your perceptions are partly correct; it is an outrageous, decadent, ‘unsustainable’ city, whose ‘mega-projects’ are built by exploited immigrant labor), and, more importantly, illustrate Dubai as not only a tourist ‘destination’ but a thriving metropolis in the Gulf. Our message to our fellow ‘Occidentalist’ reader is: Rest assured, Dubai is not a mere Las Vegas with Disneyland style projects: merchants and not entertainers have and continue to play a fundamental role not only in the economic affairs of Dubai but also in reforming its political structure. When we read the newspapers, we find few happy stories in the Middle East outside of the developments in Dubai. Most of the new developments portrayed here are promoting a modernizing society’s ambitions. This may sadden the ‘Orientalist’ who expects ‘Islamic’ virtues from developments in any Arab city. However, the ‘Occidentalist’ in us understands that Dubai’s development in the past decade is based on recognition that forces of modernization have their roots in Western culture. Instead of distancing itself from western influences, it has embarked on a journey that reflects: 1. Confidence in providing political security within an unstable World Region. 2. A vision to capture the post-9/11 divested Arab capital floating in search of new and geographically viable investments. 3. Introduction of mortgage financing, presenting middle-income professionals from Asia an opportunity to own homes within their lifetime. 4. Availability of infinite supply of cheap labor from Asia, not unlike any other emerging metropolis that is surrounded by less affluent developing nations. As we sit and enjoy our coffee along the abra stop in a stylized ‘neotraditional’ resort hotel, Madinat Jumeirah, it is difficult to be over-critical of a space occupied simultaneously by abayeh and dish-dash clad youngsters in national dress alongside colorfully attired expatriate residents, and distant and regional visitors of the Gulf. East and West have found a common meeting place. With skyline pierced by large wind towers, the is hotel with its courtyard villas, and the Souk (bazaar) collectively recreate on a grand
the interconnection of non-Western and Western intellectual traditions. 3. Deyan Sudjic, The Edifice Complex, Penguin, 2005. 4. Fatma Al Sayegh, ‘Merchant’s Role in a Changing Society: The Case of Dubai, 1900-90’, in Middle Eastern Studies: Volume 34, Number 1, (Jan. 1998).
Madinat Jumeirah and the Urban Experience in the Private City Amidst its relentless drive to join the club of global cities, Dubai has embarked on a major transformation of its urban landscape. The transformed urban scene of Dubai is characterized by the infusion of new, privately-owned, – controlled, and –accessed urban fragments. These include shopping malls, gated housing developments, leisure destinations, theme parks, office and educational complexes and headquarters of multinational establishments and corporations. In general, such new developments are physically detached from the urban continuum: barricaded behind well-guarded gates, panned by surveillance cameras, and tracked by the watchful eyes of an army of private security personnel superbly linked to control centers more akin to a prison than a public place. Pedestrians and users of public transit will, at best, find it inconvenient, if at all possible, to access such urban destinations. Madinat Jumeirah exemplifies this type of urban destinations. In many ways, this complex of commerce and entertainment represents an urban fragment most characteristic of what may be called ‘private city’ – a city that is determined to deny its collective nature, its civitas. An oxymoron, private city is most fitting an expression that describes Dubai’s current and, possibly, future state of being in light of the
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‘Private City’ at its best: Madinat Jumeirah (with Burj Al Arab in the background)
Moutamarat
1. Prejudiced outsiders studying Eastern cultures and people. See, Edward Said, Orientalism (1978) 2. The term is an inversion of Orientalism. See, Ian Buruma and Avishai Margalit, Occidentalism: the West in the Eyes of its Enemies (2004); also Bonnett, The Idea of the West (2004). Bonnett argues that occidentalism emerged from
Fatih A. Rifki, Amer A. Moustafa
Dubai Guide
It’s an Arabian Night’s Fantasy, and that’s ok
scale the almost extinct traditional settlements like Al Bastakiya and Al Shindagha that were once home to Dubai’s earliest merchants who, in the pre-oil days, lived and prospered from trading goods with Iran and exporting pearls from the Gulf. We can easily criticize the ‘fakeness’ of the wind towers and the enclosed air-conditioned space of consumption and leisure. We have begun to appreciate the dual use of retail/leisure spaces in projects like Madinat Jumeirah that essentially create a public commons. Though public spaces in Dubai may not be ‘public’ in a democratic sense, they allow inhabitants to mix with people of different origins who would not in any case be on the streets in the inhospitable climate. Dubai has not yet managed to mix different social classes in its public spaces (laborers are largely denied entry) but it has successfully managed to create spaces for people of different origins without demanding assimilation. It has also recognized the role of architecture and place in shaping the social landscape. Perhaps most importantly, Dubai’s architecture matters because as Arabs and the Asians alike invest in Dubai’s outrageous projects, they are perhaps setting the historical record straight by supporting the development of a global hub through public space for the 180 nationalities that call Dubai home (DTCM statistic), for today or forever. Dubai, as an architectural experiment, addresses the realities, ambitions, and perhaps unattainable dreams of an even greater experiment: globalization.
Moutamarat
Maidan-i-Shah, Isfahan: living room for the public on a summer afternoon
are increasingly becoming the locus of public life in the contemporary city at the expense of public spaces. Unlike public spaces, private urban destinations have certain restrictions attached to their access, use, and the kind of activities that can take place in them. These private urban destinations are a free enterprise success story. Investors, developers, and designers have joined efforts, and indisputably excelled, at providing a service (the provision of spatial settings for public life) that the public used to (and is entrusted to continue to) provide. A stunning success is evident in Madinat Jumeirah. It delivers a well-designed urban setting intended for a specific kind of urban experience – it provides a contrived, theater-like urban setting that can
Madinat Jumeirah: an ambiance for an orchestrated, themed urban experience
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Place des Vosges, Paris: public space for the spontaneous, unrehearsed, and collective urban experience
Dubai Guide
Madinat Jumeirah and the Urban Experience in the Private City
currently prevailing development trends. ‘What’s wrong with these new developments?’ one might be tempted to ask. ‘In light of their considerable popularity, are not they meeting a real demand in the market place?’ And, ‘what is so disconcerting about the urban experience in such urban destinations?’ These are legitimate and compelling questions that the rest of this writing will attempt to address. The urban experience refers to people’s experience of living in cities; it concerns people’s daily encounters with their surrounding environment as well as with other people – people who are strangers to them. The urban experience is a complex process whereby people interact with their environment, both their physical (open spaces, streets, buildings, etc.), and social (other individuals, groups, etc.). It encompasses acts of participation, observation, and accumulation of practical knowledge by city residents as they conduct their daily lives. While some of these acts are intentional and deliberate, others are casual and spontaneous. The urban experience, moreover, is essentially a public one: it is conducted in the open, and is potentially exposed to the scrutiny of others. Public life represents our collective urban experiences. It takes place in city spaces that are accessible to the public. Publicly accessible spaces are of two types: those that are owned and/or managed by the public and hence are called ‘public spaces’. Streets, plazas, and parks, are but a few examples of public spaces. They afford people, all people, the rights of assembly, self-expression, association, and, as is the case for many, the right to ‘be left alone’ and enjoy the outdoors. World cities have plenty of such public spaces from New York’s Central Park to London’s Hyde Park; from Boardwalk in Venice, California, to Piazza San Marco in Venice, Italy; Place des Vosges in Paris, to Maidan-I-Shah in Isfahan. The other type of publicly accessible spaces is those that are privately owned and managed. The Café, Movie Theater, Shopping Mall, and Theme Park, to name a few, are customarily privately owned and operated places that provide settings for public life. Such places, which may be referred to as private urban destinations,
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Unlike the real ones in Dubai Creek, the abras at Madina Jumeirah are not meant for public use – ‘guests only’
Such privatization avails a greater control over the access to space which, invariably, results in the stratification of the public that uses it.2 Madinat Jumeirah is a private urban destination that provides carefully orchestrated urban spectacles where architectural forms are ‘cooked’ into an eclectic mélange of romantic settings. The ethics of new design are aestheticized and the ‘good urban setting’ becomes the enchanting, visually stimulating one. Billed as ‘a magnificent tribute to Dubai’s heritage,’3 this opulent development is created as an urban destination intended to provide a special kind of urban experience. It is designed to ‘resemble an ancient Arabian citadel … where two grand boutique hotels, courtyard summer houses, a traditional souk, the Six Senses Spa, the region’s leading conference and banqueting centre,’ among other luxurious facilities, form the basic components of the development.4 As such, Madinat Jumeirah is braced to offer a unique urban experience. An experience grounded in nostalgia for the ‘good old times’ when the Arabs, it is presumed, had a much simpler and happier life. Postcards and photographic artwork are employed to reinforce a sense of belonging to a bygone time and place that is now being revived, reinvented as a make-believe place for the 21st century urbanites. Madinat Jumeirah comprises a shopping mall, Souk Madinat Jumeirah, anchored by two five-star hotels: Mina al-Salam and Al-Qasr. In addition, the development includes a Sindbad’s Kids Club, a Conference Hall, a world class spa and health club, and a variety of villas of various styles scattered along a man-made canal connecting the various components of the development. Small boats, called ‘abras’ roam the canal to shuttle guests from Mina al-Salam, the Souq, and Al-Qasr. The free-of-charge usage of these abras is the exclusive privilege of guests of the two hotels. These abras are modeled after the ‘real ones’, the people-mover boats that have criss-crossed Dubai Creek for the last handful of decades. Both hotels, together with the Souq in between, combine opulence with eclecticism. A US $350,000 Bavarian chandelier crowns the lobby of Al-Qasr. Feet away is a dining hall with ceiling fans that perpetually spin while the AC system provides the real cold air. Each of the hotels has over 290 rooms including the villa units. Organized tours of the entire development are available free of charge. A private guide will lead a tour that includes a visit of the Mina Al-Salam Hotel, an abra ride in the canal, a visit to Al-Qasr Hotel, a sampling of the villas, and a final stop at, where else, the Souq. Our guide (January 18, 2006) informed us that since their opening around a year ago, the hotels’ occupancy rate has never gone below 95%. The Souq has 75 boutique shops, over twenty waterfront cafés, bars and restaurants, in addition to open plazas, a nightclub, and air-conditioned walkways. The development website describes the Souq as follows: ‘Meandering paths lead visitors through a bazaar-like atmosphere in which open fronted shops and intimate galleries spill onto the paved walkways. The sounds of craftsmen and women at work combine with the aroma from street cafes and boutique restaurants. At Souk Madinat, the emphasis is on unique brands, crafted quality and an interactive experience.’5 In sum, Madinat Jumierah delivers a well-orchestrated urban setting intended for a specific kind of urban experience – it provides a contrived, theater-like urban setting that can be stimulating, exciting, and enjoyable. While places like Madinat Jumeirah may present exotic, pleasurable, and entertaining urban destinations, they remain ideologically charged. On the one hand, they dissimulate the social relations of their production. And, on the other hand, they divert the attention from social reality. They remain successful for what they are intended to do: promote consumption and enhance profitability. Michael Sorkin6 describes this kind of urban configuration as a city of simulations,
Dubai Guide
Madinat Jumeirah and the Urban Experience in the Private City
be stimulating, exciting, and enjoyable. It is a remarkable destination for orchestrated public encounters. Increasingly, though, private urban destinations are becoming the more popular locations to host public life and, for an increasing segment of society, the only destination for this purpose. In many ways such destinations are substituting public spaces as the locus of public life. There are many possible reasons for this state of affairs. One reason is the generally poor, less attractive conditions of most public places. Another is the societal tendency to withdraw from public life and prefer a lifestyle grounded in the private realm. A third possible reason is the fact that these private urban destinations are hospitable, stimulating, and entertaining. And finally, increased paranoia about personal safety and security has given such destinations an added benefit since they are generally perceived to be safer than city public spaces. What is disconcerting, however, is that people’s experience in such places has become the only experience of public life. In Dubai, these private urban destinations are becoming the substitute location of choice for public life. Given their physical and symbolic detachment from the urban continuum, these destinations are isolated from the realities of society. As such, the kind of public life that occurs in them lacks many of the characteristics central to genuine public life such as spontaneity, authenticity and freedom. Good cities, Kevin Lynch taught, are those that support viable public life and public spaces.1 The driving concern of his work is to aspire to making cities that sustain democracy, nurture freedom, and enhance human existence. One fundamental component of a democratic, free, and humane city is the existence of a vibrant public sphere that is supported by the availability of meaningful, functioning urban public spaces. The privatization of public urban spaces, which is what Madinat Jumeirah has achieved intentionally or otherwise, is a reason for concern in that it displaces social life from the open, outdoor, public ‘rooms’ (e.g., streets, squares, plazas) to the indoor spaces of malls, clubs, and the like. Not only does this displacement, James Holston argues, reproduce the outdoor city public and its citizenry in a new indoor setting, but it also, more gravely, encourages the privatization of social relations.
Dubai Guide Moutamarat
Madinat Jumeirah and the Urban Experience in the Private City
a city as a theme park. It is a city where a collection of images has become the most important tool to manipulate urban space. It is a city in disguise, where invented, or perhaps re-invented, images are so composed to hide urban reality. It is a city made up for urban consumption. And the helpless consumers of such urban spaces are offered a range of variety that would match the most special tastes.7 In this city of simulations, a city of ‘spectacles’, to use Debord’s expression8, manipulated urban spaces with their pictorial, phantasmagorical settings stand in sharp contrast to the realities that exist elsewhere in the metropolis. In fact, this
…and a wall
Not only is Madinat Jumeirah detached symbolically from its surroundings, it is also physically barricaded behind a tame green belt …
1. Kevin Lynch, Good City Form. Cambridge, Mass. (MIT Press) 1984. 2. James Holston (Ed.), Cities and Citizenship. Durham/ London (Duke University Press) 1999. 3. Madinat Jumeirah website: www.madinatjumeirah.com (accessed December 16, 2006). 4. Ibid. 5. Ibid. 6. Michael Sorkin (Ed.), Variations on a Theme Park: The New American City and the End of Public Space. New York (Hill and Wang) 1992.
7. Matthew Carmona, Steven Tiesdell, Tim Heath, and Taner Oc, Public Places Urban Spaces. Burlington, Mass (Architectural Press) 2003. 8. Guy Debord, The Society of the Spectacle. Detroit (Red and Black) 1974. 9. M. Christine Boyer, The City of Collective Memory: Its Historical Imagery and Architectural Entertainments. Cambridge, Mass. (MIT Press) 1994, p.4. 10. Sorkin, o.c.
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pictorialization of space aims in part to hide or to ‘filter out’ these other realities so that the urban experience is ‘delivered’ to the consumer, sanitized, safe, entertaining, and, perhaps, tranquilizing. Such an urban experience is an escape from the harshness of urban reality, from the poor, the homeless, the Other. To engage in such an exercise in ‘virtual reality’ at the urban level, is to deny the possibility of confronting the problematic of the real world. ‘The pictorialization of space and time,’ Boyer writes, ‘…shatters our place in the city and forbids us to envision a social order that we can reform. Although this pictorialization may amuse, lull, or even entertain us, it does not alienate, nor hold us accountable, nor sustain our resistance.’9 ‘There are no demonstrations in Disneyland’ is Sorkin’s celebrated motto10 – it surely did not become a famous slogan without good reason. Despite all the fluff, decorations, and pastiche, private city is the ultimate negation of an inspiring, democratic, and humane city. While Dubai emerges as a world-class metropolis, aspiring to greatness, it is more urgent than ever to balance private interest, the primary motive for growth, with the public good, the stuff that sustains such growth. As can be seen today, Dubai is making tremendous strides as a private city. Yet, the urban experience that comes with living in great cities is grounded in the public sphere. It is played out in the city streets, plazas, and parks; in a promenade along the Creek, in a square by Emirates
Towers, in a (public) beach along the more than a thousand kilometers of newly created waterfront. Great cities, therefore, can never thrive by their private sphere alone. They need to ensure that the creation of private destinations must go hand in hand with the provision of public places. Private cities can make happy consumers. Cities, with a thriving public realm, can make responsible citizens. It is worthy to make Dubai’s consumers responsible citizens. Attention to the significance of the public side of Dubai deserves immediate attention and incorporation in the city’s grand schemes before it is too late.
Kevin Mitchell
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Representations A representation of a young lady re-presenting a representation of ‘old Dubai architecture’. Although co-opted for promotional purposes, the precedents for the building styles shown in the renderings originate from other cities around the Gulf
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Proposed projects characterized by novelty and, in some cases, parody have generated media interest and brought attention to the incredible pace of development in the Gulf. While there is no dominant stylistic tendency, the conspicuous consumption of once purposeful elements transformed into decorative devices remains a favored fallback. New buildings and those that appear to be old reveal how ‘traditions’ have been constructed and subjected to willful, and often less than skillful, amalgamations. The barjeel (wind tower) and lattice screens employed to ensure privacy while providing sufficient airflow were key components of passive cooling strategies employed in the region prior to the prevalence of air conditioning. Ignoring the potential for adaptation of principles, many designers rely on pastiche and use these elements to decorate high-rise office towers, museums, gas stations and residences. Often claimed to make the building ‘regional’, it apparently relieves any further responsibility for formal, spatial or technological strategies responding to climate or context. A related tendency has been to conceive of the entire building as a representation of the ‘heritage’ of the Gulf region. The United Arab Emirates (UAE) and its neighbors are populated with structures faintly suggestive of sails and (stereo)typical palaces that can most politely be described as eclectic. Speculation fueled by foreign direct investment and the peculiar nature of architecture in the Gulf make it difficult to formulate a critique of the built environment that avoids the ‘traditional/modern’ opposition – the equivalent of an intellectual dead end. And criticism that remains at the level of lamentation and focuses on the loss of a supposed ‘identity’ is overly reductive and fails to acknowledge the complex fusion resulting from intense labor migration and a history of trade and exchange. Dubai’s measures taken to attract mercantile activity from across the region in the early twentieth century provided the foundation for a multicultural population bound together by the pursuit of profit. Just as early traders were enticed by free trade policies, investors are now attracted by relaxed legislation and returns resulting from a seemingly endless supply of low-wage labor. Conversely, criticism that seeks to analyze building booms and their potential consequences is a challenge due to the inherent complexity, lack of information and fluid boundaries between institutions and private enterprise. When confronted with such rapid transformation, it is difficult to make sense of what is happening in the Gulf and constant change precludes broad generalizations. One tends to either run in fear while ranting about the excesses made possible by the most extreme manifestations of neoliberalism
Dubai Guide
Constructing Fact, Fantasy, and Fiction
or to stand frozen while expressing a perverse fascination with what is deemed to be inevitable. Both tendencies do little to explain the development or facilitate an understanding of its impacts. Some of the consequences are already apparent. Short-term gains resulting from real estate and high hotel occupancy rates will certainly have long-term environmental consequences. According to the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) Living Planet Report 2004, the global ecological footprint was 2.2 global hectares per person; the ecological footprint for the UAE was reported to be the highest at 9.9. The global ecological footprint remained the same in the WWF Living Planet Report 2006; however, the UAE increased to 11.9, once again the highest published in the report. The majority of the ecological footprint resulted from carbon dioxide from fossil fuels, and the UAE led the world in this category. Gulf neighbors are not far behind. While the petrochemical and metals industries contribute to the high energy consumption, it has been estimated that during the summer season 75-85% of the total power generated is used for air conditioning; and cooling can cost owners of high rises as much as one-third of the total cost of the building over the life of the structure. And who pays the price? No one for the time being. Subsidies ensure that costs remain low and there is little incentive for change. Ultimately any fundamental modification must be supported by incentives (and penalties) that are financial. As long as actual costs remain shrouded in subsidies, there is little motivation to conserve resources like water and electricity. However, in spite of the fact that architecture has made significant contributions to negative publicity resulting from environmental degradation, the individual building remains a vital aspect of promotional campaigns for developer-inspired dreams. Given the importance placed
Dubai Guide Moutamarat
Constructing Fact, Fantasy, and Fiction Swoops and Swirls Real estate trade shows and rapidly constructed high rises reveal the desire to differentiate developments and attract attention (and investment)
on singular buildings in marketing, one would expect an emphasis on quality of design and construction. But the demand for speed in design and construction processes, the harsh natural environment, and the general skill level of an imported low-wage workforce ultimately affect aspirations. Quickly built high rises and elusive searches for iconic symbols of progress or the past do not help matters. Projects like Dubai’s ‘Cultural Village’ promise to blend Middle Eastern history with the rich heritage of Dubai. The development will also offer visitors an ‘inspired mix of Arabic and old Dubai architecture’. What does all this mean? What is ‘Arabic’ architecture? The developers have packaged a past that pays no heed to categories such as fact, fiction and fantasy. Projects such as this obscure a truly rich and variegated past that is not so easily described or represented in facades ‘inspired’ by turn of the century architectural typologies imported via exchanges with settlements across the Gulf. To flatten the cultures of the Gulf into themed developments perpetuates misunderstanding and threatens to reduce architecture to mere novelty. The economic and socio-cultural conditions that exist in the Gulf defy easy explanation and challenge fixed concepts. Dubai and its neighbors contest accepted notions of public, private, community, identity, etc. One cannot speak of public space in the Gulf without defining which ‘public’. Constellations of individuals are fluid, changing with summer migrations to escape the heat and departures when work permits expire. Picture books and staggering statistics impress, shock and provide material for quotes but do little to enhance understanding – this takes more work and contributions by those within and outside the disciplines of architecture and design. The inherent complexity of the situation provides contexts replete with challenges. This opens new possibilities for investigation and action that transcend our understanding, which presently remains limited by our failure to look beyond constructions delicately balanced between fact, fantasy and fiction.
Exuberant Expression The individual residence has become a means of self-expression. References are drawn from a variety of disparate sources and provide a challenge to accepted norms of visual coherence
Sails and Pseudo-Souks ‘Take photograph here’: a ‘seven star’ hotel and windtowers
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From Purposeful to Pastiche Rather than investigating how formal, spatial or technological strategies responded to particular contextual challenges in the past, functional elements are often reduced to surface level decoration. The transition from purposeful to pastiche does not seem to be conscious and therefore lacks the wit that may aspire to more than the mundane
Dubai Guide Moutamarat
Constructing Fact, Fantasy, and Fiction ‘Regional’ Themes Tea in Tunis and a coffee in Cairo – without leaving the mall. While the fictionalized environments loosely inspired by Ibn Battuta are questionable, the execution is admirable. If one looks (but does not touch), it can almost be believed – almost
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Safe for Consumption Themed shopping malls construct a fantasy world that is far different from the much more interesting reality which exists on the streets of urban neighborhoods in Dubai and other cities in the Gulf
April 12, 2006
Dubai Guide Moutamarat
Much has been written about the building frenzy in this small Emirate: ‘A bubble built on debt’, ‘Albert Speer meets Walt Disney’ Dubai is supposed to be a badly planned city with an ill-equipped infrastructure that has not managed to keep up with the city’s prolific developments. But upon our arrival for our second visit, approximately 11pm, the city is a far cry from its apocalyptic descriptions. This time of night the generously sized roads hold almost no traffic. The journey from the airport to our hotel (almost from one end of Dubai to the other) takes less than half an hour. On our way we pass the concrete skeleton of the Burj Dubai. Its dark concrete structure fades almost seamlessly into the dark of night, leaving only the regularly dispersed lights as a discreet indication of its presence. Towering over the giant billboards in front, the half-finished illuminated building looks just like another announcement of itself – virtual reality: there, but not quite there. Albeit exclusively from photographs and maps, the area is all too familiar. Next door we hope to build the world’s largest rotating structure – an effort to outdo Dubai in being Dubai…, a project we have been heavily working on over the past months. But at this point, all of that is still highly confidential. – RdG
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George Katodrytis
Adina Hempel and Micro Urban
Moutamarat
New building developments in Dubai, especially high-rises, are linked to the global network of trends, forces, finance and trading rather than being related to their locality and community. As such they are alienated from their geographic and physical location. Therefore a dose of self-stylization is necessary, like a surreal machine that reproduces its own identity. Buildings are self-referential and they are held together by virtue of proximity. On a barren landscape anything goes and anything is new. This condition is reminiscent of early modernists’ utopian visions where the new city refers to the present and projects to the future. The desert is not the killing field we are accustomed to see in newsreels in the last decade, but the setting of slick developments. There is a new urban and spatial perception of the desert, a renewed mirage, not unlike Las Vegas in Nevada. The new global city is developing ‘from scratch’: a real tabula rasa, the dream of any urban designer and architect as well as a real estate investor. This is about newness, clean, fresh with little residue of anomaly and deterioration. Buying architecture is like buying a product. Living in it is like acquiring any lifestyle you can afford. Like any new city, Dubai has no density, no layering. Buildings are detached and isolated, and some communities are gated. Even though architecture appears homogeneous its social reality is heterogeneous. This paradoxically becomes a haven for upper class buyers, seeking exclusive retreats. Almost overnight, the city has become a juxtaposition of barren desert, 21st-century skyscrapers and extravagantly optimistic construction sites. The visual voyage through the city, like in any contemporary cityscape, operates like a continuous shift between eye and mind, as though differences no longer existed between the two. The city has definitely ceased to be a site: instead, it has become a condition. Perhaps it has even lost its site: it tends to be everywhere and nowhere. The urban setting as a large construction site is unique as it can always keep the promise alive and prepare itself for new users, the incoming international nomads: settlers, laborers, consultants, traders, in-transit business travelers and tourists, all seeking and challenged by newness. This is an accelerated urbanism like none before; it is immediate in its pictorial seduction. The urbanization process is streamlined, effective and fast. Dubai is the largest architectural experiment in progress, soon achieving a critical mass of mega expansion. This is symptomatic of approaches to development in many other regions in the world today. This ‘model potential’ makes Dubai an ideal case study of urbanization; in a sense, Dubai has become ‘required reading’. Yet, a critique needs to be articulated and new strategies proposed. What is interesting is that this is a new city caught up in unprecedented conditions of the new century: globalization, accelerated technologies of imaging and communication, abundance of investment and mass tourism.
Dubai Guide
The Dubai Experiment: 1. Accelerated Urbanism
Dubai’s rising skyline, changing the perception of the dessert from the killing fields of the Dessert Storm to that of a megalopolis re-enacting New York a century later
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Adina Hempel and Micro Urban
Dubai’s prosthetic extensions: more than two Manhattans
Moutamarat
Pattern of an exponent of algorithmically evolving two-dimensional pattern
look familiar. Contemporary tourists are looking for familiarity: they want to feel at home in a strange place. This has led to concentrated tourist infrastructures and mega-structure complexes (hotel + apartments + mall + cinema + expo + anything), which are clustered together. In this sense, architecture and landscape are part of a single system, characterized by stratification and controlled spatial experience. In mass tourism, a dose of familiarization is required. Whereas it was once uncommon to shop for ordinary clothing items while on vacation, brand-name stores and outlets mall have popped up all over the world. Similarly, with the spread of franchised restaurants and hotels, it is possible to eat and sleep in circumstances that are remarkably alike, and tune into the same TV channels almost everywhere. Mass tourism is indeed like mass media. The lure of the new works best when the new is both anticipated and well-packaged. In 1925, in his essay ‘travel and dance’, Siegfried Kracauer already remarked that tourists are prepared for foreign places though the perusal of illustrated magazines. Nowadays, through coffee-table books, television and movies, tourists are well-prepped for on-site architectural experiences. A profusion of tour guides, and especially Internet sites, launches the tourist into touring weeks or months before the actual trip begins. What is striking about this body of preparatory information is the degree to which issues of touring comfort and efficiency take precedence over historical information about architecture or place. From the airport to the air-conditioned bus to the four- or five-star hotel, package tourists spend much of their time within a cocoon. They might as well be at home, or at the mall. This tropical but not so dangerous adventure appeals to millions of tourists. Dubai there is little difference between holiday accommodation and housing. Architectural programs are becoming fused and undifferentiated. The morphology
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Dubai thrives on consumerism. This is a city that owes its early survival and its current momentum to trading. Everything points to consumption. This turns any city into a theme park seeking to sell the arabesque, tropical, oriental and international, all in one. Tourism and shopping is the new pastime of the middle class, associated with leisure, the resort and the lifestyle experience. We work more efficiently nowadays, and have more free time. Dubai is a constructed leisure land. It is more like a diagram, a system of staged scenery and mechanisms of good time. Flying over Dubai, one is confronted with a new type of 21st century urbanism, which is both diagrammatic and prosthetic in the form of islands. As a tourist, there is no need to travel to distant destinations, to desolate islands. Islands are now close to shore, in a new typology of hydro-suburbia. The island is the lowest form of spatial organization. Pure accumulation, it has an iconic form and a certain perimeter and location. It can be reached by dramatic arriving (compare here with Venice’s Lido and Florida’s Key West). The surface of the island reveals everything there is, all contents; islands are fundamentally consistent and predictable: they give an assurance of security. But they have potentials; they are exclusive. As Briavel Holcomb points out in his essay ‘Marketing Cities for Tourism’ (1999), in the tourist realm ‘it is the consumer, not the product that moves. Because the product is usually sold before the consumer sees it, the marking of tourism is intrinsically more significant than the conventional case where the product can be seen, tested, and compared to similar products in situ. It means that the representation of place, the images created for marketing, the vivid videos and persuasive prose of advertising texts, can be as selective and creative as the marketer can make them – a reality check comes only after arrival.’ Increasingly, the kind of contemporary architecture and urbanism that simulates mass tourism has to be not only photogenic but also telegenic – buildings that look striking in a sequence of rapid-fire cuts, or that stand out in a static shot as backdrops. The city of Dubai sprawls out like an exponent of an algorithmically evolving pattern: fractal architecture with forms of increased perimeter and endless topological variations, as two-dimensional patterns, allowing very little for three-dimensional variety. Dubai’s recent development has put it on the map of iconic projects, of real estate prospecting and holiday dream destinations. Motivated by a desire for authentic experience for exotic places, for escape or spectacle, or simply by an urge for new knowledge, the tourist leaves a familiar environment to view other locations. Today, as places increasingly get restructured as spaces of consumption, tourist activities merge with other mass-consumption practices. Historically, the origin of modern vacation time can be traced back to the 1930s, when workers in France, for the first time, were given the right to twelve paid vacation days. Today, tourism has become a ‘total lifestyle experience’. The modern tourist resort is by definition a constructed one. The tourist’s perception seems to have shifted away from the pictorial 18th century: there is no longer the desire for the panoramic view. The excessively visual contemporary culture has made everything
Dubai Guide
The Dubai Experiment
2. Tourism and Constructed Leisure-land
Moutamarat
and detailed in Mumbai, and delivered to a project manager in Dubai within days. The universality of curtain wall detailing allows for a ‘common architectural language’ without barriers to be constructed and delivered on site equally fast. Furthermore, the speed of transmitting the image of the building itself allows for a chain of global real estate networks to sell the product, i.e. the architectural space, long before its completion on site. Dubai’s heavily invested digital and telecommunications infrastructures allow its continuous presence in the Internet and electronic space. This is the city of transmitted imagery. Urbanism as an art form in the Arab World has an interesting precedent. The Muslim Middle Ages was marked by the formation and development of new art style, which found its reflection both in the art as well as in architecture and city planning. Abstract geometric forms and woven urban spaces have been established very early on in the Arab World. Cities became basic generators of new art styles, and the urban culture of this period obtains the role of a system forming factor. It was a period of self-identification of urban mentality and formation of new aesthetic of Muslim Urbanism. Grunebaum wrote: ‘From its birth Islam, by its spirit and main centers, had urban character’. This tradition is carried on. Urbanizing large areas and introducing a new aesthetic and ‘art’ is very much inherent in the creation of the contemporary Arab city. The earliest stage of urbanization was connected with the transition of the nomads to the settled life way and cultivation of fertile lands which goes back to the 2nd millennium B.C. The unification of the aesthetic principles in the Muslim world as a whole had become a new cultural dogma – a period of universal aesthetic canon had started. Therefore, some generalized and standard vision of the oriental city as a composition of blue domes and slim minarets has some basis to be reasonable. The universal style spread over not only over plastic forms of culture, but verbal ones too. Ornament
Dubai Guide
The Dubai Experiment
of the landscape and seascape is becoming fabricated to the point that it may soon be difficult to differentiate between the natural and the constructed. Artificial islands will add another 1,500km of beachfront, turning the coastline and the city into an inexhaustible holiday resort. This constructed landscape, like a stage set, provides edited scenes of adventure and entertainment. No matter which part of the world, whenever architecture is built from nothingness, it seems to be fond of a universal language of spectacle and the exoticism of the new. It might be useful to look at another aspect of the exotic at this point, and ask in what ways specific examples of architecture are elusive and foreign to the city itself. This is also a way of asking how the exotic intervenes in the cultural politics of global tourism. Jean Baudrillard has analyzed contemporary culture through the model of Disneyland, thereby inserting a form of simulated architecture and tourism into the heart of his definition of hyper-reality. Disneyland is presented as an imaginary kingdom, set aside from the values of everyday. As such, it serves as a ‘prop’ to make us believe that the world outside is ‘real’. For Baudrillard, however, the world outside is not ‘real’ but ‘hyper-real’, and Disneyland is no different. The logic of role-playing and theming is not limited to Disneyland. It has permeated the whole of the Western society. Everyday life is colonized by fantasy, dominated by escapist dreaming. Both the ‘authentic’ architectural icons, and the simulated architectural icons, such as Disneyland or Las Vegas, are inscribed within the same logic of escapist dreaming. Escapism is an ambivalent, even negative word when juxtaposed against realism or authenticity. Yet we are inescapably escapist. Animals flee when confronted by some sort of threat. Humans are no different. What makes us different is that we are not only pushed, but also pulled by some imagined reality that is either already in existence ‘out there’, to be discovered, or by the possibility of its realization and manifestation. We escape from the given into the desirable through theme parks, shopping malls, and suburban developments.
Constructing the constructed leisure-land
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Architecture serves emergent economies to express the fascination for symbols of economic development, national progress in a context of inflationary globalization and international economic competition. In the first half of the 1990s, several countries in Asia invested much effort and ingenuity in the construction of skyscrapers, which not only challenged the legendary supremacy of the American high-rise, but were also meant to represent these countries’ new role on the international stage. The Middle East and Gulf states have been slow to take on the construction of high-rises, despite abundance of land and investment. This is not the case anymore. Dubai has surged into the global market of finance and fantasy and is now expressed in the construction of hundreds of high-rise buildings. International architectural firms have found an expanding and profitable market. Transnational practices place their designs within the more general framework of globalization with speed and easiness. The simplicity of transmitting digital documents of both building imagery and specifications allows for complex designs to be prepared in New York, outsourced
Adina Hempel and Micro Urban
3. Transmitted Imagery
Dubai Guide
‘Spirit of the UAE’ collage; the ideal future city
Google Earth Urbanism
Moutamarat
Adina Hempel and Micro Urban
The Dubai Experiment
and words’ ligature became a distinguishing feature of new aesthetic. Even though this is a case of complex art forms and craftsmanship, it was rarely exported or exploited in the west, except in the case of Orientalism. This imagery was exported, exhibited and eventually bought by wealthy Europeans in the form of exotic decoration. Nevertheless the Arab urban form and art was unique and unified. This urge for unification and expansion as a cultural need is now changing. The fast transmission of architectural imagery is now part of everyday advertising marketing practice. The sky is the new medium of Satellite Urbanism. This turns the land, desert and water via military technology into spectacle and consumption. GIS and reconnaissance technologies turn into telegenic (as opposed to photogenic) postcards for selling real estate markets as well as mass tourism destinations. Satellite imagery of unfinished projects gives rise to the exciting promise of the future. Satellite technologies used to monitor wildlife development, hydrography, and land drought are now a tool for global transmission of projects under construction, reconnaissance tourism advertisements and construction theatre. Dubai and the UAE Ministry of Labor currently use the Swiss-based firm Informap and high-resolution satellite technology to monitor construction sites and projects. Using high-resolution photography a team monitor the minute details of construction sites beamed back to the ministry by Digital Globe satellite technology, also used by the US military. This is the new global capital of the world in the making. Its imagery is transmitted long before its reality. It is therefore not surprising that all the housing on Dubai’s Jumeirah Palm Island was sold out in fifteen days. Virtuality dominates over reality. Eventually, 70,000 islanders on Jumeirah Palm will be privileged in that their neighborhood will be clearly visible and identified in Google Earth.
Emerging global city in the making
Linear Sheikh Zayek road skyline
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Adina Hempel and Micro Urban
Adina Hempel and Micro Urban
Ibn Battuta Shopping Mall
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OMA / Todd Reisz
Dubai Guide
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Nadim Karam, Atelier Hapsitus
Moutamarat
Now, at the dawn of the new millennium, we find ourselves in cities in which tension and (the threat of) violence remain the underlying forces influencing political, economic and cultural development. In an intimately interconnected world, creative disciplines are fusing, aesthetics for its own sake has been abandoned and architecture, art and design are all implicated in the same quest for a visual philosophy. Dubai and other Gulf region cities are at the forefront of this quest, evolving most rapidly in scale and sophisticated technology today. The contemporary pressure for speed is endangering the identities of our cities and the dreams of their inhabitants. Nadim Karam & Atelier Hapsitus seek to create conceptually groundbreaking landscape, architectural and urban art projects, digging out the stories, conflicts and memories of the city and giving them contemporary expression.1 The result is not urban design as we commonly experience it. It is a concentrated distribution of energy in the city through forms injected with imagination and illusion that activate memories of the place. Layers of shadow, wind and light add suspense. The story is told by Urban Toys. They provoke moments of enchantment and what lingers in the mind is the memory of the place.
Dubai Guide
The Cloud of Dubai
The cloud is a trip, a playful adventure in the city. It is a horizontal presence on an elevated platform, an antithesis to the sum of skyscrapers all over the gulf region.
Cloud
Dubai is one of the few cities in the world experiencing exponential growth. Its economy, like its towers, is soaring. Its transient population makes Dubai the ultimate city of mutation. Within its ever-changing scenery and growth, Dubai needs a dream that expresses its actual transient phase. If cities can dream, does Dubai have a dream? For Dubai, the cloud is a design initiative that could start a debate about the culture and essence of the city. The Cloud takes its inspiration from nomads who wandered freely, like the clouds they sought. Now, people move vertically instead of laterally, the landscape seen from their towers is one of clouds instead of sand. The Cloud is a bridge between dream and reality. It resonates with many Oriental legends in which figures dream of flying and traveling.
Structure
The super-structure consists of 2 zones – the ‘Support Structures’ and the ‘Cloud Structure’. The Cloud Structure is a three-dimensional hierarchical steelwork lattice that extends within the entire cloud volume – 300m long, 30m high and 100m wide – and is perched 300m in the air above the support structure.
Experience
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The open lattice structure of the cloud works at several scales and densities and defines the basic volumetric shape of the cloud. Density changes allow the opening up of large and small fields that contain a multitude of functional spaces, viewing platforms, and dynamic and static sculptures as well as large and small linkages between them. These platforms and spaces are at varying levels and are connected by a network of walkways and escalators. The intention is for the vast majority of these spaces to be external with climatic conditions controlled by a number of passive and active measures as outlined below. The smallest scales of the structures
The cloud is an instigator of events for the city of Dubai. It is beyond context but generates its own context.
Support
The Support Structures are the legs and stability bracing that hold up the Cloud Structure. They are spread across the majority of the footprint thus enabling a structure of minimum density consisting of long, near vertical raking columns known as ‘Ladders’ and long, near horizontal bracing trusses called ‘Snakes’ that zigzag upwards in three-dimensional lattices.
Circulation Moutamarat
In addition to being the primary structure, the Snakes and Ladders also form the primary slow route up to the Cloud. This consists of runs of travelators and/or funicular elevators as well as graded ramps and stair/escalators along the Snakes, and steep stairs and slides on the Ladders. At key nodal and turning points along the Snakes small viewing and ‘experience’ platforms open up. The secondary circulation system consists of a number of fast, non-stop elevators from the ground to Cloud levels that consist of enclosed elevator capsules on minimal vertical structures.
Dubai Guide
The Cloud of Dubai
support many of the active climatic control and special effects devises that create the ‘heaven like’ Cloud Experience. Emphasis is on open structures and devises as opposed to enclosing facades, skins and surfaces.
Environmental Engineering
Both the journeys up the Snakes and Ladders as well as the majority of space within the Cloud are external and hence the project can be considered a vertical ‘park’. Controlling the harsh and hot climate of Dubai in a low energy and sustainable manner, enabling users to experience a comfortable environment is one of the key goals of the project. The ‘open’ nature of the project architecturally and structurally is also manifest in the climatic control methods whose systems will be fully visible and explained to the visitor in the form of a sustainable climate control story. A variety of methods are being studied and assessed both for generating energy as well as for cooling devices and microclimatic controls. A mix of the following will control the microclimates: • •
S hading – both natural as well as that achieved from the structure and architecture; A diabatic cooling, achieved using seawater sprayed onto a multitude of specifically designed moist meshes and membranes designed into the lower levels of the structural hierarchy.
Energy will be generated by active solar panels and small active wind turbines both of which will be distributed throughout the cloud and rotate to meet the prevailing wind direction or angle of the sun. The energy will be used as a power reserve and to pump seawater up to the cloud for use in adiabatic cooling devises. The Cloud stands at a height of about 300 meters. An independent structure carries the Cloud and transports citizens up to it. The concept for the independent structure takes its imagery from the ancient Eastern game of vice and virtue; snakes and ladders. The ‘snakes’ and ‘ladders’ double as supporting structure and transport to and from the cloud. The innovative and technological significance of the Cloud will make it a landmark and statement of identity for the city of Dubai. The Cloud can contain up to 20,000 m2 of floating gardens, a lake, restaurants, a palace and an open museum of Oriental legends with an extraordinary view of the city. The Cloud is a place to dream. It generates a unique sense of place. It is a fantastic encounter with the sky. It is a megastructure that forms an iconic sculpture fully experienced by visitors and users. contemporary Arab city with the intention of combining original conception with cutting edge-technology through works that are essentially sustainable.
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1. Nadim Karam & Atelier Hapsitus, in collaboration with AGU (Advanced Geometry Unit) ARUP, London, are creating ‘Urban Reverie’; potential projects addressing the
X-Architects (Dubai), SMAQ (Berlin)
Moutamarat
Dubai is one of the fastest growing cities in the world; its global relationships are increasingly determined by economic factors such as shortages of natural resources. In addition to architectural and urban superlatives, Dubai is facing strong shifts within its social fabric and ecosystem: with the highest consumption of energy and water per capita, Dubai has the dubious distinction of having the largest ecological urban footprint in the world. The tourist economy that consumes a good portion of these resources is expected to double within the next three years to fifteen million visitors per year. Responding to the urgency caused by those shifts, the project with the secret name1 examines a piece of desert in Dubailand scheduled to become the Disneyland of the Middle East as a test case for sustainable urban development. While projects within Dubai are typically theme-based, the project with the secret name1 takes sustainability as a non-theme, shifting from asking first ‘what does it look like?’ to ‘what does this do?’. Rigorously comparing common Dubai practices and the project with the secret name), Dubai must choose between a purely revenue-oriented machine and a context sensitive ‘Dubai’ urbanity – an answer to the local conditions and needs. The urban master plan for T.P.w.t.S.N., set on a parcel of 45 hectares, is composed of a number of dense urban clusters located within a uniquely (un)landscaped setting. The proposed landscape is predominantly arid and green areas are concentrated in humid zones mapped out from satellite imagery of existing vegetation, thus leaving the remaining area for development. The shape and composition of the clusters not only recall the forms prevailing wind currents carve in desert sand, but also permit the development to profit from the cooling sea breeze. This is beneficial both from a bioclimatic point of view and for the sake of human comfort.
1. Commissioned by an anonymous developer.
Extrapolation of humidity mapping. Isographs suggest a possible site layout including specifications for development and areas to be left open
Dubai Guide
Project with the Secret Name
The urban clusters accommodate diverse functions including boutiques and tourist hotels, townhouses, patio villas, apartments and furnished apartments juxtaposed in non-prototypical combinations to create a vibrant social fabric. Each parcel is situated to maximally benefit from its close proximity to the landscape, the improved micro-climate and the grand vistas. The landscape, a primary component of the development, can be explored via a jogging and cycling track which runs through it. Additional public nodes such as a library, desert museum, public pool as well as the mosque act as attractors at either end of each cluster turning the T.P.w.t.S.N into a destination in its own right with urban flair and close ties to a characteristic local landscape.
Humidity map of desert site. Scarce tree distribution on a real photograph indicates hidden water resources
Solar Powered Streetlights and a Shaded Promenade
Five islands of development contain hotels, apartments, villas and community buildings. They are connected via a system of vehicular and pedestrian loops forming a mixed – used public promenade in close connection to the landscaped areas
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An urban promenade surrounds and interconnects each cluster. It ties together the café, restaurants, hotel lobbies and retail stores on the one side of the boulevard and the landscape on the other. The urban sun shade – a continuous hybrid structure that includes photovoltaic discs, solar powered street lighting panels and seating elements – combined with flowing water channels turns the boulevard edge into a place for strolling, sitting in a café or window shopping. Narrow, shaded alleyways lead to the cluster cores – in the case of the largest cluster to an urban green and aviary.
Dubai Guide
Project with the Secret Name
Moutamarat
Solar powered shading and lighting system. Iso, plans and section. The public promenade is shaded with a system of photaic cells. These provide energy for promenade and street lighting
Wind circulation. The project is conceived as a local modification of the desert climate. Urban layout with its east – west orientated landscapes and routings lets moderate west winds stream through the development while hot south winds are hindered from penetrating the islands. Towers (up to 15 floors) create wind turbulences and facilitate additional air circulation
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Solar powered shading and lighting system. Partial plans of the public promenade
Project diagram on actual site. Island layout facilitates the shading of pedestrian east – west alleys
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AMO / Todd Reisz
Dubai Guide
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Jerry Kolo
Moutamarat 59
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With the highest number of ‘first place’ entries in the Guinness Book of World records, there is hardly any modest way to describe the exposure that the City of Dubai in the United Arab Emirate receives in the media as the world’s fastest growing, most architecturally dazzling, most touristy and award-wining city. From real estate and tourism promotion packages, to television documentaries, in-flight magazines and newspapers, there is no scarcity of news about Dubai’s status as the world’s ‘wonderland,’ one whose breathtaking (critics say outlandish) projects are currently causing experts to consider re-drawing the geographic map of the world. Yet, for all its feats in various aspects of growth, there are, as in the case of great cities in history, concerns about the long-term economic viability, environmental sustainability, and socio-cultural harmony of Dubai. Some statistics may help to capture the sources of these concerns. Dubai Statistics Center disclosed recently that the 2005 census counted the city’s population at 1.3 million. Of these, 75% are male and 25% are female. Interestingly, people aged 30-34 years comprise 19% of the population. This group grew by 84% in just five years from year 2000. The next largest group, those aged 25-29 years, is also 19% of the population and grew by a huge 88% over five years. The growth picture is equally dazzling on the employment front. The Labor Ministry reported, for example, that the number of expatriate workers in the country was 2.74 million in 2005, a 17% increase over 2004 when there were 2.34 million expatriates. Estimates from consulates and embassies representing the bulk of the UAE workforce put the figure at 2.8 to 3.4 million expatriates, with India contributing about 1.1 million, Pakistan 750,000, Bangladesh 4-500,000, Iran 3-400,000 residents and workers, Jordan 200,000 residents and workers, the Philippines 200,000, Sri Lanka 150,000, the UK 120,000 residents and workers, Nepal 70-80,000, and Lebanon 60,000 residents and workers. From the standpoint of future sustainability, the data on Dubai’s phenomenal growth pose policy, planning, economic, environmental and social questions. Socio-culturally, for example, citizens (also called locals) are disquieted by the overwhelming impact of ‘western-type’ development and lifestyle on their indigenous culture. It is common to hear the suggestion that development firms and the government build separate camps, away from the city, for workers. On the planning front, Dubai has literally become a nightmare in the areas of traffic congestion, urban access, environmental impact, the growing distances between home, work and school, and other physical planning issues. On the economic front, perhaps some of the most serious concerns are in the areas of skyrocketing living costs, stagnant or declining wages, high rents and high service costs (parking, schools, tolls, etc.). I submit that the issues exemplified above are typical of cities of Dubai’s status. However, I believe that they are surmountable. The critical question, therefore, becomes how the citizens of Dubai would cope, succeed and make their city competitive in the modern world. I posit that a people’s capacity to be productive determines their city’s competitive edge. Productive capacity is a factor for enlight-
Dubai Guide
The Necessity of an Enlightened City
enment, what some would call education. Finally, enlightenment is the collective responsibility of all stakeholders (individuals, governments, corporations and nongovernmental organizations) in society. Cities of the future must be enlightened cities in order to thrive and be competitive. The bulk of this challenge faces governments, primarily because enlightenment from an institutionalized standpoint is a public good. An example of this is the public education system, a service we all need, but whose cost we cannot all afford. Herein lies the need for governmental leadership, that is, to cushion, subsidize and oversee the provision of quality education for citizens in order to permit people to be productive and make society livable and competitive. Enlightenment is an additional ‘E’ I have advocated in my work, in addition to the famous three ‘E’ principles of sustainable development: economy, environment and equity. I continue to argue that without massive investment in public enlightenment, sustainability will not be achievable in cities or rural areas. This singular factor is also the greatest threat to achieving the noble endeavors of organizations such as the United Nations’ Millennium Development Goals and the aims of other world trade and human rights efforts. Relating the enlightenment issue to Dubai’s viability and competitiveness in the future, the case is made from the standpoint of pointers that Dubai’s remarkable boom may be threatened by some of the factors responsible for the boom, as well as factors resulting from it. An example of factors fuelling the growth is imported labor from various developing countries. The literacy and competency of workers, many of whom have made Dubai their home by choice, intermarriage or for other reasons, should be of great concern. Most of these workers are utility or day workers in construction, without the education and skills necessary for life beyond their current low-skill jobs. The pathetic plight of these workers is covered in the daily media. From oppression and exploitation by their formal employees, through extortion by employment agencies and loan shark firms, to abuses by informal employers (domestic workers) and even shady entrepreneurs (prostitution and drugs barons), I argue that these inhumane treatments are largely related to the inability of these victims to improve their employment, earning and socio-economic status because of limited or lack of education. There are shocking incidents of road accidents, petty crimes, and unsanitary behavior that are clearly attributable to ignorance and illiteracy among most workers in Dubai. Civility and decorum are at simply deplorable levels, a well-known cause for discontent among locals and highly educated professional expatriates toward a large segment of the low-skilled labor class. Sadly, there are subtle, increasing and disturbing evidences of classism, ethnocentrism, racism, sexism and xenophobia and all the ugly ‘isms’ that can undermine the charm, attraction and livability of a global city like Dubai. The problems of illiteracy and inadequate skills are also serious among the locals and must be addressed aggressively in order to create an indigenous workforce to sustain Dubai’s huge and sophisticated economy. In a career fair organized early in 2007 to recruit Emiratis for career jobs, for example, an organizer noted to the media that, ‘around 800,000 jobs were created in 2006, still many UAE nationals are unemployed and in search of jobs. Our obligation towards the future generations is to create suitable conditions for them to participate in their country’s growth.’ There also are silent and controversial debates about the durability of locals in professional and demanding jobs in the modern workplace. The arguments for and against this issue notwithstanding, the efforts of the national and regional governments must be commended and must be intensified to train and elevate the skills and knowledge capacity of Emiratis. An example of these initiatives is the Knowledge and Human Development Authority, set up early in 2007 by His Highness Sheikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Ruler of Dubai to develop
April 14, 2006
Moutamarat
‘How is Denmark?’ Is the first question that His Highness fires at us. We are seated on a sofa in one of the quarters of what we are told is his ‘working palace’ (supposedly designed by his wife who is a keen interior decorator). After a mild correction that we are actually from Holland, a polite introduction session ensues, in which we describe our office and he explains his vision for the city we are supposed to design. He comments on the increasingly cluttered infrastructure and traffic congestion of elsewhere in the UAE and recalls memories of the fort as the ideal symbiosis between working, living and playing, involving all its inhabitants: members of the family, servants and… slaves. His speech is held briefly before mentioning this last category, followed by a discreet ‘sorry’. For somebody who thinks we are from Denmark, his discourse holds a remarkable number of familiar terms: generic city, critical mass, density, the culture of congestion… His oration continues uninterrupted for about fifty minutes; even as he feverishly shakes his empty coffee cup at one the servants for a refill. (He is served instantly.) Less than an hour later we are outside. His Highness did not wish to see examples of our work, he will await the results. ‘That went well… very well!’ comments our contact ‘Sheikh was happy.’ – RdG
Dubai Guide
The Necessity of an Enlightened City
a comprehensive human development strategy and find radical solutions to challenges that face the education system in the Emirate. There are other complementary initiatives nationwide, for example, the national Emiritization program aimed at boosting the rate of local employees in all corporations and agencies nationwide. Another example is the Sharjah Tatweer Forum, an initiative to develop the skills and competencies of national youth in Sharjah Emirate. Efforts are also targeted at the education of women, in recognition, according the Dubai Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research in a media report on a March 2007 ‘Women in IT’ conference, that without the full participation of women in its economy the country will never be able to reach its full potential. He noted that employing women has serious implications for the entire country as well as for the national strategy for social development. Finally, I present examples of how Dubai can create an enlightened citizenry, thereby making the city more cultured, livable and competitive. First is an education system that prepares citizens for the world of work. The system must be rigorous and experience-based. The system must be decentralized throughout the city, with community branches where people do not have to travel distances to get an education. A critical aspect of the system must be continuing and non-credit education, aimed at older and even retired workers who desire to keep abreast of modern trends in various fields, from computers to social etiquette and cultural awareness. The government should require appropriate programs in institutions of higher education, such as social work and health sciences, to undertake community outreach and partnership programs, in communities in which universities have a concrete presence. The government and corporations should fund public awareness programs, using dedicated channels on local and national television and radio to enlighten citizens about topical issues in governance, the economy, the environment, art and culture, and life in civil society and a world city like Dubai. I am convinced that the viability, competitiveness and sustainability of cities in the future can be assured only by enlightened citizens. There will be no room for mediocrity in future cities that aim not just to survive, but to thrive.
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Rodney Fitch
Dubai has prospered for decades from an investment-led economic strategy focused mainly on services industries. As we transit into an innovation-fueled economy, the driving force in the next phase of our development will be the imaginative and creative capacity of our people. The new architects of the global economic landscape are those who apply their imagination, creativity and knowledge to generate new ideas and create new value. Multi-dimensional creativity – artistic creativity, business entrepreneurship and technological innovation – will be the new currency of success. The creative cluster (arts and culture, design and media) is one of the fastest growing sectors of developed economies such as the UK and the US. Creative industries not only contribute towards the economy directly, but also have a powerful, indirect impact on the rest of the economy by adding style, aesthetics and freshness to differentiate products and services. To succeed and thrive, Dubai must tap the creative cluster and recognize its components as vanguards of economic growth. With growing access to better technology, industries are increasingly competing at equal price and functionality. The new competitive advantage lies in the ability to carve out or create new markets through the fusion of business, technology and the arts. Design, which facilitates this convergence, will emerge as the key component in any differentiation strategy for business. Changes in world demographics and trends and convergences in new technologies have created new challenges that demand greater design sensitivities and solutions from the tools we use and the spaces in which we live. Design will therefore play a critical role not only in business but also in the national agendas of many countries by driving the innovation process (and industrial competitiveness), by contributing to the level of creativity, cultural buzz and the attractiveness of the location to global talent, and by strengthening the marketing and branding of the country’s products and services to the world.
Moutamarat
In ‘As You Like It’ Shakespeare characterizes the human condition in a wonderful passage describing the ages of man. By stretching both the analogy and the imagination, Design might also be placed in a similar context whereby it grows in power and influence parallel to the City States’ own emergence and growth from birth through to full, mature Statehood. Yet, as Rome discovered, when expressed by grand buildings, impressive public works and infrastructure of themselves, this maturity is not enough. There is something of the designer in all of us, for creativity is quintessentially human. This is as true of Dubai as it is of London or New York. The challenge for the Arab World is to connect its citizens to the world of Design, to engage and educate them in the process, to educate them in its discovery and to provide the educational and technological tools to unlock those channels that encourage dialogue about the nature and role of design in the National lifestyle. A fulcrum for this might be some form of National Design Center that codifies and coalesces around an appreciation of the Arab World’s indigenous design culture and thus reaches out beyond the Arab world to connect with the wider world of Design.
Designing Dubai’s Future II
Dubai Guide
Designing Dubai’s Future I
Elie Domit
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Tim Greenhalgh
1. Translating the unique attributes of a brand into a store design through an understanding of the truth of your brand
The fundamental questions we ask ourselves at the beginning of any retail project are: – what is at the heart of the brand? – what differentiates the brand from the competition? – what do you want consumers to think and feel about your brand? The design for the Lego brand store now rolling out globally is a perfect illustration of how store design must be grounded in the unique truth of the brand to create a store that could only come from Lego. At the heart of the brand are the core values of creativity, imagination, learning, fun and quality. This store is created to engage children, but also the child within each of us. The design solution is driven by a ‘see the environment through the eyes of a child’ mind-set and seeks to foster engagement, discovery and interaction. The results have been a growth in sales of 31% per sq. foot and a 3% increase in transactions. In addition, the design has resulted in a positive qualitative response to the brand. 2. Tailoring store design to meet an identified customer mind-set
The second principle is grounded in the fact that consumer tastes and needs vary from location to location. Understanding and responding to these unique needs is a vital prerequisite to creating a compelling and relevant retail experience. As a world-class retailer Tesco understood this and asked Fitch to see how they too could ensure that their store formats closely targeted different customer needs in different localities. Using the wealthy district of Kensington in London as a prototype, Fitch developed a profile of the store’s upmarket consumer base. Starting with these insights, we worked to create a design solution that addressed their unique needs. The result was a store interior that incorporated a new color palette making categories and products stand out, directly connecting with the food consciousness of the audience in this locality. Consumer mind-sets should always be the driving force behind any design solution.
4. Making shopping a real experience
In today’s world of product and brand proliferation, it is often said that ‘shopping is the purpose of life’. If so, it is important to create a store design that makes every shopping trip memorable, turning it from a simple experience into a voyage of discovery that appeals to all of the senses. Central Food Hall in Bangkok is one such experience. The challenge was to create not only the best food store in Thailand, but in the whole of Asia. The result was a design that replicated a bustling street market filled with multisensory experiences. At the center is ‘The Street’ offering freshly cooked, authentic Thai food in a contemporary environment. The layout was designed to encourage shoppers to meander through vibrant displays and visit the variety of gourmet food counters. Since opening in December 2005 foot traffic has risen by 25% with a corresponding rise in sales.
Moutamarat
Citizens of the Arab world will engage with design in many different ways and most certainly one of them will be whilst shopping. Retailing is a very competitive commercial activity where innovation in the form of store formats, product development and design are paramount. This short piece offers some simple, though strategic principles for retail success. As one looks at the dynamic world of retail, it is obvious that no two businesses, brands or retailers are alike. Many different factors contribute to successful retailing and subsequent business growth. So the subject matter of this very practical paper is almost as large as the topic of retailing itself. Here we outline five key principles that demonstrate different ways in which a strategic approach to retail design can contribute to business growth.
Taking the second principle one step further, whilst store design has to adapt to different locations and markets, it must also ensure that the core values of the brand remain consistent the world over. Getting this balance right is the key to success. Vodafone is a clear example of how this can be achieved on a global scale. By developing a series of consistent retail planning principles, overlaid with the unique brand visual language and experience it culminated in a flexible yet consistent design blueprint. What Vodafone have ended up with is a design that is 80% Vodafone wherever you go and 20% adapted to meet local needs. Since June 2006 Vodafone has experienced a 25% increase in contract volume and a 10% increase in upgrade volume.
Dubai Guide
Design in Retail
3. Extending a store design to retail consistently and flexibly for different shopping habits and needs
5. Creating a unique brand signature
Coming full circle, it is important to differentiate yourself in a crowded retail market. You must look ‘inside’ and discover what’s unique about your brand, then work to transfer these qualities into an ownable visual platform. Hyundai Motor Company in Korea did exactly this by translating their strong visual equities into a compelling and distinctive retail expression. The strategic journey started by identifying the elements that Hyundai already owns from its logo to its strapline. Hyundai now talk about their brand signature and are proud of the distinctiveness that it delivers for them in the marketplace. As a result 80% of distributors are using the guidelines and using them happily.
In conclusion
If one stands back from the five principles just illustrated by the retail design examples above, what do they have in common? Simply, that a brand owner must truly understand what is at the heart of their brand and how to express it. They have to understand who their target consumer is and how their brand can speak to them uniquely to meet their needs and desires. Above all, a brand owner must be willing to invest in and commit to innovation if his brand is to meet the challenge of consumer expectations and aspirations.
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Wushu
Badminton
Handball
Karate
Tennis
Basketball
Taekwondo
Soft Tennis
Rugby
Fencing
Squash
Volleyball
Wrestling
Table Tennis
Football
Bowling
Boxing
Cue Sports
Chess
Bodybuilding
Equestrian
Baseball
Weightlifting
Softball
Athletics
Archery
Kabaddi
Golf
Shooting
Hockey
Triathlon
Cycling
Sepaktakraw
Gymnastics
www.brandsoftheworld.com/
Judo
Moutamarat
Trampoline
Rowing Sailing
Canoe and Kayak
Water Polo Swimming
Synchronised Swimming
Diving
www.brandsoftheworld.com/
Orry the Mascot for the Asian Games 2006
Mecca Cola – the Muslim identity for a soft drink
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Success in oil development encouraged many international companies to come to the Middle East in the late 1980s. At that time, there was an appreciation of all that came from the West because of a perception that Western meant professional. This belief remained unchanged up until the late 1990s. By 2001 and right after September 11, things started to change. People in the Arab world still recognize the importance and value of globalization. However, that awareness is now crucially and significantly tempered by a strong emotional need to represent a particular regional and cultural identity. We see this new sense of self-identity expressed in the replacement of Burger King in the last two years as one of the biggest fast food chains by Za’tar wi Zait. As brand design consultants, we have had to be acutely conscious of managing this interesting cultural tension when developing brand design solutions for our clients in this part of the world. As companies develop their brand identities, we have to navigate a very subtle course between being Western in the professional sense but still clearly reflecting expressively Arab roots. Take Orry the Mascot for the Asian Games 2006, for example: while it is unmistakably Arabic, it also resonates with an international audience. The JCC brand language and the Cultural Festival are also examples of designs that have successfully taken into account the two aspects of cultural identity in this part of the world. The creation of new brand names has also revealed an undergoing change. As companies create brands in this market environment, there has developed a trend away from purely Western approaches to naming. Words such as HORIZON, CONCEPT, FINE, and SOFT have subsided. The new paradigm is centered on names that are Arabic, but also easy to pronounce by speakers of other languages: Tabreed, Sorouh, Tamdeen, KARWA. We now put forward names that are both Arabic and international because the market tells us that this works. At Fitch, we believe that design is a reflection of consumers’ needs, beliefs and emotions. There is no question that the global political situation affects what consumers want from design in the region. AMERICANA, an Arab food chain, was badly affected after September 11. General feelings against Arab Muslims in America provoked a subsequent boycott against American products in the Middle East. AMERICANA paid the price because of the name, and millions of dollars were spent on ad campaigns that stated AMERICANA isn’t American. During the same period of political conflict, the Arab world created
Dubai Guide
Branding the Gulf
‘Mecca Cola’, which reflects a Muslim identity for a soft drink. This drink has become very popular in the Arab world, partly because it is a fundraising product for charity. Mecca Cola: the name is Muslim, but the graphics are Western. We live in a very dynamic and exciting environment. The number of educated people is increasing by the minute in the Arab World. Individualism is on the rise. The importance of family as the key structure in social order is receding. The Gulf States are no longer seen as one, Dubai is different from Qatar, which is different from Kuwait. Each of these small states works hard to identify and brand itself as different. Each uses icons different from its Gulf neighbors, though all of them belong to one landscape, one climate, and one history. As brand design consultants we need to be aware of these emerging dynamics but be very careful not to generalize them.
T his page was created by Jack X iao in December 2006
Majdoleen Till
BULGARIA Frankfurt · ALB. 13h Skopje 6hIstanbul New York
MACEDONIA
Tirana
GREECE
iterranean Sea - Banghazi
Crete (GR.)
CYPRUS
Beirut LEB.
Beirut3h
SYRIA Damascus
8.5h
IRAN KUWAIT
Persian BAHRAIN Gulf
SAUDI
Manama Doha Riyadh
Aswan
QATAR Red Sea
ARABIA
Jiddah Mecca
Kabul Kandahar ¯
Jaipur
OMAN
Abu Dhabi
¯ Karachi
Muscat
Ahmad
OMAN Mumbai
2h Mumbai (Bombay)
2006 UN Political Map
Djamena
8h
CENTRAL
Aden DJIBOUTI
Gulf of Aden
Djibouti
Addis Ababa
Socotra
(YEMEN)
Arabian Sea
Berbera
ETHIOPIA
Johannesburg
8.5h
Singapore
7.5h
LAKSHADWEEP (INDIA) 69
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Lagos
Sanaa
Asmara
SUDAN
Pu
YEMEN
ERITREA
Khartoum
AMO
CHAD
New Delh
PAKISTAN
Port Sudan
Omdurman
Lahore Hong Kong 8h
Shiraz ¯
UNITED ARAB EMIRATES
Line Actu Cont
AFGHANISTAN Islamabad Quetta
Kuwait
EGYPT
1972 Line of Control
Gulf Survey
Gulf Atlas
Edited by AMO
Mashhad
Esfahan ¯ ¸
Al Jizah
Casablanca
3h
Al Basrah
Gulf Survey BY A
Dushanbe 9hKashi TAJIKISTAN Shanghai
Ashgabat
Tehran
IRAQ
JORDAN
Tashkent
TURKMENISTAN
Tehran
Baghdad
Tel Aviv-Yafo ISRAEL Alexandria Jerusalem Amman
Cairo
Baku
Mosul Kirkuk
Aleppo
Bishkek KYRGYZSTAN
Osaka
9h
¯ Tabriz
Adana
Nicosia
tta
Yerevan
TURKEY Konya
UZBEKISTAN
ARMENIA AZERBAIJAN
Ankara
·Izmir
Athens
y
7h
Bursa
Caspian Moscow Sea5h
Tbilisi
London
Sydney
15h
La
Regional Statistics Youth
GDP per Capita
World Bank Statistics, 2004 UNCTAD FDi Magazine www.compiler.fi www.gasandoil.com
AMO
0% < 10 % 10-30 % 30-50 % > 50
CIA World Factbook, 2006
% of the population that is illiterate
FDI flows to the GCC in $US millions
Ecological Footprint per Capita
Transparency
Hectares per person
<1 1-5 5 - 10 10 - 15 > 15
71
70
Transparency International, 2005
Perceptions of the degree of corruption as seen by business people and country analysts
<1 1-3 3-5 5-7 7-9
Gulf Survey
Gulf Atlas
Illiteracy
Foreign Direct Investment
no data < 500 500 - 2000 2000 - 3000 3000 - 4600
> 35 31-35 26-30 21-25 < 20
World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF)
>25,000 25,000-15,000 15,000-5000 5000-1500 <1500
CIA World Factbook, 2006
Average Age
In $US thousands
Sizing the Gulf Venice could fit in a quarter of The World development in Dubai. Development on a seemingly scaleless landscape begs global comparisons when trying to grasp its size. When looking at the major urban projects from Kuwait to Ras Al Khaimah, a selection of world-recognized urban landmarks reveal the magnitude of this urban project. (Numbers refer to descriptions in the Development Atlas at the end of Gulf Survey.)
B40-Two Seas B12-Amwaj Islands
K5-Bubiyan Island
B7-Bahrain Bay Q4-Lusail Development Q17-Al Khor Resort
B41-Marina West B29-Riffa Views
K6-Failaka Island
Q9-The Pearl-Qatar
QATAR
BAHRAIN
B32-Bahrain Mega Equestrian Resort
K11-Madinat Al Hareer
Q20-New Doha Int’l Airport
B1-Al Areen Desert Spa B10-Durrat and Resort Al Bahrain Island
K9-Subiya Causeway
Gulf Survey
Gulf Atlas
B11-Lulu Island
K17-Green Island
K15-Heritage Village
K13-Madinat Al Fahaheel K14-Khabary City K26-Kheiran Pearl City
K22-Kuwait Int’l Airport expansion
AMO
K23-Kuwait University’s new campus
KUWAIT
25 km
Beijing, China
Cairo, Egypt
Hong Kong, China
Paris, France
Mumbai, India
73
72
Venice, Italy
100 km
MDA Federal Inc.
5 km
Sizing the Gulf
A16-Reem Island
Gulf Survey
Gulf Atlas
D8-Palm Deira
D12-Dubai Waterfront
A3-Central Market A6-Saadiyat Island
D9-The World D7-Palm Jebel Ali
A2-Al Gurm Resort
R2-Al Marjan Islands R1-Mina Al Arab
D1-Palm Jumeirah
Abu Dhabi
D63-Dubai D71-Dubai Festival City Marina Lakes D66-The D15-Jumeirah Islands D62-Downtown Burj Dubai D60-The Lagoons D11-Discovery Garden D16-Jumeirah Village D56-Business Bay D14-Jumeirah Golf D75-Dubai Investments Park Estates D18-International City D95-Dubai Silicon Oasis D73-Dubai World Central D35-Dubailand
Dubai
A1-Al Raha Beach Resort A14-Al Reef Villas
R15-Al Noor City
Sharjah
R4-Ras Al Khaimah Gateway
R8-Saraya Islands
R14-Mangrove Island
R5-Jebel Al Jais
Ras Al Khaimah
D13-Arabian Canal
AMO
UNITED ARAB EMIRATES
25 km
Moscow, Russia
Las Vegas, NV
Istanbul, Turkey
Barcelona, Spain
London, UK
75
74
Manhattan, New York
100 km
MDA Federal Inc.
5 km
Economic Resources
1968: Ä Ä 24,287
Expat vs. Native
Ä = 10,000 people 1980:
2004:
Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ 74,000
Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä Ä Ä Ä 205,000
GDP
$1.9 billion
Ras Al Khaimah
Population
Native
GDP vs. Oil
Year Oil Runs Out
2008
Tourists per Year
Ä = 10,000 people
n/a
Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä 885,359
1950:
1980:
2006:
Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä
Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ
Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä 2,671,000
Kuwait
1,375,000
1968: Dubai
Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä59,000
1985:
Native
2114 Native
2006:
Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ91,000
1,204,000
2010
Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä
Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä
Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä6,200,000
AMO
Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä370,788 Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä
$36.61 billion
Gulf Atlas
152,000
2044
Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä460,000
$44.77 billion
2006:
Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ 229,000
Gulf Survey
1980:
Qatar
1950: Ä ÄÄ 25,000
$23.61 billion
Native
Bahrain
1950:
Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ109,650
1980:
2006:
Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä
Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä 698,585
350,798
$15.83 billion
Native
2008
Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä
Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ 3,514,000
Abu Dhabi
1990:
2006:
Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ
Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ 1,850,230
798,000
2106
Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä Ä ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ ÄÄ Ä 1,000,000
77
76
$104.2 billion
Native 1958: Ä Ä 15,000
How Much is a Billion? — A Look at Relative Value
$ 1.2 trillion Total cost of war in Iraq since March 2003
$ 675 billion Total cost of construction projects in Gulf
$ 700 billion Direct US spending on war on Iraq
$ 86.5 billion Silk City, Kuwait estimated cost
$ 27 billion UAE Tourism revenue
Gulf Survey
Gulf Atlas
$ 53 billion World Bank’s estimated cost of reconstruction in Iraq
$ 14 billion Palm Jumeirah total cost $ 10 billion FDI outflow from Gulf
AMO
$ 3.5 billion Legends Theme Park $ 1.5 billion Atlantis Palm Jumeirah $ 0.7 billion Dubai Duty Free revenue $ 175 Monthly income of UAE laborer
79
78
http://www.dubaiairport.com http://www.unctad.org http://uaeinteract.com www.worldbank.org http://www.theemiratesnetwork.com http://www.ameinfo.com www.nytimes.com http://www.madinat-al-hareer.com
Argument
A Region in Brief The current architectural substance of the Gulf consists of four major components, produced in three distinct waves:
Gulf Survey
1. In the seventies and eighties – as part of the first surge of oil wealth and therefore as a matter of course – big architectural names were involved in the Gulf… Jørn Utzon (Kuwait National Assembly), Kenzo Tange (Kuwait International Airport and Arab Gulf University plan), the Smithsons (unrealized Kuwait City plan), Kiyonori Kikutake (unrealized hotel), William Pereira (Sheraton Hotel), The Architects Collaborative (Abu Dhabi Cultural Center). The Gulf became a field of architectural experimentation, where vernacular elements, particularly indigenous cooling and natural ventilation techniques, were used to renew and redefine contemporary architecture…
AMO
2. In the second wave in the nineties, firms typically with an engineering background, but soon equipped with master planning and even architectural sections, whose convenient presence on the ground gives them an almost monopolistic claim to most planning and architectural efforts – Halcrow, Atkins, more recently HOK – developed among them an intricate, quasi-organic resort urbanism, driven by coastline multiplication, both on land and on sea… It is this wave that has given Dubai its unique ‘look.’ 3. Superimposed on this context, will be the imminent contributions of international starchitects like Zaha Hadid, Jean Nouvel, Norman Foster and others; the dilemmas faced by the third wave are obvious: relatively inexperienced clients, the ‘experience economy’ as the sole and pervasive discourse, a well-established quasi-Islamic-modernist language, expectations of ‘signature’ which will make deviation and surprise, let alone reinvention, difficult. 4. Independent of these phases, we can also observe since the seventies an ongoing production of ‘undesigned’, modest – but dominant in places like Sharjah – presence of a generic, modernist ‘architecture without architects’ – a cheap, seemingly spontaneous, mostly concrete, always utilitarian architecture that comes closest to traditionally ‘urban’ conditions: closely packed streets, alleys, galleries, parks and plazas and residential neighborhoods based on mini-compounds. These have an appeal, especially compared to globalization’s past and future fireworks. – RK
81
80
Expectations of ‘signature’ will make deviation and surprise, let alone reinvention, difficult
Kuwait
Kuwait experienced booming urban growth throughout the 50s, 60s and 70s. Realizing a need to solve an ever present housing shortage, international planning and architecture firms were commissioned to plan the new city. Young planners from England and the United States were hired to work in Kuwait City’s municipal offices to train local practitioners in the Western tradition of planning. Recent growth has been more tempered than Kuwait’s Gulf neighbors, but with the Iraqi regime change, Kuwait perhaps stands ready to exhibit a newfound national pride in skyscrapers and urban vision.
Gulf Survey
Gulf Histories
83
MDA Federal Inc.
AMO
82
www.flickr.com/photos/toomi/258583249/
Snapshots
Kuwait Bay
Brain Kuw8@Flickr
Brain McMorrow
Covered Parking Lot
Gulf Survey
Gulf Histories Inexpensive gas prices in Kuwait. Current price is $0.17/L
Old City souk
Salhiya shopping arcade
Salhiya facades
Where old meets new, Arabian Gulf Street
AMO
Billboard: ‘With the support of the Kuwaiti people as a whole, we are starting to write a new page in our modern history’
85
84
Kuwait’s new waterfront and Arabian Gulf Street: 100% public
Stephen Gerdiner, Kuwait: The Making of a City, 1983 Leslie Martin on Team X’s Urban study and Demonstration Building for Kuwait City 1968–1972
1952. Minoprio and Spencely First master plan for Kuwait city
1968. North elevation of the Smithsons’ Demonstration Building
1967–72. Development and growth plan, Sir Colin Buchanan and Alan McCulloch
1972. Peter Smithson presents the model of the mat-building concept to the Crown Prince of Kuwait. The Smithsons’ proposed fees and project were too expensive, precluding the execution of the project
2006. Kuwait city satellite
Mosque Community Unit (MCU) No household would be more than 250m from a mosque. Al-Khiran Proposal, Shankland and Cox and Partners
Gardiner, S. Kuwait: The Making of a City
Stephen Gardiner, Kuwait: The Making of a City, 1983
Dr. Y. Mahgoub, interview, August, 2006
[The new city] is almost entirely a product of foreign influences, and predominantly among these ... is the influence of the English.
Gardiner, S. Kuwait: The Making of a City
[T]he Kuwaitis wanted wellknown names. We asked each of the architects to think about a city, and to express their thoughts as architectural ideas – visually, do you see? – not as written reports. They were given about a year to do this. Yes, I agree a dream of a commission.
87
86
1927. Kuwait City
Al Jahra Gate looking up Fahd Al-Salem Street, Kuwait’s main artery
AMO
Kuwait: The First Photographs, Facer and Grant, Stacey International
1950. The Old Wall of Kuwait
The first master plan was a direct application of Ebenezer Howard’s Garden City theory.
Howard diagram for the Garden City
1950. Kuwait city plan
Gulf Survey
Gulf Histories
Gardiner, S. Kuwait: The Making of a City
Growth Driven Planning Kuwait’s urban history has been a series of intricate but restrained maneuvers. Careful estimations determine an infrastructural framework, which in turn is filled with roads and buildings. Only when the plan is complete does Kuwait consider a new plan. Ebenezer Howard’s Garden City model provided the ideological blueprint for achieving Sheikh Abdullah as-Salim as Sabah’s desire to distribute newfound oil wealth with his people. Each neighborhood is afforded a similarly structured welfare system. Garden cities, then, required British architects, and thus begins a long relationship with British urbanism.
Gardiner, S. Kuwait: The Making of a City
1970s. Modernism in Kuwait Before 1960, Kuwait had fallen victim to disappointing housing developments and unimpressive office buildings. ‘Understandably, the Kuwaitis wanted well-known names,’ is how Leslie Martin describes his meetings with Dr. Omar Azzam about inviting a ‘world-class’ group of architects to consider Kuwait City’s urbanism and, eventually, its architecture. The 1970s offer some of Europe’s most current architects a chance to alter a city’s course.
1976. Museum for the Kuwait Arab World (now the National Museum), Michel Ecochard
1972. Kuwait Towers, Sune Lindström and Malene Björn (winners of Aga Khan Award 1980)
Ministry of Information, Jacques Satour
AMO
Gardiner, S. Kuwait: The Making of a City
1976. Plan of Water Towers, Sune Lindström and Malene Björn archnet.org
1976. Water Towers, VBB / Sune Lindström and Malene Björn
Gulf Survey
Gulf Histories
Gardiner, S. Kuwait: The Making of a City
archnet.org
1950s. Housing demolished in 1984 as a corrective measure after the attempted assassination of Sheikh Jaber al-Ahmed Al Sabah
1979. Kuwait International Airport, Kenzo Tange
There seem to be two parties in the discussion regarding Kuwait’s architectural identity. One that feels that if architects are functional, use the most technologically advanced technique and are part of the human condition, then they will naturally reflect a local moment in history. The other party believes these technological aspects must be adapted to the local conditions to create a Kuwait identity in architecture. Dr. Y. Mahgoub, interview July 27, 2006
1978. Offices, stores and parking, SOM
Salhiya Shopping Area
89
88
1971. Jørn Utzon National Assembly Complex
Urbanization in Kuwait, Readings in Architects Saba George Shiber, by Dr. Yasser Mahgoub Stephen Gardiner, Kuwait: The Making of a City, 1983
A Modern Architectural Statement of the Late Post Oil Period The facade rejects use of historic cliches. The articulation of volumes, masses and elevation elements are pure responses to functional requirements. Concrete is used as a facade material, its mass broken by the volumetric elevations
‘Here in Kuwait there is a phrenetic [sic] race to achieve the aesthetics of a utopia or the graveyard of aesthetics. Over 200 architects, and God-Knowshow-many-nonarchitects, are bitterly vying with each other in a race to try every conceivable form and fetish even a superhuman is incapable of inventing or concocting.’ George Shiber, Urban Forms and Aesthetics, 1961
Huda Al Bahr, ‘Contemporary Residential Architecture’. MiMAR Vol. 13. Aga Khan Foundation, 1998
Ahmed Hameid’s Web Blog ‘360 degrees East’ Thursday, April 6, 2006 at 8:21 am
Jasem Nodoum
1967. Traffic in Kuwait City
Tuesday March 4, 1952, The Times
The Gulf War: Coastal ambition and economic plight were the spurs to an invasion gamble
91
archnet.org
90
1950 – 60. Kuwait residential architecture
AMO
1950 – 60. Kuwait residential architecture
Kuwait’s Burden of Wealth – A New Oil Centre in Arabia.
Jasem Nodoum
Advertising on Mubarak Al Kabeer Street
1980. Four Kuwait Residences Ghazi Sultan
Saba George Shiber is a legend in Kuwait architecture. He worked as an architect in Kuwait 1960–64 and wrote a detailed account of the first master plan of Kuwait Stephen Gerdiner, Kuwait: The Making of a City, 1983
May 14, 1968, The Times
1979. Domestic architecture
Gulf Survey
Gulf Histories
Our teachers at architecture school usually dismiss such [modern] architecture as ‘cosmetic’: using an Arab architectural veneer, instead of understanding the real heritage of Arab architecture’s spatial organization and true spirit.
Contemporary Kuwaiti Houses, by Huda Al-Bahar
1960–1980. Regional Criticism Mid-century Kuwait takes pride in attracting global (Western) architecture, and through a process of university-building and professional training it tries to bring forward its own group of architects and developers. A work in progress, Kuwait still relies on a substantial foreign presence. Measuring the danger of an imminent British withdrawal from the region in 1968, Kuwait joins other regional states in an offer to pay them to stay, knowing that certain neighbors are keen on access to Kuwait’s wealth. Kuwait’s diplomacy is a careful mix of ruse, political handshaking, payoffs and beseeching foreign assistance. Its ‘development fund’ helps keep potential challengers at bay through monetary support of their large-scale projects. Neighboring Iraq, hungry for a coastal presence and demanding an impossible loan, would eventually occupy the country. This time, however, the foreign patrol would not be British, but American; a newer ally finds reason to protect Gulf interests.
The Daily Star, March 30, 2006
The Daily Star, March 30, 2006
Silk City, an insight to Kuwait’s future
Kuhne scheme 1,001m
Burj Dubai 800m?
Taipei 101 509m
City of Silk_press_05
Associated Press ArchWeek
Gulf War Martyrs Museum, the only building intentionally left unrepaired after the war
‘Sheikh of Chic’ Kuwait Villa Modal Kuwait’s first luxury boutique becomes a key destination for upper crust Kuwaitis looking for top notch chic By Omar Hasan – Kuwait City Middle East Online. September 21, 2004
2004. Villa Moda, a new fashion emporium Pierfrancesco Cravel
Gulf Consult
Private or Public Silk City Plan
2009. Mubarak Tower will be 1001 m high and will form the landmark for this new city. The tower was inspired by the 1001 nights story and the desert plant life. The tower will be composed of 7 vertical villages which will consist of hotels, offices, residences and entertainment 2006. Subiya Island (or Silk City) at present facilities.
Building on a New Found Confidence? In terms of master planning Subiya Town has been on the drawing board since 1983 - it was revised in 1986/87 and now it is coming back to life, but it could take another 20 years to be developed’ Al Jaouni
Robert Conford, ‘Building on a new found confidence?’ ITP Business, June 24, 2006
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92
2005. Fashion Show by Kuwaiti designer Adiba el Mahboub
1990. Gulf Consult
Gulf Consult
Middle East Online. January 15, 2005
AMO
[Living in Kuwait] includes free health and education, generous housing loans for newlyweds, cheap petrol, power and water, subsidised bread and other essential goods, and a job for the asking. Because Kuwaitis are essentially guaranteed jobs by the state, all but 7% of the workforce are civil servants.
Eric Kuhne, Silk City Architect
The Liberation Tower – the tallest structure in Kuwait – was to be called The Kuwait Telecommunications Tower before the Iraqi invasion halted construction. The structure received no damage, and construction resumed after the Iraqis were expelled. Upon completion in 1993, the tower was named Liberation Tower
The concept of the new city will combine Arabic philosophy, culture and politics.
2006. Massouma Mubarak, Kuwait’s 2006. The Kuwaiti parliament passes a law allowing women to vote and stand for election, but it comes too late for the first woman cabinet minister following polls Brian McMorrow Photos
BBC Online, Monday, March 14, 2005
London office to smash record
Project designed to house 700,000 people, will cost 25 billion dinars
Gulf Survey
Gulf Histories
Women’s Rights In Kuwait Hundreds of protesters in Kuwait have held a women’s rights protest outside the country’s all-male parliament. The assembly is debating a government request to speed up the passage of a law on women’s rights, which was approved by the cabinet last May. But most Islamic groups in Kuwait are against granting women political rights and the parliament has twice defeated similar measures in recent years.
Empire State 381m
Swiss Re HQ 180m
The Daily Star, March 30, 2006
1991/2004. Redefinition / Emergence The retreat of Iraqi forces in 1991 and the overthrow of Saddam Hussein in 2004 releases increased levels of optimism. This gradual assurance of stability sparks a rejuvenated pride in the state, a desire to put Kuwait City more firmly on the global map. Kuwait also sees the post-occupation era as a moment of self-review – of the 1.4 million expatriates who fled the country, only less than a third return to the country. A process of Kuwaitization is at least nominally put in place. Subiya Town v. Silk City captures Kuwait’s threshold position between its historically careful approach to future and an undeterred global modernism… between a forty-year-old plan and a two-year-old marketing maneuver. Neither approach has proven real, but the unlikely materialization of either in pure form may at least signify a current form of Kuwaiti identity.
Bahrain
Conquered by Saudis in the 18th-Century, appropriated by Christian myth as the location of Eden, claimed by Persians until the 1970s and now marked by the US as a model Middle East democracy, the small, somewhat arable island has had a long history of foreign grabbers. When the Al Khalifa family arrives on the island and forces the departure of the occupying Persians, the waning maritime supremacy of Persia in the Gulf is finally brought to an end, with the Gulf remaining ‘Persian’ only in name. A United Nations mandate keeps it known as such. Bahrain’s notoriety of late is derived from its uncomfortable mix of oil wealth and intense American interests in its geopolitical position. How Bahrain will charter these influences remains to be seen.
Gulf Survey
Gulf Histories
95
MDA Federal Inc.
AMO
94
Pearl Roundabout
Generic Modernism
Bahrain International Circuit (Formula One)
Congestion on the way to the old town
Old town
Towards King Salman Causeway
Indian neighborhood
Gulf Histories
Gulf Survey
2006. The road to the capital, Manama
http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/showthread.php?t=112472
Snapshots
AMO 97
96
2006. Bahrain Financial Harbor almost complete
www.britishembassy.gov.uk
www.flickr.com
www.bahraingateway.org
The popular Bahraini artist Mohammed Zowayed with other players in Baghdad
Al Ahli and Al Oruba Clubs offer cultural and entertainment events
www.flickr.com
Old Days, First edition, Bahrain 1986, printed at Oriental Press, Bahrain
1967. Al Ahli Club
Old Days, First edition, Bahrain 1986, printed at Oriental Press, Bahrain
Old Days, First edition, Bahrain 1986, printed at Oriental Press, Bahrain
The London Times, 1927
1950s. The wind blows in the right direction HH Sheikh Salman Al Khalifa with American oil executives
AMO
Old Days, First edition, Bahrain 1986, printed at Oriental Press, Bahrain
1932. Kloud De Garren discovers the first oil well in Bahrain
1932. Bahrain’s first oil well
Bahrain Cinema, one of many cinemas which begin appearing in Bahrain after the opening of schools from 1919 onwards
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1919. British establish first formal school in the Gulf
1920. British Political Agency
Old Days, First edition, Bahrain 1986, printed at Oriental Press, Bahrain
1920s. Riots in Manama against a too conservative Sheikh
Gulf Survey
Gulf Histories
Free Trade Because of relatively high levels of fresh water, Bahrain has always been a trade hub of some kind. The trade of pearls, textiles, cigarettes and even humans made the harbor busy with intrigue. Its central role for the region evolves with the British selecting the island for its main presence in the Gulf. With the British come the first formal educational facilities and the seeds of Western-style forms of debate and politics. Just as the pearl industry begins to decline, Bahrain finds oil, the first Gulf state to do so, in 1932. Decades-long speculation proven true, there begins a hungry rush of Western companies ready to capture shares of the reserves. British engineers, diplomats and their families move to Bahrain for a sense of adventure and chance to profit from the boom. For a brief moment, Bahrain glows in the world’s attention and begins to define Gulf opulence. With oil come more people, and with more people comes a flood of urbanization issues that Bahrain has to confront within a decade. Oil’s discovery forces Bahrain to urbanize at a pace ten times that of the Western world which had taken its time in the ‘birth pangs’ of its Industrial Revolution. In 1963 the government announces the opening of Isa Town, a new village outside Manama to accommodate a newly established working-class. Increased populations means more sprawl beyond Manama’s old center. Manama becomes just a neighborhood in a nameless conglomerate sometimes refered to as ‘Bahrain,’ despite the fact that it occupies only 30% of the kingdom’s land. Growth continues with no such thing as an urban boundary.
Finance Harbor Bahrain’s Golden Age of Black eventually fades in comparison to other more immense oil fields in the Gulf. Reserves now running out, Bahrain has already confirmed its next role as the Financial House of the Gulf. Already in 1974 an advertisement presented the island as a fully occupied, lush Eden of resorts and diversified business opportunities. Tourist destinations are behind plan, but Bahrain’s financial presence is mightier than that of any Gulf neighbors. With over 30 banks settled on the island, Bahrain not only pushes its own development; it also hedges its development bets by bankrolling its coastal competitors’ development.
Old Days, First edition, Bahrain 1986, printed at Oriental Press, Bahrain
The first Bahrain airport built as a hut. The bell used in signalling a plane’s landing and departure is seen below. 4 knocks signifies the aeroplane approaching, while 6 knocks signifies the aeroplane’s departure time.
An Idea That Failed: Spreading Manure To Spread Wealth
www.bahraingateway.org
The London Times, March 31, 1973
For 4 years Bahrain was the only stop for supersonic Concorde flights in the Gulf
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The London Times, Advertisement, January 28, 1974
By HERBERT G. LAWSON and RAY VICKER Staff Reporter of THE WALL STREET JOURNAL Wall Street Journal (1889-Current file); Mar 31, 1977; ProQuest Historical Newspapers The Wall Street Journal (1889 - 1989) pg. 1
The London Times, Advertisement, January 28, 1974
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Lawrence, J. (1970s). Images of Bahrain. MEED books
The London Times, 1963
1970s. Sheikh Mohammad bin Issa Al Khalifa hosts CALTEX Oil Company delegates
The London Times, 1973
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1982. Gulf International Bank B.S.C. 1984. United Gulf Bank, SOM Gibb, Petermuller and Partners
OAPEC to build dry dock in Bahrain
Feteris, Peter J.(1972). About People in Bahrain. Vantage Press
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Have you seen Isa Town?’ ‘Is that the new town in the middle of the desert?’ ‘Yes, yes, [it] is the new town. Sheikh owns it. He built it for people who work and earn money. Not for beggars and lazy people. You must have a job. But every dinar you earn, you pay only [one] rupee to Sheikh.
The London Times, 1968
1970s. Isa Town
www.archnet.org
Kenzo Tange, 2002
The Bahrain Model Success can be damning. On November 6, 2003, US president George Bush declares Bahrain a model Middle Eastern democracy; just over six months later, the American government urges its expat citizens to leave in response to terrorist threats against Americans on Bahraini soil. Attention from a giant, faltering democracy only makes the errors and contradictions of its trainee more glaring. The result – a UN censure and a Human Rights Watch condemnation. Bahrain follows its own course to democratization. Oppositional rallies that adhere to a strict Islamic code of separation of the sexes exemplify the emerging Bahrain model toward freedom.
www.globalsecurity.org
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1984. Arab Gulf University. Kenzo Tange
Bahrainis Embrace Political Satire Al-Jazeera, Friday, November 14, 2003
Bahraini Human Rights Centre Dissolved Bahrainis Rally For Reforms Al-Jazeera, Friday, May 06, 2005
The King Has Dissolved The Parliament! Mahmood TV, July 26, 2006
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2004. Mina Sulman, principal U.S. Navy base in the Gulf
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2003. George Bush highlights Bahrain as model ‘new democracy in the Middle East’
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Al-Jazeera, Wednesday, September 14, 2004
2006. Riots demanding political reforms
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http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/showthread.php?t=112472
Al Jazeera June 11, 2006
1988. Bahrain National Museum. KHRAS Arkiteter
Riffa Heights project – An upscale community with sea-views and golf course where Shiites cannot buy land
‘I think it is most probable that Michael Jackson will convert to Islam,’ Jermaine Jackson was quoted as saying. Jermaine, 52, converted to Islam in 1989 and now lives in Bahrain, where Michael has also recently taken up residence. Find Law Legal News Commentary, Friday, Feb. 23, 2007
Durrat Al Bahrain, located on the south coast of Bahrain. Will include 13 different islands
2006. Michael Jackson in Bahrain
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2006. Proposed design for the Friendship Bridge to Qatar, COWI Engineering
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COWI Engineering 2006
1939. Sheikh Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa, ruler of Bahrain, with King Abdul Aziz bin Saud, King of Saudi Arabia
Bahrain and Qatar Sign Bridge Deal.
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1970. Saudi Arabia-Bahrain Causeway, Christiani and Nielsen Pcl. Engineering
Qatar
Qatar is rich. The richest country on earth, surpassing Switzerland further everyday with each increase in the prices of oil and gas. After replacing his father, Sheikh Hamad has focused on modernizing Qatar, not through towers and shopping centers but through culture. With his wife Sheikha Moza, he has begun the Qatar Foundation, the ultimate example of higher education’s evolution in the Gulf.
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Snapshots
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Periphery waiting for its developer
Qatar Education City. Liberal Arts and Sciences Building Arata Isozaki
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Banks on Grand Hamad Street
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Sword Arch on Grand Hamad Street
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Souk under construction in the Old Town of Doha
Bus station
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December 2006. Fireworks in the Khalifa Stadium mark the opening ceremony of the 15th Asian Games
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View towards the sea from Doha’s developing shoreline
1935. Al Khor City
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High Contrast Even relative to other Gulf locations, Qatar was recently staggeringly poor. Its expansive deserts were once condemned by travelers as deadeningly dull and unpleasant. The seas around it had been controlled by Bahrain, precluding the state’s ability to compete on open waters. Constantly having to fight off Bahrain to the West and Saudis to the South, Qatar had nothing much to defend besides its pride. In 1949 Qatar’s fate changes with the discovery of oil. Almost overnight Qatar transforms from the forgotten peninsula of the Arabian Coast to a stronghold of British presence. Having witnessed the transformation of Bahrain by petrodollars, Qatar proceeds cautiously – a hospital, an airport, a sports stadium, a clocktower in a traditional style and a modest palace, especially for an oil sheikh.
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John Harris
1930s. Looking for pearls
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Qatar State Hospital in Doha John Harris
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Late 1950s. New housing complex in Khalifa using traditional Arab housing typology
1960. Interior of the Sheikh’s palace
1960. Clock tower with Amiri Diwan in the background
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1935. Doha aerial view
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1960. Doha airport
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Step Further One step at a time, Sheikh Khalifa builds a museum and one of the first universities in the Gulf, the University of Qatar. Modest architects are chosen and encouraged to express traditional aesthetics in modern form. There is one exception – the Sheraton Hotel, which to this day is the backdrop of any recognizable photo taken by a tourist. For some it heralds the extravagance of Egyptian pyramids – an almost always empty hotel built to tower above the city and its coast.
1982. Sheraton Hotel. William L. Pereira and Associates
The London Times, 1975
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The London Times, 1976
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1972. The old palace will be transformed into a museum
[Sheikh Khalifa bin Hamad Al Thani] policy is one of cautious but determined planned development, avoiding the mistakes of other states whose growth threatens to get out of hand.
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The Wall Street Journal, July 18, 1983
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The London Times, 1985
1984. University of Qatar Kamal El-Kafrawi with Ove Arup
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1980s. Doha Kournish www.diwan.gov.qa
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The London Times, 1985
1982. Doha Zoo John S. Bonnington
In 1996 the Emir established a new TV channel called Al Jazeera (’The Island’). This channel would change the face of the media world. Two years later he abolished censorship on radio and television.
1985. Naiga housing complex Anwar Atta
Sheikha Moza
‘The opinion and the other opinion.’ Al Jazeera logo
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1980. Ministry of Information and National Theatre James Connel
December 2006. Museum of Islamic Arts. I.M.Pei
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Photography Museum designed by Santiago Calatrava for Doha, Qatar appears to have been stalled
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Size Doesn’t Matter There has never been a boom in Qatar. Money is spent on jewels, not size. Dusting off its cultural campaign of the 1970s, Qatar chooses to focus on cultural endeavors – devoting funds to invite top-ranked universities, Qatar is not only building a new campus, but an Education City. As part of the reorganization of the Kournish, four major cultural projects are on the way. In a kind of competition with Abu Dhabi, the Sheikh’s cousin has made the emirate known by being the fierce buyer at any major art auction.
Gulf Survey
A. 1961. Imaginary project: City in the Air. Arata Isozaki B. 2005. Qatar National Library. Project on hold. Arata Isozaki C. 2005. Qatar National Bank. Project on hold. Arata Isozaki D. 2003. Proposed Tower on Doha’s Kournish. Project on hold. Jean Nouvel
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Arata Isozaki
Arata Isozaki, an interview for the Gulf, August 9, 2006
Osamu Murai
Money is like gas, invisible until someone burns it.
2003. Proposed Master plan for Doha’s Kournish Jean Nouvel
The Emir looked in my book and pointed at a project. ‘I like it. I want something like this.’ It was ‘City in the Air’, my project from the early 60s. The huge columns of vertical infrastructure look as if big tree trunks were growing branches and leaves out in the air. I said, ‘No, no, this is my student-time project.’ Emir said, ‘it doesn’t matter.’ It became the National Library. I didn’t mind developing an idea for a seemingly mismatching condition.
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Doha roundabout
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2003. Satellite photo with 1956 coastline
2005. Press conference of Qatar’s tourism
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Education City hosts branch campuses of some of the world’s leading research universities, such as Weill Cornell Medical College in Qatar
www.mirror.co.uk, November 22, 2005
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1956. Satellite photo with 2003 coastline
President Bush planned to bomb Arab TV station Al-Jazeera!
Gulf Histories 2005. Doha West Bay development Halcrow
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Doha 2006 Asian Games
Asian Games Doha hosts the Asian Games in 2006, the largest ever. The Games have raised the status of Doha as a venue for international events. When will the Olympics take place in the Middle East?
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2006. Al Khalifa Sports City. R. Taillibert
Abu Dhabi
Abu Dhabi has nothing to prove. Its anchored indispensability in global markets – as a result of its immense oil reserves – ensures that its regional and global position remains undisputed. With its global political weight ensured, Abu Dhabi has developed a confident and careful approach to its urban development. Whereas cities worldwide have converted their municipal departments into marketing machines for attracting outside investment, Abu Dhabi sells privilege, not pitches. It was a slow start, with oil monies not quickly reinvested in urban development until the ascension of Sheikh Zayed. In the past year, media requests have been granted to a press eager to know the Emirate’s plans. Abu Dhabi is now responding to the competitive sphere in the Gulf with a clear agenda, backed up by a new tool for the Gulf – culture master planning.
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Reflexive passive ventilation, when air conditioning is on too high
Corniche apartments
Parking before mosque
Port Zayed
Khalifa Street
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In-between cities on road to Dubai
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Modern day dhows
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Al Ittihad Square
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The Hobbyist Sheikh Zayed replaces his brother in 1966 as ruler of Abu Dhabi, resulting in a shift in the Emirate’s approach to investment and development. Beyond the obvious need for roads and infrastructure, the Sheikh extends a clear vision of urbanity, comparable to Western monarchs from centuries before who made architecture and urbanism their hobbies. Eager British engineers and European architects help the Sheikh realize some of the best examples of stadiums, airports, and hotels in the region, generating a stately field of commemorative structures and verdant landscaping.
Sheikh Zayed: architect of a nation. Global Agenda, January 2006
Al-Zayed UAE Crown Prince Yearbook
www.adnoc.co.ae/adnoc/english/images/new_community_uae.jpg
Advertisement that appeared in The Washington Post, December 16, 1970
1960s. Sheikh Zayed Bin Sultan Ar-Nahyan with Sheikh Tahnoun planning Abu Dhabi National Oil Company buildings
Discussions over the new road network
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1958. Abu Dhabi Fort
Slade Baker Collection, Middle East Centre, St. Antony’s College
Wilfred Thesiger upon his arrival in Abu Dhabi, from Arabian Sands, 1950
Abu Dhabi – Gateway to the Gulf It is no longer of special interest when land blossoms where there was formerly a vast expanse of white sand; when a sleeping fishing village is transformed almost overnight into a large sprawling city with modern buildings rising on the debris of old palm leaf huts; or when concrete roads probe into a desert as silent and as ancient as time.
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A large castle dominated the small dilapidated town which stretched along the shore. There were a few palms, and near them was a well where we watered our camels while some Arabs eyed us curiously, wondering who we were. Then we went over to the castle and sat outside the walls, waiting for the Sheikhs to wake from their afternoon slumbers.
1961. Abu Dhabi airport terminal
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Upon the urging of the British Political Agent, John Harris visits Sheikh Shakhbut – two days’ air travel to Dubai and a full day of jeep travel over sand, water and sand again to arrive in Abu Dhabi about 150 km away
When Sheikh Zayed was young there was not a single school in the desperately poor Trucial States...
1960s. Abu Dhabi stamp
1980. Zayed Sports City Stadium. Seating capacity: 70,000 UAE Yearbook 2006
1970s. Abu Dhabi Corniche Abu Dhabi: Garden City of the Gulf. UAE: Motivate Publishing, 1988
1950s. Abu Dhabi seafront
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Peter Hellyer / The Hutchinson Library
www.sheikh-zayed.info
Opulence in Landscape Corniche – where seafront meets skyline – sculpts the city’s façade. The urban device is borrowed from Monaco, via Beirut and Kuwait, and generates housing prices that compete with towers facing New York City’s Central Park. The Corniche’s at once current and dated feel, represents Abu Dhabi’s developing history of opulence and confident ease. The Corniche also exemplifies Abu Dhabi’s obsession with green. Over 130 million planted trees garnish landscaped highways, waterfront resorts, residential yards, and oasis-style parklands – all notable despite the conspicuous lack of rainfall (only 43 mm per year in the city). Even the Emirate’s much fought-for inland oasis is now almost dry, now requiring desalinated water from the coast.
They used to say, agriculture has no future, but with God’s blessing and our determination, we have suceeded in transforming the desert into a green land. Sheikh Zayed Salloum, H. ‘How the Sheikh Turned the Desert Green’, The Christian Science Monitor May 27, 1997
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In the Emirate of Abu Dhabi alone, some 130 million trees have been planted. The UAE’s 22 million, mostly newly planted palm trees now represent 20 percent of all the palms on the planet.
Salloum, H. ‘How the Sheikh Turned the Desert Green’, The Christian Science Monitor 1997.
2006. Corniche redevelopment
A fleet of bulldozers dig into desert sand during the construction of canals and lakes in Abu Dhabi
The UAE is the largest water consuming country after the US and Canada
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1980s. Abu Dhabi Corniche
Abu Dhabi: Garden City of the Gulf. UAE Motivate Publishing
archnet.org
Abu Dhabi: Garden City of the Gulf. UAE Motivate Publishing
1988. Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank
1988. Abu Dhabi National Oil Company www.shiekh-zayed.info
Brian J. McMorrow
1977. The Mastaba of Abu Dhabi proposed by Christo
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Old souk in Abu Dhabi, with 196 shops
The new mosque will accommodate 30,000 worshippers at one time John Harris
www.unu.edu/unupress/unupbooks/80143e/80143E0D.GIF
Sheikh Zayed reviews model for the ‘Zayed Mosque’
Instinctive habits are, mercifully, much more powerful than bad architecture; and the residents of the souk were simply ignoring all the architect’s design on them. They had set up stalls in the walkways and constructed their own labyrinth in spaces which had been meant as routes of access. Jonathan Raban, Arabia, 1979
1962. Development plan with the Ruler’s palace and Governmental buildings
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1988. Fish, Fruit and Vegetable Souks Abbad Al Radi and Nazar Ahmad
Fares el-Dahdah from ‘Letter from Abu Dhabi’ No. 13, 1996
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1977. American Ambassador Residence John Harris
1985. Abu Dhabi Library and Cultural Center, The Architects Collaborative
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Gulf Histories 1970. Colonnade at School
The city has thus developed a calligraphic skyline...buildings are erected at the rhythm of the monarch’s consent.
archnet.org
CORBIS / Christine Osborne
Single Vision Reinforcing the original fort within a new cultural compound, erecting sculptural stadiums for Olympic aspirations and transforming an obsolete airport into strolling gardens – the 1980s saw the realization of Sheikh Zayed’s vision. Shopping centers, offices and residential towers pepper the vanishing desert, but all within the strict land use controls of the Sheikh.
The Economist
www.saadiyat.ae
www.emiratespalace.com March 30, 2007
AP / Kamran Jebreili
AP / Kamran Jebreili
Transformation of Saadiyat Island. Plans include a franchised Louvre Museum
The Guggenheim Effect Bilbao’s Investment 1997: 80m euro Abu Dhabi Investment 2006: 155m euro July 8, 2006. Thomas Krens, Guggenheim Director, and Sheikh Suroor bin Mohammed Al Nahyan www.skyscrapercity.com
The Middle East November 2005
1980s. Chamber Tower and Clock Tower
Emirates Palace literally glows with luxury. The hotel, owned by the government of Abu Dhabi, took more than three years and reportedly more than $3 billion to build, which would make it the most expensive hotel in the world
July, 8 2006. Frank Gehry at Emirates Palace Hotel, Abu Dhabi
Autopolis car center to be built in Abu Dhabi
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2006. Yas Island development in Abu Dhabi showcased at Dubai Cityscape
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‘The Gate,’ Saadiyat Island, Arquitectonica
Abu Dhabi ready to spend US$100b. UAE Internact News, August 4, 2006 www.uaeinteract.com/news
Ali Ahmed Hosani Director of Marketing Abu Dhabi Tourism Authority ‘Abu Dhabi Comes of Age.’ ITP Hospitality, August 4, 2006
About 100 new hotels over the next 10 years will be built in Abu Dhabi at the rate of 10 a year.
While we recognise and applaud Dubai’s success, we do not view Abu Dhabi’s development in terms of ‘catching up.’ I would like to emphasise that plans currently under development or in the pipeline are focused on the top end of the market.
Abu Dhabi ... unveiled a new public joint stock company charged with developing ... its flagship Saadiyat Island project ... into a strategic international tourism destination.
Thomas Krens, Director of the Guggenheim Foundation.
Collectively, Persian Gulf-based carriers are set to increase their passenger capacity 140% by 2011.
Foreman, Colin.’Abu Dhabi gets ready to step out of the shadow cast by Dubai.’ ITP Construction, June 25, 2005 www.itp.net/business/features/details.php?id=2832&category=construction
Wall Street Journal July 20, 1999
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Estimates of ADIA’s [Abu Dhabi Investment Authority] size range from $200 billion to ‘way north of $500 billion’, according to one foreign investment banker. In other words, it may be the world’s biggest investment fund.
The Persian Gulf emirate of Abu Dhabi said it will invest $730 million in ... developing a Gulf island into an international ‘capital and commodities center.’ The action... heats up a competition to be the region’s financial hub.
You should expect that all figures in paintings will be clothed.
Reed, S. Mideast Airlines Soar onto Global Stage. Business Week April 19, 2006
The Washington Post November 4, 1974
After a decade of living in Dubai’s shadow, Abu Dhabi – the UAE’s largest emirate – is now developing its own projects that look set to challenge its smaller neighbor to the north. Last week a free hold property sold out in 45 minutes.
Abu Dhabi: Garden City of the Gulf. United Arab Emirates: Motivate Publishing, 1988
More Fortunes Than Degrees A local pastime is betting how much taller Abu Dhabi’s clock tower will be than Dubai’s most impressive local landmark, which is, of course a clock tower.
1999 Ë 2006 Change of Plan Culture = Money
An Awakened Giant In 2005 Sheikh Khalifa, Zayed’s son, single-handedly transforms Abu Dhabi with new laws opening emirate real estate to the free market. Overnight, Abu Dhabi experiences the avarice of investors wanting a piece of an unfailing success story. Huge developments would sell out in less than an hour. Made even stronger by the fact that its impressive development plans are not founded in desperation, Abu Dhabi brings stiffer competition to the region. Evolution of the tourist industry: from sun/sand, to shopping and now to culture. Even compared to bold efforts to extend coastlines along the Gulf, this next stage could very well test the financial endurance of the Gulf. Money has to fill the gap. Not only investing in an extravagant building project, Abu Dhabi will also foot the bill for its own collection imprinted with Guggenheim endorsement.
Dubai
Situated somewhere between the Gulf’s mouth and oil fields, Dubai has had to work for its notoriety. An enduring optimism of bigger and bolder has almost always paid off since 1960 when Sheikh Rashid had the practically useless creek dredged as the emirate’s first step toward holding the largest harbor in the world. Its cultivated attitude of superlatives has been the foundation for the Gulf City, creating a regional family who will either copy or improve the Dubai model.
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Makeshift roundabout at construction site
Satwa, behind Sheikh Zayed Road
Ski Dubai, Mall of the Emirates
Barbershop in Deira
Mall of the Emirates, ‘the world’s first shopping resort’
Deira, the old city of Dubai
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On Dubai Creek
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2006. Model of Dubai Towers, The Lagoons, on display in Cityscape
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2007. Dubai Marina under construction
Rashid’s legacy
Rashid’s Legacy
1949. The British-built Al Maktoum Hospital, the region’s first and later expanded by John Harris
1960. Dubai International Airport expands trade routes
Royal Geographic Society
1901. World’s First Free Zone The Persian port of Lingah, in the Bastak region of Iran, raises taxes on all local merchants. The Sheikh of Dubai sees opportunity, promptly abolishes tariffs and declares Dubai a free port. Persian merchants relocate to Dubai, in what is now called Bastakiyah, named after their previous home. Making room for its first merchant immigrants, Dubai establishes its ability to host parallel worlds. Dubai leverages anticipated oil revenues for British loans to fund its first largescale urbanization efforts. Rejecting visionary formalism, plans imagine modern amenities where there are only sand trails for donkeys and camels. One of Halcrow’s first consultations for the emirate concludes that 4 berths would be adequate for a proposed port; Sheikh Rashid demands 15, signalling a continuously more ambitious vision than what conventional wisdom might recommend.
Bastak, Iran
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Bastakiyah, Dubai
John Harris Archives
1960–1965. The dredging of Dubai Creek opens the emirate to more and larger ships and transforms Dubai into the largest port in the Gulf Now & Then Dubai
1960. Sheikh Rashid at the opening of Dubai International Airport
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The Wilfred Thesigner Collection
1970s. New Bastakiyah arising within the old, with Port Rashid in background. Copying urbanism for tourism
1948. Traditional houses with windtowers, Dubai
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Wafer-thin bars of gold weighing 3.75 ounces are preferred for smuggling. They are worth $150 each. Current value $2,489
1963. The Al Maktoum drawbridge unifies the old town with the expansive deserts of Dubai and its future skyscraper highway
A Dubai Dhow returns to port The Wall Street Journal February 26, 1968
1937. Dubai Creek
Is Dry Dock in Dubai To Be High and Dry And Pie in the Sky? Halcrow 50 Years in the Gulf
High Modernism One British politician present during the building of early Dubai says that everyone shaping the desert town could fit at a dinner table. A mix of appointed local leaders and British consultants, spearheaded by Sheikh Rashid, chooses a Modernist style of civic amenities: hospitals, schools, and roundabouts, all at reasonably modest scales. Sheikh Rashid’s final statement ushers in a new architectural era: one of the first World Trade Centers in the world and the tallest building in the Middle East until 1991.
Wall Street Journal May 6, 1980
By RAY VICKER Staff Reporter of THE WALL STREET JOURNAL Wall Street Journal (1889-Current file); May 6, 1980; ProQuest Historical Newspapers The Wall Street Journal (188 pg. 1
archnet.org
John R. Harris Architects
1976. Port Jebel Ali announced to be one of the largest ports in the Gulf
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Gulf Histories 1974. Dubai World Trade Center. 56 million pounds and the Middle East’s tallest builing at the time John R. Harris & Partners
Dubai Creek Past & Present, Explorer Publishing & Distribution 2005. Photography: Narain Sawlani
1979. National Bank of Dubai John R. Harris & Partners archnet.org
Dubai Plans to Build Port in Persian Gulf Costing $765 Million.
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Rashid’s Legacy
1978. Rashid Hospital John R. Harris & Partners
1978. Dubai International Airport
1979. Prototype Kindergarten School Jafar Tukan and Partners
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1978. Sheikh Rashid oversees plans for a new port development
1978. Town Hall Complex Pacific Consultants International
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1967. Port Rashid
1978. New Dubai Hospital
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1962. Clock Tower was one of Dubai’s early landmarks
Boomtown It is impossible to overstate the amount of development Dubai is undergoing. With almost $125 billion committed to current and planned projects, the Dubai real estate portfolio exceeds 2005 foreign investment in the U.S. economy. A mild disappointment at the Dubai Financial Exchange’s onset caught some headlines, but every significant developer in the region has reacted with only steadied vigor. Heavy-hitting foreign investors are increasing their Gulf presence, e.g., Carlyle Group, Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs, Lehman Brothers, and Halliburton, which has announced establishing its headquarters in Dubai.
Mark Harris
Bidoun Magazine
Halliburton to Move Headquarters to Middle East Hub of Dubai U.S. oil services firm Halliburton Co. (HAL) is moving its headquarters and chief executive to Dubai in a move that immediately sparked criticism from some U.S. politicians. Texas-based Halliburton, which was led by Vice President Dick Cheney from 1995-2000, did not specify what, if any, tax implications the move might entail. It plans to list on a Middle East bourse once it moves to Dubai – a booming commercial center in the Gulf. The company said it was making the moves to position itself better to gain contracts in the oil-rich Middle East. Fox News, March 12, 2007
Gulf Histories
Gulf Survey
There’s the tallest building, Burj Dubai… A billboard the size of Piccadilly Circus… The biggest shopping mall in the world is already here. Another, bigger, the world’s largest retail development, is under construction. There’s to be an underwater hotel ($500m). One indoor ski resort, with real snow and its own black run, exists already. There is to be a second, with a revolving mountain. Plans are mooted for a Chess City, with 32 tower blocks of 64 floors, each in the form of a chess piece. There’s to be a 60-floor apartment block in the shape of Big Ben. There will be a pyramid and a building called Atlantis that will cost $600m and include a ‘swim-with-the-dolphins encounter programme’. An Aviation City and a Cargo Village, an Aid City and a Humanitarian Free Zone, an Exhibition City and a Festival City, a Healthcare City and a Flower City, a $4bn extension to the airport and another entirely new airport along the coast towards Abu Dhabi,… annual capacity 120 million passengers… Next to it … ‘there will be several smaller cities that will cater to the financial, industrial, service and tourism industries’. The Middle East’s answer to Disneyland, called Dubailand, which is far larger than Monaco, is costing $4.5bn. It will employ 300,000 people in the various joylands, servicing 15 million visitors. A new urban railway, with 37 stops, begins construction soon. Dubai is to have its own Silicon Oasis ($1.7bn) for computer companies. A mixed development called Dubai Waterfront/ Arabian Canal covers an area larger than Barbados and will house, when completed ($6bn), more people than Paris. The Guardian, February 13, 2006
Burj Dubai, to be the tallest building in the world
2006. Sheikh Zayed Road from World Trade Center
Fernando Donis
1990. Sheikh Zayed Road
‘Take wisdom from the wise – not everyone who rides a horse is a jockey.’ Poetry written by Sheikh Mohammed Al Maktoum, as written on the water by the new land formation of The Palm Jebel Ali
Nakheel
2006. New community on the Palm Jumeirah www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=345241&page=9&pp=20
Financial Times, Mar 23, 2007
AMO
Dubai Sharpens Focus to Rein in Runaway Development After years of frantic development, Dubai is trying to put its house in order, focusing its ambitions on a few important sectors of the economy and consolidating its status as a regional business and trade hub. When other Gulf states are taking advantage of the regional financial boom to finance vast infrastructure projects, a recently published Dubai strategic plan aims to maintain the emirate’s competitiveness and to counter perceptions of haphazard expansion. Dubai’s efforts, [Ahmad bin Byatt] said, would focus on improving productivity in those sectors and would hope to turn the city into a platform to export knowledge and expertise.
Model of Bawadi. To be the world’s longest hotel development with the world’s largest hotel ‘Asia Asia’ as its centerpiece
2006. Arabian Ranches, a new development in Dubailand
2010. Dubai Business Bay Halcrow
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Sheikh Zayed Road, billboard for the Lagoons
The Hub The recently opened Dubai Financial Exchange is beginning to fill the missing gap of a global 24-hour market, between New York and Tokyo. Dubai is halfway to everywhere. Global convergence: Chinese export hub, medical experts hub, international congresses hub, hospitality hub, floriculture hub ... Dubai has evolved a tax exemption plan into a system of non-hierarchical cultural and social norms. In fifty years’ time, Dubai has delivered the world’s most intricate and simultaneously flat-footed system of cross-cultural coexistence. Giving new meaning to the term ‘programmatic planning’, Dubai creates an impossible community of contradictory neighbors: raucous rugby fans, Chinese marts, mosques, non-Islam prayer districts... Spectators sit in the stands as they watch matches the second day of Dubai International Rugby Sevens
Associated Press
120,000,000 passengers
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Kevin Brass International Herald Tribune Wednesday, March 29, 2006
25,000,000 Passengers
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Middle East Company News Wire, February 28, 2006
Brian McMorrow
2005. A Dubai official and a Harvard Medical School representative discuss development plans
Dragon Mart, Dubai. The largest trading hub for Chinese products outside the Chinese mainland is taking its final shape at International City. It is expected to house 3000 Chinese companies
2006. Christie’s holds its first auction in a Dubai hotel
‘The way Islamic and Western values and cultures are being merged is wonderful.’ Bill Clinton, Leaders Conference in Dubai, November 29, 2005
December 2005. Emirates Towers
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A B C Three financial landmarks: A. 1979. World Trade Centre B. 2001. The Emirates Towers C. 2006. Dubai Intl. Finance Center
Russian fur stores in Deira in a shopping mall where Pakistani workers speak fluent Russian and English
AMO
Harvard Medical School Dubai Center Breaks Ground On State-of-the-Art Educational Facility The [$1.8bn] HMSDC building’s most notable feature will be the Maktoum Harvard Medical Library, ... the most advanced collection of clinical and professional development resources in the region.
Dubai beach
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Volkskrant
1980
Bill Clinton, Leaders Conference In Duabi, Novemebr 29, 2005
1,085,000 Passengers
The way Islamic and Western values and cultures are being merged is wonderful.
Gulf Histories
Dubai Turns Focus to Airports A new company backed by the Dubai government, called Dubai Aerospace Enterprise, will invest $15 billion by 2015 in airports, primarily in the Middle East and Asia. The consortium of six existing Dubai companies, is scheduled to build and operate airports and provide financing, maintenance, airplane leasing and information technology services.
New parking garage opposite ancient merchant tradition along the Creek on Baniyas Road
Sharjah
Next to its spectacular neighbor, Sharjah stands out as the capital of the Generic. Without Sharjah, Dubai could not survive: its cheap housing, Iranian restaurants, and night markets offer an authentic and affordable urban life for Dubai’s workers… Beyond its basic substance – vast blocks and towers untouched by the architects’ imagination, abandoned casually in the sand like illegally parked cars – are stunning efforts like University City, a 5-kilometer linear strip of prefabricated white-domed structures embedded in a stark geometric landscape and the hundreds of virtual skyscrapers of inactive drilling platforms moored along the quay side… Sharjah has a long-standing commitment to contemporary culture: established museums, even a Biennale that was a place of genuine culture long before Abu Dhabi started to collect museums for its Cultural District. The great charm of Sharjah is its authenticity – a modern, Islamic city, its complete absence of superlatives and exaggeration.
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Snapshots
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Ras Al Khaimah
Mountains have been Ras Al Khaimah’s (RAK) signifier of difference – towering over desert plains and shallow coasts of the Gulf. They have been both a protective shield (a haven during foreign attacks) and a geo-economical determinant (only a trace of oil throughout the emirate). The mountains have come to signify RAK’s recalcitrant nature in relation to its neighbors: a later member of the UAE, a less obliged tone with colonialists and now an alternative vision for the ideal Gulf City. At the crest of the peninsula and entrance to the Gulf, RAK is one of the first settlements identified by the British maritime forces – both for its gateway position and its reputation as the epicenter of the ‘Pirate Coast.’ The latter credit triggered several censuring attacks by British forces; by the 20th-Century there was little left of RAK’s original settlement.
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Historic tower in Ras Al Khaimah
RAK Museum
Subside After the British presence is made more permanent in the Gulf and RAK’s piracy economy stifled, RAK remains quiet as the other Trucial States clamor for British morsels… airports, ports, and access to faraway harbors. Once the only place mentioned on a 19 th-Century traveler’s map of the Arabian coast, RAK retires to dormancy – running less ambitious harbors and pearling expeditions. The British increasingly favor favor Abu Abu Dhabi Dhabi over over the the other otheremirates, emirates,aapreference preferenceonly onlyto tobe beescalated escalated by future oil discovery there. Abu Dhabi’s power and wealth force RAK to become a welfare welfare subject subject to tothe thelarge larger emirate, emirate, which which doles doles outout oil oil dividends dividends to the to the lesser lesser emirates in order order to to keep keep regional regionalpeace. peace.Perhaps Perhapsnot notcoincidentally, coincidentally,the thesame same engineering engineering firm firm that thatlays laysthe thefoundation foundationofofmodernity modernityinin Abu Abu Dhabi Dhabi and and Dubai Dubai – – Halcrow – is hired to do the same for RAK. RAK’s oil reserves make up 0.1% of UAE’s total reserves, hardly enough to justify commercial tapping. Simultaneously RAK has developed several ersatz economies that have quietly become profitable and essential to the Gulf. Rock quarries feed the millions of tons of rock that make outlandish terraforming possible, and its ceramic and cement feed the avaricious building in fellow Gulf Cities. Though not addicted to oil, RAK is addicted to other emirates’ sky-high addictions.
RAK Museum
1930. RAK aerial
Michael Deakin ‘RAK Flame in the Desert
The UAE, Ancient People
All set to welcome holiday-maker; a hot spring bath at Ras Al Khaimah Deakin, M. RAK Flame in the Desert
RAK Museum
Farewell to Arabia
Pearl divers
Ras Al Khaimah mountains, its sources of income
1970s. RAK aerial
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November 12, 1809. ‘Ras Al Khaimah from the S.W. and the situation of the Troops’
1969. Map of RAK by Sir William Halcrow and Partners
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1856. Arabian Gulf from British Intelligence
Not a single stone remains of the city that the British burnt down in 1820.
RAK: Flame in the Desert
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Gulf Histories 1809. British attack Ras Al Khaimah
1960. RAK aerial
http://anarchitecture.blogspot.com/2007/02/snhetta-and-dessert.html
A Ticking Clock Investment and diversification have caught the imagination of RAK. The emirate yearns to define itself in contrast to its better known neighbors. But like its other UAE neighbors, the contrary emirate has invited Halcrow back – this time to consider a complete design for the emirate from financial centers to suburban cul-de-sacs and resorts. A landscape full of difference, but a plan in need of a plan. An Arabian Switzerland or a Dubai bedroom community? RAK must make its move quickly, especially since it lies so dangerously close to a booming economy. Dubai’s development reverberates beyond its borders; urbanization always comes with the sprawl of the not-always-desired. RAK has made gestures toward eco-tourism, which could very well be the emirate’s defining contrast, but first a beauty needs to be found in the not-green.
Liberty Magazine, July 2006 ITP Hospitality, August 8, 2006
Mountain Extremes, outdoor excursion
Adventure RAK: Jebel Al Jais Master Plan Strategy by Halcrow
Arabian Business
I started hiking up in the [Ras Al Jebel] hills and talking to the tribes who lived there…They thought I was out of my mind! They couldn’t believe that people would actually pay to go walk in their hills and sleep in stone houses. John Falchetto, founder, Mountain Extremes. Finding adventure amongst the skycrapers. Libety Magazine, July 2006
RAK Flies into the Future We are very keen to attract capital from all over the world to be invested here. We are in talks with Asian and European partners. Wild, T. Arabian Business, June 18, 2006
Proposed Space Port RAK, Space Adventures
Property Weekly, Photo: Irfan N.
Stone Quarries: barges leave RAK for The World, Dubai
Adventure vacationers in RAK
‘It has all the benefits of Dubai but it is still a cheap location and, as part of the UAE, you have no tax. It has easy communications, no bureaucracy, easy paperwork and no red tape. ...You can register a company, and tomorrow morning you’re in operation.’ Khater Massaad, CEO RAK Ceramics
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Golf course in RAK
Time Out April 2006
1 golf course (16,000 m 2) = 16.5 Olympic-sized swimming pools water per day
Ras Al Khaimah lines up resorts and ‘eco-hotels’ to boost tourism prospects.
January 2006. Ras Al Khaimah
Ras Al Khaimah to Push Green Tourism Tourism developments abound on the drawing board…while the list may scream of another Dubai in the making, RAK Promotion Board insists this is not the case.
AMO
RAK Offshore development to be built in Ras Al Khaimah
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Gulf Histories 2006. Saraya Islands to be developed by Saudi Oger Ltd. and Saraya Real Estate in Ras Al Khaimah
2006. Al Hamra Village-sea side Julfur Towers, RAK free zone resort, under construction in RAK
Liberty Magazine, July 2006
Amar magazine, March 2007
RAK Tourism Office
2007. Sheikh Saud Bin Saqr and Rakeen appointed Snøhetta to design an iconic gateway building for the city of Ras Al Khaimah
Drawn in the Sand — John Harris, Dubai’s Pioneering Modernist
Gulf Survey
Makers I Aerial of Dubai Town toward Creek and Deira, circa 1958
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One architect was responsible for Dubai’s initial strategy toward modernism, from initial hospitals to envisioning the city’s avenues of growth. Working closely with Dubai’s ruler Sheikh Rashid, John Harris developed a means of working that wedded Rashid’s ambitions with an architecture both respected and respectful. Dubai’s development has since escalated beyond the means of any one person’s vision, and the firm has adjusted to this complexity. John Harris’ firm still prospers in Dubai as John R. Harris and Partners. His son, Mark Harris, helps to convey his father’s story of working to create a city and its image for the world. At the age of 88, John Harris lives in London with his wife and partner, Jill Harris.
Making Dubai 1939 Dubai Population: 21,000
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Having served as a Royal Engineer in the British army, John Harris is released as a prisoner of war in Hong Kong. Later he would source the experience for his interest in building in severe climates.1
1946
John Harris recommences studies at Architectural Association in London, where he meets his classmate and future wife, Jill Rowe. 1951 The British Building Research Laboratories pursues investigations into construction and materials in desert climates. Harris is hired to design the institute’s station in Kuwait. 1953
John Harris, in practice with Jill Harris, wins the 300-entry design competition for the Qatar State Hospital, sponsored by the Royal Institute of British Architects.
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Sheikh Rashid’s son-in-law, Ahmed bin Ali Al Thani, Ruler of Qatar, funds Dubai’s first bridge as a wedding present. Halcrow designs the drawbridge. The two Dubais are connected.
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Today
Having taken over from his father in 1997, Mark Harris is based at John R. Harris and Partners, London but visits Dubai office frequently. Current projects in Dubai are located in the Jebel Ali Free Zone, Festival City, and Jumeirah Palm. Recent completed projects include the first major theatre and community arts center at Emirates Mall, Dubai and a new English school in Sharjah. We would like to express our gratitude to John, Jill and Mark Harris for sharing their stories and observations with us. – AMO 1. Interview with Mark Harris. August, 2006. 2. G abriel, Erhard, The Dubai Handbook. Dubai Petroleum Company, 1987. 3. Meyer, Christopher, ‘Visit to Dubai, August, 1957.’ 4. Morris, A.E.J., John R. Harris Architects. Hurtwood Press, 1984 5. Wilson, Graeme, Rashid’s Legacy: The Genesis of the Maktoum Family and the History of Dubai. Media Prima, 2006. 6. Hawley, Donald, The Emirates: A Witness to a Metamorphosis. Michael Russell Publishing, 2007. 7. UK Board of Trade, Hints to Business Men Visiting the Persian Gulf. 1960. 8. Heard-Bey, Frauke, From Trucial States to United Arab Emirates. Motivate Publishing, 2004 9. D ubai Word Trade Centre: 20 Years of Success. Motivate Publishing, 1999. 10. V icker, Ray, ‘Is Dry Dock in Dubai to be High and Dry and Pie in the Sky?’ Wall Street Journal. May 6, 1980.
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First street lights are installed in city center.4 1968 Harris completes his first architectural project in Dubai: the expansion of Al Maktoum Hospital, expanded from 38 to 106 beds. Dubai Population: 59,000 Sheikh Rashid establishes the National Bank of Dubai – a key player in Dubai’s future development. Harris designs two branches. The Deira branch is the tallest building in Dubai at seven stories.7 1969 During visit to the Ruler’s Majlis, John Harris witnesses the presentation of a ‘jam
Graduate School of Design and work experience with architect/developer John Portman in Atlanta, Georgia, John Harris’ son Mark Harris joins JRHP. 1984 John R. Harris & Partners wins design competition for HH the Ruler’s Diwan. The design arguably reveals the first use of the barjeel (wind tower) as a decorative device to cover HVAC and other mechanical systems. The white estate stands timelessly next to the rebuilt Bastakiyah buildings. Dubai discovers preservation as a modernist act. 1985 Dubai population: 419,000 1990 Sheikh Rashid dies at the age of 78. Dubai mourns the loss of a great leader. According to a current day Pakistani cab driver who has been driving for 34 years, Sheikh Zayed Road receives its first street lights and guard rails, signifying its ascension to becoming Dubai’s central artery. 2005 Dubai population: 1,135,000
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Halcrow receives its first contract to dredge Dubai Creek, to ensure its navigability and sustainability of harbor commerce. 1956 Dubai’s first concrete block house is built.2 1957 Christopher Meyer from the British surveying firm Widnell & Trollope visits Dubai. He counts twelve Westerners and reports ‘there are the following Europeans in Dubai:’ Political Agent Tripp (on leave) Asst. Adams Agency Admin. Gunston B.P. Jackson I.P.C. Kirkbridge and wife Doctor McAnliffe Bank Manager King and two assts. Agriculturist Huntingdon Police Larrimer3 1957 John Harris opens an office in Tehran that would remain open until the 1977 revolution.4 1958 Sheikh Rashid bin Saeed Al Maktoum becomes ruler of Dubai at the age of 30. During a session in his Majlis, he delivers his memorable aphorism, ‘What is good for the merchants, is good for Dubai.’5 1959 John Harris meets Donald Hawley, British
jar full of oil’ to Sheikh Rashid. Oil is finally tapped. Full throttle with hospitals, schools, and a more ambitious master plan. John and Jill Harris lay a red carpet from the sidewalk to their doorstep to welcome Sheikh Rashid to their home during his state visit to London. A striking photo portrait of Sheikh Rashid hangs in the Harris library. 1970 First tenants move into Tower One of New York City’s World Trade Center, designed by Minoru Yamasaki. 1971 Harris submits second and extended master plan for Dubai. The independent United Arab Emirates is formed. British political and military presence is reduced. 1972 Queen Elizabeth diverts her flight to refuel in Dubai instead of Bahrain to witness the new airport. The visit inspires Sheikh Rashid to pursue a World Trade Center for Dubai. John Harris is commissioned and conducts a world tour to grasp a rising city/ market phenomenon.9 1975 Construction of Dubai World Trade Centre begins. Dubai Population: 183,000 1976 John Harris submits his third and final version of the master plan to the Dubai municipality, which takes over responsibility for planning manners. 1978 Harris’ design for the New Dubai Hospital is completed. At 14 stories it is Dubai’s tallest building for a matter of months. The WTC begins to rise. 1979 Queen Elizabeth opens Dubai’s World Trade Center, 39 stories and the tallest building in the Middle East. Dubai’s gateway to a new real estate era opens in the direction of what will become Sheikh Zayed Road. 1980 Dubai population: 210,000 Wall Street Journal raises speculation whether Dubai’s Port Jebel Ali development, estimated at $765 million ($2 billion in 2007) is anything more that a ‘pie in the sky.’ Dubai remains ahead even of itself.10 1981 Returning from graduate studies at Harvard
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Makers I
Political Agent for the Trucial States during the latter’s holiday in London. This fortuitous contact leads to John Harris’ first trip to Dubai to meet Sheikh Rashid, and he is hired as Dubai’s first town planner. Hawley will also ensure Harris is commissioned for a master plan of Abu Dhabi. Harris is 38 years old.6 1960 The United Kingdom Board of Trade issues Hints to Business Men Visiting the Persian Gulf, which includes tips in culture, negotiations, and travel in the Arabian Peninsula.7 Sheikh Rashid forms an advisory committee to approve and promote the Harris master plan. The committee includes Bill Duff (financial advisor to the Ruler), Neville Allen of Halcrow and John Harris. Political Agent Donald Hawley also remains involved. Simultaneously Harris is advising on hospital developments.1 Nelson Rockefeller announces plans for a World Trade Center in New York City. 1961 Dubai’s first central water supply system to accommodate 86,777 households is installed. Halcrow receives instruction from the Political Agent to begin implementation work of Harris’ master plan.2 1962 Sheikh Rashid begins planning work on Port Rashid. Halcrow study recommends 4 berths. Sheikh Rashid insists on 15. Ambition trumps conventional wisdom.8 Harris submits master plan to Sheikh Shakhbut of Abu Dhabi.
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Early Modernist insertions, Dubai circa 1960. Photo taken by John Harris aboard Royal Air Force airplane
Necessary Modernism
Dubai Metropolitan Hotel. 1976 Its flat roofs and shaded facades have since been edited.
John R. Harris Architects archives
John R. Harris Architects archives
John R. Harris Architects archives
National Bank of Dubai. 1969 Along the Creek, the bank is Dubai’s first display of financial strength and Harris’ first commercial building. At 7 stories, the building’s penthouse provides views of the entire city. The bank has been demolished.
John R. Harris Architects archives
John R. Harris Architects archives
John R. Harris Architects archives
Rashid Hospital, Dubai. 1969 JRHP’s second hospital for Dubai adds another 400 beds to local healthcare. Built in three years, the project is a hasty response to newfound wealth. The cupola arches serve as a band shell at the building’s opening ceremony.
John R. Harris Architects archives
John R. Harris Architects archives
Al Maktoum Hospital, Dubai. 1968 Harris’ first building commission in Dubai is the expansion of the barracksstyle Al Maktoum Hospital. With the Qatar State Hospital and Al Maktoum Hospital, Harris’ brand of modernism would be not only advanced but also humane. At the time the small hospital serves a thousand-mile radius.
Dubai Master Plan. 1971 (post-oil discovery)
AMO
John R. Harris Architects archives
Makers I
Qatar State Hospital, later renamed Rumailah Hospital. 1957 John Harris, together with his wife and former classmate Jill Harris, completes a small commission for the Building Research Laboratories in 1951. Though a fairly small building, Harris would gain from the experience lucrative intelligence about building in desert climates, which he displays in the Qatar State Hospital design competition, one of a series hosted by the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA). Beating out several hundred entries, the Harris scheme won for its ability to integrate environmental conditions into the design, as explained in the RIBA decision: ‘Of all the designs submitted this offers the best solution to the problem. The ward units are particularly well planned to afford good supervision and economy in working while they are sufficiently compact for air conditioning without detriment to good cross ventilation. The planning of single bed wards to avoid sun and glare is ingenious.’ The commission’s size enables the Harrises to establish an office. Beginning with the Qatar commission when he was 34, Harris’ career would continue to grow in the Middle East (among other places). Harris employs not a style but a principle: modern materials to suit climate and culture. Technology works with climate, without trying to conquer it. During travels to Doha for the project, Jill Harris recalls visiting the women while the men met about the project. Introduced by the advisor’s wife, who is Irish and conversing in fluent Arabic, Jill is the first person the Emir’s wife meets who speaks no Arabic.
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Dubai Master Plan. 1959 John Harris meets Donald Hawley, British Political Agent in Dubai: ’I had met [John Harris] by chance socially during my leave and he had expressed interest in coming out when I told him of Dubai’s need for a Town Planner. I had put his proposal to Sheikh Rashid who said he would like him to come out for discussions.’ Professionalism and circumstance. After a conversation with Sheikh Rashid, Harris is named ‘plenipotentiary in town planning and surveying matters.’ British government papers reveal that there had been discussions with more experienced master planners Minoprio, Spencely and Macfarlane, but Sheikh Rashid chooses otherwise. With no planning experience, Harris develops Dubai’s first master plan, which would guide Dubai’s development until the discovery of oil in 1969. The assignment is at once daunting and terribly simple. Planning is not about vision, but about modern necessity. Each proposal brings with it the question of where the funding will come from. Dubai has no paved roads (what roads there are can not accommodate automobiles), and no utilities or modern ports of supply. Water is supplied by cans brought by donkeys. First task: to order the first aerial surveys of Dubai. Then the plan must address the most basic: a road system, land use zoning and the determination of a town center. The drawn plan reveals a resistance to severity – where new roads respect old city (houses in the way of roads are not even deleted in the plan!). The density of Deira is minimally penetrated for automobile access, a capillary vein that widens as quickly as it departs from density into open desert. Harris’ modern insertions respect the formlessness as much as possible, graduating to Modernist grids once open desert is reached. The old city remains as inchoate activity. The new is zoned and rational. Dubai imports its first British roundabout.
[The New] Dubai Hospital. 1979 The Dubai Hospital at 12 storeys establishes yet another building height datum for Dubai. At the opening ceremony, Sheikh Rashid enjoys the complex’s endless halls and doorways – medicine and modernity. Project adds 665 beds to Dubai’s healthcare system.
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World Trade Center under construction
Roundabout before World Trade Center Watercolor by Alan Armitage shows the WTC-to-be as an imminent shadow.
John R. Harris Architects archives
John R. Harris Architects archives
Showcase for the World
John R. Harris Architects archives
John R. Harris Architects archives
John R. Harris Architects archives
John R. Harris Architects archives John R. Harris Architects archives
WTC Opening Ceremony. 1979 Harris joins Sheikh Rashid and Queen Elizabeth for the festivities.
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Top of World Trade Center Tower View looks toward the Creek’s lagoon and the Maktoum family’s Zabeel Palace.
Dubai International Airport Magazine. Autumn 1989 Oil is finally discovered in 1969. Sheikh Rashid shares the excitement with Harris, and visions of greater ambition begin: hospitals, schools, public works. Revenues ensured, Harris introduces a bolder scheme. Oil wealth will generate commerce, population, and even more investment. Harris establishes the guidelines that would ensure Dubai as a smooth auto mobile city. Road networks naturally follow the coastline, but also open up to development toward Abu Dhabi. The plan foresees potential traffic congestion over the creek, introducing two bridges and a tunnel to connect Dubai’s two sides. Dubai’s future growth is measured surprisingly well, but even its optimism does not match Dubai’s actual growth. Industrial areas, once deemed to be on the outskirts, are reassigned as mixed use and health years after the plan’s submission. As of 1985 planners name Dubai a ‘well-functioning ‘automobile-adequate’ city.’ A well-calculated road system could silence any argument for the need of a mass transit system. Because of its ability to absorb the growing population, planners place the city in the echelon of cities who have realized their master plans. Harris’ 1971 plan can be mostly credited for this foresight, and for already identifying the WTC site, which at the time was far into the desert but would become the gateway to Dubai’s new economy. Enough green to soften the desert, enough traffic to generate urbanity, enough roadways to invite the world, the WTC sits infallibly on a highway interchange, a symbol of a once easy, rational relationship among humans, roadways, and buildings. A fragile equilibrium that would last a brief moment.
AMO
Dubai Hilton Hotel. 1979 As part of the World Trade Center complex, JRHP designs Dubai’s first Hilton Hotel. The design minimizes the amount of glazing to control solar glare. The end result does not please the client so much since it also reduces views. It has been torn down for the World Trade Center expansion plan.
Sheikh Rashid and Harris at WTC site
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Makers I John Harris presents Sheikh Rashid with the first proposal for the World Trade Center. 1973 Harris recalls how he was introduced to the Dubai’s World Trade Center project: ‘I was leaving Dubai and flying back to London. My suitcase had been placed on the sparkling new hoist at Dubai’s international airport and sent down to the loader below. At that moment a hand rested on my shoulder and a voice said: ‘Sheikh Rashid wants to see you.’ I explained about my luggage, but of course my suitcase went one way, and I went the other.’ Even before the iconic World Trade Center of New York City is fully occupied, Sheikh Rashid already plans for such a concept for Dubai. Upon viewing Harris’ first model for the project, he simply states it needs to be higher, much higher than Dubai’s 3- to 5-story skyline. Growing gradually after each review, a 34-story project is finally approved. However when construction reaches 8 stories, Sheikh Rashid asks for a revision – 5 additional floors. With a rapid response to fulfill the demand, the final building is completed at 39 stories.
Dubai International Airport Magazine
Site visit at the World Trade Center ‘I established a special relationship of trust with Sheikh Rashid,’ responds Harris to the question why he stayed in Dubai for so long. He felt that the people had a genuine affection for the sheikh.
John R. Harris Architects archives
John R. Harris Architects archives
John R. Harris Architects archives
Harris’ Catalogue
John R. Harris Architects archives
Ruler’s Diwan, Dubai
National Grundlays Bank, Oman. 1968
John R. Harris Architects archives
AMO
John R. Harris Architects archives
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Abu Dhabi Master Plan, palace and government center. 1962
John R. Harris Architects archives
Finance Ministry, Doha. 1957
John R. Harris Architects archives
Building Research Laboratories, Kuwait. 1952
American Ambassador’s Residence, Abu Dhabi. 1977
John R. Harris & Partners
Harris buildings presented on stamps from Qatar, Oman, and Dubai. Architecture as an instrument for social progress.
Wafi City, Dubai. Commenced in 1984 by John R. Harris and Partners and further developed by others.
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Al Itehad School, Dubai. 1975
John R. Harris Architects archives
John R. Harris Architects archives
Sulaibikhat Hospital, Kuwait. 1969
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The World Trade Center Apartments, the World Trade Center, and Hilton Hotel, Dubai. 1980
Interview
Master Planning with a Land Rover
— John Elliott, Town Planner of Abu Dhabi
In conversation with WATG architects about the design of Emirati palaces, it came to be known that one of WATG’s head architects, John Elliott, was one of the first planners and architects in Abu Dhabi. According to his curriculum vitae, Elliott has arguably designed more hotels and resorts than any architect in the world. But before achieving this superlative, he had been the first town planner for Abu Dhabi. Envisioning Abu Dhabi’s first houses, schools, and roads, Elliott’s plans materialized Sheikh Zayed’s vision to introduce his Bedouin citizens to city living.
How old were you?
TR —
He was integral in the planning process, right?
Yes, every day. Sheikh Zayed would draw with a camel stick in the sand. He asked one day, ‘Do you think that we should educate women?’ I said, ‘Yes, why not? Because otherwise, one day, the kids are going to grow up with an educated father and an uneducated mother. Who’s going to run the society?’ Three weeks later, he said, ‘I want you to build a girls’ school here and a boys’ school over there. They must be at least one hundred yards apart.’ From that we did a whole series of things. One of the things that I did at my house in Abu Dhabi was to make an irrigation system, in which you take all of the bath water, put it into a tank and separate out the gray water. I welded two oil drums together. We took seaweed – we had a house right on the beach – put it into the welded drums, added baby droppings as a catalyzer and a little more seaweed on top. Out of the bottom, you get really nice earth in about two weeks. So I could keep a green garden in the desert. One day Zayed turned up to see this little garden and we became very close through this whole gardening thing. I was explaining to him how Abu Dhabi should really have parks and that there should be tree-lined boulevards. He loved England. He used to go there a lot. He loved the green. I would like to think that I was one of the contributing factors to Abu Dhabi being green. Then we changed from being a planning office to being an architecture office. We did little jobs – villas for petroleum companies, office quarters for the Abu Dhabi defense force, schools. Then they took the census and discovered that there were 36,000 Abu Dhabians. Zayed said, ‘Right, we’ll have national housing.’ He didn’t want the Bedouins wandering all over JE —
168
It was a waste of time by asking which plans. We had a whole set of plans, threw them into the back of the Land Rover and drove off to find Zayed in the desert.
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I was 29. I really didn’t know what I was doing. It was to take Abu Dhabi island – there were no real roads; the electricity was down all the time; there was no water. We produced a whole series of plans. The best one they ignored. I proposed that we dig a series of canals from one side to the other side, right across the island. The island was very low, only five feet above sea level. Everything for construction – cement, steel – was coming in by barge as there were no roads. The waters were low, so everything had to be kept offshore.
You were the resident town planner, so you moved to Abu Dhabi?
Yes, with my kids. We ran the town planning department in a little office in a semi-air-conditioned building. It was funky stuff, right out of the Wild West. We drove around in Land Rovers, had a little stand-by generator. Water was delivered by tanker. Now people are into saving water – my God, did we save water! Really, it was great fun. Sheikh Zayed was an incredible client. I got to see him two or three times a week. JE —
AMO
Todd Reisz — JE —
TR —
Gulf Survey
Makers I
I don’t know how much of a story you want, so I’ll tell you the whole story. One day in 1966, a guy called Freddy Webb was walking down Chiswick High Street. It was a hot day in August. He felt very thirsty, so he went into a pub for a drink in the afternoon. Standing next to him at the bar was this tall guy. The tall guy said, ‘I work in Abu Dhabi. There’s going to be a dramatic change there.’ This all had to do with oil – the Iranians had nationalized the Abadan refinery and the British-Iranian Oil Company was going to follow. And… the Brits needed the oil. Further nationalization in the region would have stopped any further oil development. You can see the picture of what happened. Suddenly in 1966, a new sheikh comes to power in Abu Dhabi. If you’ve read any of the books of Thesiger’s journeys in the region, you’d know about Sheikh Zayed, Abu Dhabi’s then new sheikh – extremely intelligent, an incredible leader of men, lovely man. Under the sponsorship of the British, oil was discovered to be of very high grade in Abu Dhabi, and Abu Dhabi suddenly boomed. It came about that the prediction that this guy made had been absolutely right. In 1966 the consortium Arabicon was formed with some engineers and architects. One day in that year they came to me and said, ‘John, you did some planning in Sweden and Finland. We’ve got an amazing project for you. There’s this island in Abu Dhabi. Do a master plan.’ So, we were sketching away a master plan of the island. John Elliott —
My proposition was they could distribute canals and develop the island. The major roads would go in the perpendicular direction with bridges over the canals. Very logical. But it was too much for Abu Dhabi to take and they didn’t develop it. Now people are building canals all over the place in Abu Dhabi. I guess nobody is a prophet in his own land…
the place with the goats and sheep. So we had little villages of national houses. Each had a front garden and a back garden; the Bedouins would sleep on the roof. We built these villages all over Abu Dhabi. Some of them still exist, I’m amazed to say. TR —
into family neighborhoods. Extended families would get a village of twenty or thirty houses. Zayed knew how the aflaaj were and knew how the villages should be laid out. Then did you rely on traditional British town planning or modernist ideas of the quickest route from A to B? TR —
Where are they?
Makers I
You said, there were no trees, no hills. So what did you use as a reference to design a city? TR —
Sheikh Zayed with fellow traveller, 1949
Abu Dhabi aerial photograph, 1963
TR —
So, you did try to do that?
Yes, and of course there were still a lot of traditional villages, which were all very organic. They had grown in a way that worked with tribal dynamics, and we tried to keep the same patterns. The last thing that we wanted was to have straight lines. With the orthogonal being out, they were orientated in traditional ways. JE —
TR —
Do these places you designed still exist in Abu Dhabi?
Some bits still exist. Unfortunately, there came road engineering. Then came traffic rules, like high speed curbs and roads that are unnecessarily wide… These were all of low value, so as the families developed, they moved on to elsewhere. JE —
TR —
And your house?
Oh, my house went many, many years ago. My house was next to the church. The church had been given a piece of land by Sheikh Zayed. It was amazing how far-thinking he was. Christians were so few then. The church was a little, prefabricated Australian house. It’s not there anymore; it eventually moved way out. But the nuns – the Little Sisters of Mercy – are still there, still running a small primary school. JE —
TR —
Why did you leave as town planner?
In 1970, Britain planned to leave the region. Socialist, Harold Wilson, the stupid idiot said, ‘No, no, we’re not going East at all. We’re pulling out.’ Zayed begged him to stay, saying he’d pay them to stay. But no, they moved out. The whole of the British regime – the police were British, the army was British, the civil service – all that was out. When I was there, the postmaster was a guy from Cardiff. All of that obviously had to grow and change. Actually, the Brits were always pretty good at pulling out. And others – the Lebanese, the Syrians and the Egyptians – all moved in to take over the job. Of course there was this whole process in Abu Dhabi: Emiratization of the workforce. JE —
TR —
AMO
Exactly, you have to sort it out. We had to relate it to the dunes. In Al Ain, for instance, it was especially related to where the water was, because it was a big complex of aflaaj 1, the irrigation systems that run the water from the basic spring in different directions. These are well documented. Little bits belong to particular families, so these villages were actually subdivided JE —
It’s funny, because I did my post-graduate work in Finland and in Sweden. And of course they had totally different background concepts for what planning is all about – especially in Scandinavia where you built things into the trees and into the landscape. That was really much more of the way that developments in Abu Dhabi occurred, more than with the traditional British grid or the Corbusian. It came out of trying to be sympathetic with the landscape. JE —
Gulf Survey
If you drive up the highway in Abu Dhabi, there are just a few of them left. They are a bit tiny. Every site had to be 80 feet x 80 feet. The Bedouins kept the sheep and the animals in the garden. The whole idea was to urbanize the Bedouins, and this village housing project was part of the whole education and urban and social development project. I’ll tell you a nice story. One day there was a knock on my door just before dawn, just before the prayer. They said, ‘John, come, bring the plans.’ And it was a waste of time by asking which plans. We had a whole set of plans, threw them into the back of the Land Rover and drove off to find Zayed in the desert. When we found Zayed, he said, ‘We’re going to have a village from here.’ When he said, ‘here,’ he was looking for a marker. There was nothing, just sand, literally with nothing more than a stone or a tree. There were four soldiers in the Land Rover behind him. He snapped his fingers and one jumped down. Zayed placed the soldier and said, ‘Here…’ He then took another soldier, put him in the sand at the next corner of the future village and said ‘…to here.’ He did this about three or four times. Then he just drove off to his palace. I said, ‘Your highness, there are still four soldiers in the desert.’ He said, ‘Bedouins!’ As if to say, ‘Don’t be stupid. They are Bedouins. They’ll find their way back.’ JE —
So basically when the Brits left, you had to leave….
I didn’t have to, but I had been working 16 hours a day for three years, and I was burned out. I had two small children. My eldest daughter was actually the first European child born in Abu Dhabi. And she’s called Maya because of that. So, I just moved on. 1. Plural form of falaj: an Emirati word for an underground irrigation system, some going back more than three thousand years.
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25 Years Progress
JE —
Sir William Halcrow
Sunderland Today, date unknown
Records of Dubai 1760-1960, 2000
Growth Management
Halcrow’s Beginnings ‘One of the key players behind the scenes in Britain’s war effort was a Sunderlandborn civil engineer whose expertise was called on in a range of projects from the famous Dam Busters raid on Germany to the design of the bunker from which Eisenhower directed the D-Day landings. ‘And William Halcrow also earned the wartime nickname Noah for his work in saving the London Underground from disastrous flooding. ‘How Noah prevented the great flood…’ Sunderland Today, date unknown
Gulf Survey
His Highness Dr Sheikh Sultan Bin Mohammed Al Qasimi visits work on Sharjah’s deep-water harbor with Halcrow engineers
Halcrow engineers survey new highway route through Hajar mountain range in UAE and Oman in 1966
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Map for Dubai Port: Report on Proposed Improvements, Halcrow. 1955
Halcrow 50 Years in the Gulf
AMO
Halcrow 50 Years in the Gulf
Makers I
The British firm Halcrow is synonymous with growth and development in the Gulf. In a region beleaguered with banners of developers and future cities, Halcrow has maintained a relatively unobserved presence for the average citizen – usually occupying only a modest position on development signboards. Once noticed, however, the blue typeface seems present at just about any Gulf project of note. An invitation to build a cooling water jetty for Kuwait City in 1952 began Halcrow’s role in realizing the 21st-Century Gulf. Positioned well with the British governmental presence in the 1950s, Halcrow quickly gained an unbeatable track experience in laying foundations for urban societies in the Gulf. One Halcrow representative, Neville Allen, was taken into the confidence of Sheikh Rashid as a member of his intimate planning committee. Today the firm’s multi-faceted group aids at every scale and phase in realizing Gulf ambitions – designing new cities, road networks, ports and water/power development. Halcrow’s first crucial contribution to the Gulf was the initiatory improvements to Dubai’s creek harbor, an act that triggered Dubai’s subsequent boom from practically nothing. Beyond contextual vacuum, tabula rasa design signifies logistical lawlessness; not only was Halcrow introducing modern infrastructure but also modern processes. A gradual and steady cycle then ensued: past projects make possible future projects. Once ports, roadways, and waterways have been laid, then come other things: necessity first, then desire. Halcrow’s success can be contributed to keeping current with Gulf demands.
Interview
50 Years of Transforming the Arab City
Halcrow has taken the strategic decision not to set ourselves up to be competitors with these major players. We concentrate only on the medium level architecture, such as industrial buildings and some detailing work. Do you have a sense of how much of the finally built environment has been influenced by your master planning or is based on your master planning? RK —
The market is expanding all the time, so I couldn’t really give a figure. I think that when we started out, it would have been somewhere between a fifth and a third. Because we’ve been here a long time, a lot of projects come through the door. We’re in the fortunate position of not really having to do a lot of marketing, because we’re so well known for engineering and master planning. But the market is maturing, and therefore the more players, the more niches. I would like to think that our percentages have remained the same. We maintain strategic relationships with a number of key clients. On one hand our master plans present a highway and services structure which is generally followed during implementation. On the other, our master plans offer guidelines for the preferred distribution of land use, density, and building form. These latter aspects are not always followed. JS —
John Smith is the resident director for the Consulting Business Group of Halcrow based in Dubai, which looks after master planning, urban design, transport planning and environmental assessment projects in the UAE. Jatin Chopra, based in London, is the International Business Manager, working with Halcrow’s International Planning and Architecture team. I realize your position is relatively new. What does it signify for Halcrow’s presence in the Gulf ? Rem Koolhaas —
Makers I
RK —
What is Halcrow’s role as a planner in the Gulf ?
If we look at areas that we might call ‘development planning’, we prepare framework plans or structure plans on a more strategic level. Our work on a structure plan for Ras Al Khaimah and that emirate’s Jebel Al Jais Regional Park would be two examples. Other projects I’ve personally been involved in, not in the Gulf but in Mauritius and Trinidad, were national development strategies. There was a similar project for Yemen for the World Bank. We are currently doing a lot of research for the Asian Development Bank (and other international funding institutions) on poverty alleviation. That’s yet another strand to our work. JS —
AMO
So, Halcrow is more complex than you would construct from Dubai or the Emirates… RK —
Yes. But I would guess that 70 to 80 percent of Halcrow’s development planning work is master planning and urban design, worldwide. Of that 70 to 80 percent, maybe 70 to 75 percent is in the Gulf, and the remaining part of that is in China. Generally speaking, the other 20 to 30 percent of Halcrow’s work is mainly social studies – poverty alleviation and national studies – done in the rest of the world, principally in the Caribbean and in Asia. JS —
RK —
Do you see that as a contrast, a complement, or icing on the cake?
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It’s complementary. It makes good business sense because we’re not putting all our eggs into one basket. It gives our staff a variety of opportunities to explore. I think that it comes back to the philosophy of poverty alleviation again. Part of what we believe in is that we are creating jobs. We are creating what we feel are respectable lifestyles. JS —
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We are looking to provide a high level of service that goes from the concept stage through to the supervision of the infrastructure. Master planning is quite a big market in the Gulf, and within this market there are at least two or three different markets. One is for initial concepts; another is the development of these concepts. Very specialized companies do these things very quickly at a very high standard for fees that are quite small. Some of these firms are local, and some are more international. We have individuals in our own organization in Dubai that can do that work, and are competitive in that market. But there are lots of other players in that market. They might be offices of only two or three people – flexible and concentrated on one particular market. Creating initial concepts is a market that we want to remain in, but a large part of our master planning work is actually in validation, sometimes of our own concepts and sometimes of other concepts. A lot of clients have favorite conceptual sketches and they come to us to make these concepts work. Architecture is a very small percentage of our work. One of our companies, Halcrow Yolles, has a very strong connection with larger architectural offices, and provides the structural advice for architectural proposals. JS —
Is there a Halcrow style or Halcrow philosophy? For instance, I would say that there are two aesthetics that I recognize. The first one is resort aesthetics, and the second one is slightly more urban. Perhaps Business Bay would be an example of the second. Is there another kind of Halcrow dimension? RK —
Gulf Survey
My position was created about 18 months ago. I’m now based here to provide more focus on master planning and architecture solutions together with a team of 55 to 60 people and to foster the interaction with our engineering side. We’ve been growing with the market. In the 90s, a lot of the work was done from London by small teams that would come out here only temporarily. We would do the presentation, factfind, and then go back to finish off the detailing. Now we’ve got a permanent practice here in Dubai. The company has been here for 51 years, and I think that master planning has been around for about 25 years. The requirements from clients continuously increase, so the speed of turning around the plans and the concepts is something that you have to keep pace with while maintaining the quality of production. There is thus the need for an increased local presence. John Smith —
You are suggesting that about two-thirds of all the development planning work is here…
doesn’t work. If, at the end of the day, the client says, ‘Okay, we hear what you’re saying, but we’re going to do it anyway,’ then we say, ‘Okay, we’ve given you our professional advice. It’s your choice.’
RK —
JS —
Yes, master planning and development planning work.
So in that sense, you are undeniably a specialist, which goes back to your founder, who started here and introduced the whole discipline.
What do you think of Dubai as it is currently? Are we beginning to see the contours and outcome of this kind of approach?
RK —
RK —
Well, the founder was an engineer, some 140 years ago in the UK. I think that the master planning component has evolved more recently, in the last 25 years. Master planning, itself, and urban design are relatively new skills, compared to city planning and new town planning, which go back about 50 to 60 years in the UK.
Frankly, I stopped wanting to be Florence Nightingale. Quite a lot of my experience has been working directly for aid agencies such as the UN, the World Bank, and the ILO (International Labor Organization). I used to think that it was a personal experience, helping poverty alleviation. That’s how I rationalized getting up every morning. But I have to say, while institutional strengthening was a very important part of that, often the things the client gained most from was the understanding of how you went about your job. The output itself was often left on the shelves of clients, because the means to implement it wasn’t there. Just the philosophy, more than the output, was essential. A lot of that is not appropriate in a climate like Dubai. With the different democratic systems here, implementation is the order of the day – time and quality of production. Dubai is experiencing an unprecedented rate of growth. This inevitably entails some very ambitious projects requiring levels of infrastructure which were not previously envisaged. The authorities are thus having both to provide the required infrastructure to match current project needs, and to plan for substantially increased future demand in urban infrastructure. The way I rationalize it is that we are creating jobs. I’m not a designer, so I can’t say that I’ve created this fantastic skyline. But I feel that this
JS —
How do you define the differences?
I think that in the early days, new town planning, which emanated in the 40s and 50s in the UK, was partly economic and certainly design oriented. JS —
You have mentioned activities as different as elaborating the overnight sketch of three people and work for a very serious government. It’s a huge stretch between these. RK —
RK —
Do you think that’s a loss or a gain?
RK — JS —
Dubailand
International Media Production Zone 2009
Dubai Business Bay
AMO
Well, in some senses I think that it’s a gain. Particularly in this part of the world, things are changing so rapidly. One of the problems is that if you’re more than 12 months into producing your prescriptive type of structure, it’s out of date. Our director Asad Shaheed understands we need to know very clearly what the client wants and then turn that into an illustrative plan as quickly as possible. I agree with that. I’ve been in the business for 34 years now. I started off life as a traditional urban planner, utilizing a particular structure framework. There is no institutional strengthening in that process. The action is: produce the plans, substantiate them, and then get it built. In places like Dubai, Abu Dhabi or Qatar, the market moves too fast to do otherwise. JS —
Gulf Survey
Makers I
I think that you have to make a distinction between the projects we’re involved in. There are those which are aid-funded by the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank and which have a particular long-range program. One of the first projects I worked on in Malaysia for the World Bank lasted four years. Now, for anybody to get a four-year project these days is almost unheard of. 12 months, maybe, from those agencies. With development projects here in Dubai it’s no more than 12 weeks. JS —
Photo: Halcrow 50 Years
RK —
JS —
What room is there in such an effort for critical thinking?
Critical thinking has to be done very early on. RK —
For instance, do you ever tell a client, ‘Don’t do that’?
Sometimes, you have to. What we try to do is to fulfill what we believe to be the appropriate scheme for the site, taking the constraints that the client gives us. Up front we try to get the client to provide the right information – what is the gross floor area; what is the saleable land; what are the key development parameters. Then we try to stick to that. Sometimes we have to advise clients not to pursue an idea. For instance, traffic impact and environmental assessments are regulated quite strictly here now. You can produce a great looking scheme, but if it doesn’t work on the highway network, which is quite congested in Dubai, the scheme JS —
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Collage of Halcrow proposals
Halcrow
Dubai TECOM City 2006
is the reality in Dubai. You either get in and swim, or you don’t put your foot in the water. I think that Halcrow has got the right balance. Do you see the speed and the nature of the work that is developing here gaining ground worldwide? RK [to Jatin Chopra]—
It has done so in the last five years. The biggest question is, can it continue? Is it sustainable? That question is asked every year, especially at this exhibition Cityscape. I guess that it’s one of the hottest topics. The answer is that we have to wait and see. It has been working so far, and let’s see how far it can go. The whole issue of sustainability, how long it can go on for, is a very difficult question to answer… JS — In the Dubai context, there are limitations to the transportation network. Still, people were saying five years ago, ‘When is this boom going to end?’ and it’s showing no signs of slowing down. Jatin Chopra —
And they asked this question in the 1970s as well. Is there any other region in the world that seems to be catching up with the pace of Dubai, from Halcrow’s point of view? RK —
We think that Shanghai is trying to do that. And things there, as in Dubai, do happen very quickly – not at the same speed or on the same scale, but they’re moving in that direction.
(ALCROW SPECIALISES IN THE PROVISION OF PROFESSIONAL PLANNING DESIGN AND MANAGEMENT SERVICES FOR INFRASTRUCTURE DEVELOPMENT AND THE BUILT ENVIRONMENT WORLDWIDE 7E EMPLOY OVER PEOPLE AND GENERATE AN ANNUAL TURNOVER IN EXCESS %UROS MILLION 7E HAVE A WELL ESTABLISHED NETWORK OF MORE THAN OFFICES AROUND THE WORLD FROM WHICH WE CONTRIBUTE TO COMMISSIONS IN OVER COUNTRIES
JC —
You asked whether the speed and nature of work in Dubai is gaining ground elsewhere in the world. In our experience Shanghai does indeed have similarities. We have prepared master plans for private sector housing, on the basis of which construction work has started within six months of our final report. This is similar to our experience here in Dubai. JS —
Gulf Survey
Makers I
I work in Shanghai, and I find there’s no comparison whatsoever in terms of speed. There the government is more present, so it gives you a much more demanding kind of partner, whether you want it or not. RK —
/WNED BY A PRIVATE TRUST AND AN EVER INCREASING NUMBER OF EMPLOYEE SHAREHOLDERS (ALCROW HAS GROWN INTO ONE OF THE LARGEST INDEPENDENT CONSULTANCIES OF ITS KIND 4HE EDGE OF FLEXIBILITY AND FREEDOM THIS BRINGS ADDED TO OUR FINANCIAL STRENGTH AND SERVICES DELIVERY IS HELPING TO MAKE US A FIRST CHOICE PARTNER FOR CLIENTS ACROSS THE WORLD (ALCROW )N 4HE -IDDLE %AST (ALCROW HAS PERMANENT OFFICES IN $UBAI !BU $HABI AND 3HARJAH IN THE 5!% AND $OHA IN 1ATAR AND CURRENTLY EMPLOYS OVER PEOPLE IN THE -IDDLE %AST REGION
7E HAVE PARTICIPATED IN BUILDING TRANSPORTATION INFRASTRUCTURE INCLUDING PORTS HIGHWAYS BRIDGES AIRPORTS AND TUNNELS 7E HAVE ASSISTED IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF RURAL AREAS THROUGH IRRIGATION AGRICULTURE AND WATER SUPPLY PROJECTS MANY OF WHICH HAVE BEEN DEVELOPED IN PARTNERSHIP WITH BENEFICIARIES
AMO
)N THE -IDDLE %AST (ALCROW PROVIDES TRANSPORT WATER PROPERTY DEVELOPMENT ENVIRONMENTAL AND ENERGY CONSULTANCY SERVICES ACROSS A GEOGRAPHIC REGION EXTENDING FROM .ORTH !FRICA TO $UBAI 4HIS CULTURALLY ECONOMICALLY AND ENVIRONMENTALLY DIVERSE REGION HAS SEEN REMARKABLE DEVELOPMENT OVER THE LAST YEARS AND (ALCROW HAS PLAYED A LEADING ROLE IN ITS DEVELOPMENT SINCE
7E HAVE CONTRIBUTED TO THE DEVELOPMENT OF URBAN SETTLEMENTS BY HELPING TO DEVELOP SUSTAINABLE GROWTH STRATEGIES APPROPRIATE HOUSING SCHEMES AND URBAN INFRASTRUCTURE INCLUDING ROADS SEWERAGE WATER SUPPLY AND BUILDINGS 7E HAVE SUCCESSFULLY MATCHED OUR SKILLS AND SERVICES TO THE EVOLVING NEEDS OF THE REGION INFLUENCED BY GROWING ECONOMIC PROSPERITY A SHIFT IN EMPHASIS FROM DEVELOPMENT TO MANAGEMENT OF INFRASTRUCTURE AND CHANGES IN THE ROLE OF GOVERNMENT AND THE PRIVATE SECTOR FROM (ALCROW #ONSULTING "USINESS 'ROUP
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Development billboard in the UAE
Halcrow Halcrow Halcrow Halcrow
Qatar 2010. Lusail Master Plan
Iran 2010. Bandar Abbas Waterfront
Halcrow
Halcrow Halcrow Halcrow
Kuwait 2005. Kuwait Internet City
Bahrain 2010. Bahrain Financial Harbor
RAK 2011. Mina Al Arab
Halcrow
Abu Dhabi 1962. Abu Dhabi Master Plan for 100,000
Yemen 2000. Aden
Gulf Survey
Makers I
Annual Record 1962: United Arab Emirates
RAK 1960. RAK Master Plan
Halcrow
Annual Records 1962: United Arab Emirates
Halcrow Master Plans
Halcrow
Iran 1998. Pars Energy Zone
Dubai 2009. Dubai International Media Production Zone
RAK 2009. Al Marjan Island
Dubai 2010. Business Bay
Sharjah 2010. Nujoom Islands
Pakistan 2015. Karachi Waterfront
Halcrow
Halcrow
AMO
Saudi Arabia 1992. Obhur Creek
Dubai 2015–18. Dubailand
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Other Halcrow Projects
Sharjah 1979. Sharjah International Airport
Qatar 2004. West Bay, Doha
Halcrow
Dubai 2003. Jumeirah Marina
Halcrow 50 Years
Sharjah 1976. Khor Fakkan Port
Halcrow 50 Years
Sharjah 2002. Gillay Tunnel
Halcrow 50 Years
Halcrow 50 Years
Roadways
Sharjah 2006. Sharjah International Airport
Dubai 2004. Dubai Int’l Financal Center
Halcrow 50 Years
Halcrow 50 Years Halcrow
Qatar 2004. West Bay, Doha
Halcrow
Halcrow 50 Years
RAK 1977. Mina Saqr Port
Halcrow 50 Years
www.halcrow.com
Dubai 2007. Palm Jumeirah Underwater Tunnel
Dubai 1963. Al Maktoum Bridge
Gulf Survey
Sharjah 1997. Sharjah University City
Halcrow 50 Years
Dubai 2008. Dubai Marina
Airports
Sharjah 1987. Ar Rufaysah Dam
Halcrow
Halcrow 50 Years
Dubai 1975. Deira-Shindagah Tunnel
Dubai 2007. Dubai Internet City
Halcrow Halcrow
Halcrow
Dubai 1979. Dubai Dry Docks
Halcrow 50 Years
Architecture
Abu Dhabi 1958–2005. Abu Dhabi Airport
Abu Dhabi 2000. Abu Dhabi Golf Club
RAK 1976. RAK International Airport
Sharjah 2000. Al Qasbah Canal
Halcrow 50 Years
Halcrow 50 Years
Dubai ca.1955. Dubai Creek Dredging
Abu Dhabi 2005. Sheikh Zayed Mosque
Halcrow 50 Years
Bahrain 1970. Manama-Muharraq Cswy
Dubai 2007. Dubai International Airport
AMO
Halcrow 50 Years
Kuwait 1952. Shuwaikh Jetty
Annual Records 1962: United Arab Emirates
Dubai 1965–78. Dubai Transportation Plan
Abu Dhabi 2006. Abu Dhabi Breakwater
Halcrow 50 Years
RAK 1978. Fishing Harbors
Halcrow
Seaports / Water Management Halcrow 50 Years
Makers I
Halcrow 50 Years
Sharjah 1960. Sharjah Road Plan
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Dubai 1972. Port Rashid
Halcrow
Abu Dhabi 1999. Shahama Interchange
Halcrow 50 Years
Kuwait 1999. Sulaibiyah Sewage Treatment
Halcrow 50 Years
Halcrow 50 Years
Kuwait 1956. Desalination and Power Station
Interview
Witness to Kuwait
— Jeff de Lange’s Extended Expat Contract
Jeff de Lange has lived in the Gulf for more than thirty years. His story starts with Kuwait’s seminal attempts to grow local architects and planners. He now works at one of the region’s most well established local consulting groups, Gulf Consult, where he is director for all planning, leisure, and transportation commissions undertaken by the company. You have been in Kuwait for a significant component of its development, from a mostly inconsequential harbor town to what it is today. Todd Reisz —
Makers I
When you first arrived in Kuwait, you worked for the municipality, with the town planner Hamid Shuaib… TR —
In addition to Buchanan, there was also the presence of some famous European architects, for example the Smithsons and the Pietiläs. Did this direction come from the government? Lily Jencks —
There were a couple of far-sighted people in the cabinet who made it a national strategy to put the city on the world map. The government’s desire to have some high profile individual architects and keynote buildings was set within a proper framework of the city master plan. JdL —
TR —
What did you actually do while working for the city?
What were the other major projects in the 1980s that your team was overseeing? TR —
In the early 1980s, His Highness the Amir Sheikh Jaber Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah offered to host the meeting of the Islamic Conference Organization in 1987. This invitation would transform Kuwait City. Suddenly, a conference center, palatial palaces, guest houses and significant infrastructure improvements had to be designed and built in a time frame of a few years. The Bayan Palace was completed for the event. It was designed and built in about two-and-a-half years – a record time in the region. For this building rush, the American team introduced Kuwait to the concept of construction management. This represented a huge step in Kuwait’s development capabilities. Then in 1990, I was head-hunted by the Prime Minister of Bahrain and went to Bahrain to work for four years. In 1994 I made my way back to Kuwait to work for Gulf Consult. I’ve been back in Kuwait ever since then. JdL —
TR —
What was the social climate of Kuwait at this time?
In the 80s, Kuwait was booming because Lebanon was suffering from civil war. But there were still troubles in the background. There was a suicide attack on HH the Amir, and there were coordinated attacks on the American and the French embassies and other government installations. These were shocks to the system. Earlier on a major issue for the government was trying to figure out how to distribute the oil wealth. One of the significant ways they chose was to acquire land and buildings from people and give them new land in newly created suburbs. They gave them money as well, according to how many family members, how many children, how poor they were. So land was acquired and buildings demolished, not so much for redevelopment need as to distribute wealth to the community. That’s why there still remain large plots of vacant land in the city even today. And that’s the way they created suburbs between the first and the second ring roads, and the third ring road, and the fourth ring road. By the late 70s to early 80s they stopped this method of acquiring land and distributing money. JdL —
And how do you find the proposal for Silk City? Do you see it as an attempt to change the tide of Kuwait planning? TR —
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JdL —
I believe that Silk City has no urban planning or design significance
185
My first stay in Kuwait was only 18 months. It had been an adventure but also a culture shock! I left to return to work in the UK but was drawn back in 1977. After a number of years in the private sector, I joined the Ministry of Public Works in 1983. It was a golden time in the ministry: it was managing projects well, and big-name, foreign consultants once again became interested in Kuwait. I headed the section that evaluated JdL —
I feel that there’s always been a preference to go to America for architecture and Britain for engineering and planning. In the 1980s, Kuwait embarked on a huge motorway program that was totally dominated by British firms, for instance. JdL —
AMO
In 1969 the Kuwaiti government had commissioned Colin Buchanan and Partners to undertake Kuwait’s first comprehensive master plan. Almost every government ministry was desperately looking for Western expertise back then. Consequently, Hamid Shuaib, the chief architect and town planner of the municipality, concluded that they would set up a program to bring in Western professionals to work with their Kuwaiti counterparts. There were six of us who were hired to fill this role: three town planners and three traffic engineers. In the process I found Kuwait committed to the planning process. The Kuwaitis who had earlier worked with Colin Buchanan were very strong professionally and inspiring for the government side. Hamid was always my professional mentor. We ended up being strong competitors when later we were in private practice, but despite that, he was still my mentor. He was one of the loveliest men, a super man. JdL —
Did this shift from British to American presence represent something larger? TR —
Gulf Survey
That is true, and I’ve worked for the government on three different occasions and the private sector on two different occasions. Looking back on it, the Kuwait lifestyle has changed significantly in my time here since the mid-70s. When I arrived in January 1974, Kuwait had a population of about a million. In the 1950s, it was still only 90,000 people. It’s three million now. Jeff de Lange —
consultants’ proposals and scopes-of-work for major building projects. Around that time the US federal government sent over a group of seven architects to help manage the commissioning of big projects. I worked with them as the only non-American. We were brought in to sort out and run big projects, which helped give new confidence to international architects that Kuwait was the place in the region to do work. Firms like The Architects Collaborative (TAC) and SOM started to have a presence.
priate to have a major high-rise anywhere other than in the old city center. TR —
Is there a trend among Kuwaiti developers to diversify?
Yes, Kuwaitis should never be underestimated for their financial development clout. For twenty or thirty years, many Kuwaiti firms have operated with their head offices in London or New York. They keep a low profile in Kuwait. You come to Kuwait and wonder, where are all the corporate offices that you see in Dubai? The reason they’re not in Kuwait is that they’re too big. They’re actually running out of London and elsewhere.
Unknown
JdL —
Silk City – article in a Kuwaiti newspaper
TR —
whatsoever. It’s to be taken merely as a positive sign of the development companies of Kuwait wanting to draw the government’s attention by saying, ‘Look! Maybe the time has come to start involving the private sector in some of these big jobs.’ Nothing more than that. I should stress though that the municipality has planned to build a major government-sponsored city on the same site, Subiya, since the 1970s and that project is significant. TR —
Is there a push to change that?
Well, Kuwaitis have always invested abroad. If you look back 150 years, they were traders in Asia and East Africa. With Iraq’s regime change, Kuwaiti investment companies are now positively investing more in not only Kuwait but other parts of the Middle East, North Africa and South Africa. JdL —
We would like to ask you how the life of expats has changed since you’ve been in Kuwait and how the mix of nationalities has changed. We understand that expats make up about 66% of the population. LJ —
So that would be a change in tide.
Makers I
Just about every urban location on the peninsula has something that looks like the Silk City proposal… TR —
Yes, I’ve got positive feelings about the need to see a property-planned new city up north, but for Kuwaitis there’s a huge emotional tie to Kuwait City. I would say, from an urban design point of view, it would be inapproJdL —
There’s been a consistent one-Kuwaiti-to-two-foreigners rate since before I came to Kuwait. Recently there’s been one major change, which occurred as a consequence of the Iraqi invasion. Up until 1990 the civil service and the many parts of the business sector were staffed by Palestinians, who, because of political conflict, were living here in Kuwait on a permanent basis. They had their wives and children here. After the 1991 liberation, there was a great reduction in the number of Palestinians living in the country. Now their positions have been mostly replaced by Egyptians. The Egyptians tend to live here without wives and children, who prefer to stay in their home country. The proportion of foreigners to citizens has remained almost exactly the same; except proportionally, there’s been a reduction in the number of foreign families and an increase in bachelors. There’s a lot of mobility in the labor market, about half the expat population experiences a very fast turnover. Before 1990, Westerners came here for adventure or fun. Money was important, but there were a lot of things in life other than money. Whereas now, Western people seem to be much more focused on financial gain – covering alimony, or earning the down payment for a first house. There’s much less motivation on the part of the Western expat to learn about the country they’re in. JdL —
AMO
TR —
Gulf Survey
It’s a change in emphasis, but since the mid-1990s, there’s been a move toward BOT (Build-Operate-Transfer) as a way of achieving projects. Now the government is turning to BOT procedures more and more for doing almost everything. Development companies are using BOTs to achieve many things in the city and proposing that huge chunks of the city be developed by private companies in place of the state. It’s a way that private capital is used as one of the key motivators in achieving development. JdL —
Has that changed how expats are approached by Kuwaitis?
No, Kuwaitis are extremely welcoming. But as the country has become much bigger, a lot of expats don’t even get the opportunity to meet Kuwaitis. There are two million foreigners: roughly half a million Pakistanis, half a million Indians, at least three quarters of a million other Arabs – Egyptians, Syrians, Yemeni, Palestinians… And we’re all mixed up, I would say. In our company, Gulf Consult, we’ve got 23 nationalities. JdL —
TR —
Now are you permanently settled in Kuwait?
Yes.
TR —
And you won’t go back to England?
Well, we have a house in England but no, not in terms of my working career at any rate. JdL —
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Subiya new town master plan by Gulf Consult
Courtesy of Gulf Consult
JdL —
Gulf Survey
Makers I
AMO
Top row: Typical houses of the 60s and 70s in Western suburbs. 2nd row right: American Mission Hospital, now a national monument. 3rd and 4th rows: Mubarakiya Souk in town center – parts still remain today. 5th and bottom rows: Old Gold Souk in town center, redeveloped in the old style some 15 years ago.
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Stills from an 8 mm film shot by Jeff de Lange. Kuwait, May 1975 Top row: From inside Kuwait Towers under construction, the old town center and Emir’s Palace. 2nd row left and center: Main shopping street. right: Town Governorate and Police Force. 3rd row centre: Municipality built in the early 70s, still functioning today. 4th row: Old seafront – long gone. 5th row centre: British Embassy, still fully functional. right: Liberation Tower, world’s 5th tallest structure, stands here now. bottom row: Village of Doha, dhow building center.
Interview
Fairness
— Carlos Ott Forgets to Sign
‘What’s good for the merchant is good for Dubai.’ – Dubai’s motto, the late Sheikh Rashid Al Maktoum
The Gulf’s motives are simple, and you could say that simple is fair. A region of transparent ends, it harbors no hesitation to expand on vision and strategy. The Gulf makes for exciting work, but it also demands a broad acceptance of risk. Clarity of ends does not entail the clarity of means. The Gulf has time to hear your ideas, but not to tolerate your bitterness. In August, 2006, AMO spoke with the optimist and Uruguayan architect Carlos A. Ott about his extensive experience in the Gulf. Ott demonstrates an architect’s adept ability to relativize loss and to accept that a region’s accelerated development cannot compensate for the bruised egos of architects.
Carlos Ott Architect
Carlos Ott Architect Carlos Ott Architect
National Bank of Dubai
Gulf Survey
Makers I National Bank of Abu Dhabi
Opéra de la Bastille, Paris
During the 200th anniversary celebrations for Bastille Day, the UAE’s
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Mirror Image? Burj Al Arab, Tom Wright of WS Atkins (left) and ANTEL Telecommunications, Carlos A. Ott Architects (right)
Carlos Ott Architect
AMO
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cultural diplomat Sheikh Nahyan attended the opening of the Bastille Opera House in Paris. I had designed the building. He invited me to come to Abu Dhabi to learn about some projects. I would eventually design the National Bank of Abu Dhabi. The Gulf is very open to foreign architects, and their leaders are the architect’s true clients. Sheikh Nahyan was a very powerful person. I told him the building should avoid the usual Arabic pastiche style. Convincing Nahyan was the way toward breaking that pattern. Because he backed the design, it was built. The Gulf wants more from architects than you might think. Our second competition was National Bank of Dubai. They rejected all the submissions. I said, ‘Give me 30 days, and I will show you something you will like.’ They agreed. This was at the same time as the first Gulf War. There were no flights over the Arabian peninsula, so I had to fly via Pakistan… getting models through x-rays was nearly impossible. They liked it and it was built. The bank’s chairman was an old gentleman, Ali Al Owais. He was 85 years old and the richest man in Dubai. He had a run-down office in the middle of Deira. I wanted to talk about a building, and he about poetry – Arabic and Spanish. The influence of Arabic on the Spanish language and vice versa. I would sit down for hours, drinking tea, eating dates, talking
Carlos Ott at work
Abner Mckenzie
Gulf Survey
Makers I
about Andalucía and the importance of the Alhambra. I could not imagine sitting like that with Mr. Rockefeller. The Middle East turns on the opinions of strong rulers. Their opinions make cities. Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum has single-handedly made Dubai into an international city. He made Dubai in ten years. These leaders know a horizon, a goal – whether or not you agree with them – that of creating an important city, an important country. They are today’s Haussmann. You may not agree that Haussmann was right in rebuilding Paris. But they’ve all done it. Dubai has lost some things … perhaps its original quaintness. But the grand, tall buildings along Sheikh Zayed Road, the new airport, the new metro, the islands, etc. – they’re creating an image the world can’t ignore. The UAE was dead, after the first Gulf War. We were competing with a sea of local firms for few projects. My most horrible experience as an architect. I was once asked to make a conceptual design for an iconic hotel on Dubai’s coast. I locked myself in my hotel for two weeks. I came up with a proposal for the Burj Al Arab… identical to the building that stands today. I had done the sketches in pencil. Quick drawings without my name on them. I submitted them to a satisfied client. We would see each other in a month’s time. One month later I learned my contact had been fired and the project halted. Three years later, I saw the building being built. It was my fault. I had not included my name on the drawings. Sketches with Prisma colors on blue Canson paper. Since they didn’t know whose drawings they were, someone else was asked to build it, and they did. My fault. My building was identical to Burj Al Arab, but a bit taller. Main concepts – building in the water, a sail motif, a restaurant with an aquarium – were my ideas. You can see on my website a building I did at the same time. The two share the same concept.
AMO
But I have many buildings built in the region. Some are in planning now. I know many of these emirates and their leaders. They are all amazing in their own ways. If you start with a tabula rasa, then everything is questionable. Dubai’s vision is now mostly in the ground. Not so for other Gulf cities. They will want to define themselves against Dubai’s mistakes. In Dubai, we made mistakes because it was new. Remember. St. Petersburg was built overnight. Florence during a time of Tuscan prosperity. Same with Haussmann’s Paris. Wealth comes in short-lived spurts and needs to be taken advantage of when it is there. Obviously, many mistakes are being made. Errarum humanum est.
Burj Al Arab seen from the backside
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It was the first idea for a building in the water. You can see Dubai’s future development took this idea further. The experience spoiled my relationship with myself, not with Dubai. I was a typical idiotic architect. I could not blame anybody but myself. When I drive by and look at the building, I say, ‘Oh, what an idiot I was.’ It looks a bit like a roach from the back. The building that we did in Montevideo is much cleaner and taller. And those diagonal elements on the façade were not my idea. But anyway…
Argument
Frontline
5. Because they are provisional, the inhabitants of such a city will have a radically different stake in its future. Since they will never be citizens, they feel a conditional loyalty; they will not constitute a polis, but a provisional community of the disenfranchised… They will abandon at the first sign of trouble. 6. For architecture, The Gulf represents, simultaneously, the apotheosis and the ultimate democratization of the icon. The collapse of a whole series of earlier legitimizations of architecture – function, efficiency, organization, originality: all exiled to the realm of the big yawn – creates a titanic struggle on an infinitely reduced battlefield. The ubiquity of extravagance creates fewer and fewer opportunities for distinction; it will therefore erase the distinctions between the first, second and third rate… The winner will be the one who walks away from this battle first… 7. Both the urbanism and the architecture of The Gulf are clearly unsustainable: sustainability will be the regime that will impose radical change and revision on a brand-new model of urban life. For that very reason – call it historical inevitability or sheer coincidence of timing – The Gulf will also be the terrain where the current crisis of the metropolis will be confronted. The limitations of the current architectural repertoire are so comprehensive and destructive that it has become unthinkable to rely on them as a toolbox for the future.
AMO
1. The city is no longer generated by a plan; it has become a patchwork of developers’ increments. Instead of aiming for intensification, the city is now conceived to soothe and relax; the ultimate typology of the urban increment has become the resort. The aesthetics of rigour – the grid – has been defeated by the aesthetics of the organic, the geometrical by the approximative… Themes are the only viable means of distinction; Regularity, Utilitarian and the Utopian have a future only as themes.
4. Density is virtual. Almost everybody who lives in Dubai also lives somewhere else… The actual inhabitation of the city is a fraction of its maximum capacity. (That also explains why the implausible calculations of the engineers never come back to haunt them.) Systematic absenteeism creates a sense of civic hollowness across ever larger areas of the globe. The public realm has been replaced by Public Space, politics by design…
Gulf Survey
The Gulf is the current frontline of rampant modernization: a feverish production of urban substance, on sites where nomads roamed unmolested only half a century ago. The Gulf – its initial development triggered by the discovery of oil – is undergoing hyper-development to ready for oil’s eventual depletion. Since it is the site of greatest urban production and because it occupies territory where there was no previous (urban) occupation, The Gulf represents the essence of the current city in its pure form. Gulf Cities are in construction now. This means they are, inevitably, based on the repertoire of current urban prototypes – communities (themed & gated), hotels (themed), skyscrapers (tallest), shopping centers (largest), airports (doubled) – cemented together by Public Space, extended soon with boutique hotel, museum franchise and masterpiece. In its current state, it is a landscape of vast means and ambition, translated with gargantuan effort into ambiguous and sometimes disappointing results, a kind of farewell performance of the ‘Urban’ that has become threadbare through sheer age and lack of invention. If you want to be apocalyptic, you could construe Dubai as evidence of the-end-of-architecture-and-the-city-as-we-know-them; more optimistically you could detect in the emerging substance of The Gulf – constructed and proposed – the beginnings of a new architecture and of a new city. Some of The Gulf developments are bound to remain unique to it; most announce an imminent transformation of the urban condition itself. A reading of The Gulf suggests the following imminent inevitabilities…
3. Cities no longer have a natural, but an ‘assembled’ population. The assembly consists of those who are attracted with various incentives – tourists, expats – and those who help to sustain its attraction – builders, cooks, masseurs. Cities are now inhabited by the pampered and the pamperers.
8. Eventually, The Gulf will reinvent the public and the private: the potential of infrastructure to promote the whole rather than favor fragmentation; the use and abuse of landscape – golf or the environment?; the coexistence of many cultures in a new authenticity rather than a Western Modernist default; experiences instead of Experience™ – city or resort? – RK
2. Infrastructure is no longer conceptual anticipation, but pragmatic afterthought.
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A titanic struggle on a reduced battlefield
Gulf Survey
Frontline
AMO 197
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Argument
Introducing…
Gulf Survey
The Gulf trumpets opportunity for architects of all kinds. Anyone is welcome to audition his ideas for a public ready for vision yet unseen. An incomparable magnitude of development has alighted on the Gulf coast to test architecture’s imagination. In a place where the terms taller, bigger, and exclusive come with any new development, there is no room for design’s outing of expression. A Zaha Hadid design is hardly discernible in the clambering skylines of formal fantasies. As quickly as this stage has been set, two-desk architecture firms have transformed into regional agglomerates in less than a decade. But they still do not register on architecture’s radar. Sometimes employing more than 15,000 architects, they have stretched their bounds to attempt to satiate the insatiable. While ‘world-class’ architects focus on the jewel, their more robust counterparts design rows of towers, as similar or as different from the others as the client pleases. Architecture as investment proposal cannot move off the auction block quickly enough to make room for the next. The Virtually Unknowns (VUs) can ride this speed; they in fact fuel it. The architects with the most presence in The Gulf are such because of their sheer production statistics; streamlined management structures win projects more assuredly than unquantifiable flair. These Virtually Unknowns are positioned to determine The Gulf lifestyle for the next century. Other architects are responsible for their own foundering in irrelevance. While Western architecture has focused on convincing itself of its singularity and pursuing the next strange form, a more intelligent system has perfected its so-called art into an algorithm. The building industry – where engineer, architect, and even developer are once again united in one entity – has caught up to neutralize the difference between the brand-name and a more efficient, generic alternative. ‘Special effect’ is simply the expected. In a time frame of three weeks, a Virtually Unknown can generate the thrill that the brand-name architect couldn’t even do in twelve months. The Virtually Unknowns mount a contentious but quiet confrontation with Western arrogance. In a region that produces no more than a few hundred architects a year, the imported pool of architects is mostly nonWestern (even within the ostensibly Western VUs). It is Egyptian, Lebanese, Syrian, Indian and Pakistani. A smoother generic arises – borrowing technique and language from the West, but injecting it with another pace and a steadier mind – icon that resists the obsession with authorship … that captures capitalism’s acceleration but not its temper. We are not talking about architecture vs. building; this is architecture’s redefinition, whether it is welcome or not. – AMO
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Fernando Donis
AMO
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Towers of Sheikh Zayed Road, Dubai
Khatib & Alami
‘Khatib & Alami (K&A), a multidisciplinary architectural and engineering consulting company, offers clients an integrated approach towards the ever increasing need for concrete and reliable project delivery systems. Since 1984 K&A has continuously ranked among the top 100 International Design Firms as published by Engineering News Record (ENR).’
Based: Beirut, Lebanon Since: 1959 Staff Google Hits
1,500
40,000
Floors Built
1,031
www.khatibalami.com
80
10 0 The Index 80 2008 Dubai
Torch 80 2008 Dubai
Infinity Tower 73 2009 Dubai
Rose 72 2007 Dubai
Emirates Marina 59 2006 Dubai
The Tower 54 2002 Dubai
No.1 Dubai Marina 54 2006 Dubai
Lakeshore 46 2008 Dubai
Dubai Jewel 44 2007 Dubai
Shahla 40 2008 Dubai
MAG 214 40 2007 Dubai
Saeed 38 2001 Dubai
Dusit 37 2001 Dubai
Fairmont 37 2002 Dubai
Lakeside 36 2008 Dubai
Al Buhairah 35 2002 Sharjah
Zumurud 31 2008 Dubai
2N Tower 31 2006 Dubai
Golf Towers 30 2007 Dubai
Bukhatir 29 2001 Sharjah
Marina Sail 24 2006 Dubai
Crescent 22 Complete Sharjah
Al Aryam 22 2006 Doha
Al Batha 21 2003 Sharjah
Al Ghazal 21 2006 Dubai
Al Jazira 19 2006 Abu Dhabi
Commercial 19 2003 Abu Dhabi
Yacht Bay 18 2007 Abu Dhabi
DSO 16 2007 Dubai
Del Mar 15 2006 Dubai
Al Shoala 10 2000 Dubai
Gulf Survey
Introducing…
Project Floors Completion City
WS Atkins
‘Atkins Middle East first carried out design and supervision commisions in the Gulf area in 1976. From its regional head office in Dubai, UAE (operating as WS Atkins & Partners Overseas), it now employs a total of nearly 702 staff located in Dubai and in the region’s other thriving offices in Abu Dhabi, Al Ain, Sharjah, Kuwait City, Muscat (Oman), and Doha (Qatar).’
Based: Epsom, UK Since: 1938
Staff Google Hits
15,000
178,000
AMO
Floors Built
3,728
www.atkinsglobal.com
80
10 0
Project Floors Completion City
Burj Mubarak al-Kabeer 250 TBA Kuwait City
Proposed 77 2008 Dubai
Al Mas 74 2007 Dubai
Burj Dubai 63 2008 Dubai
Bright Star 60 2007 Dubai
Burj-al-Arab 60 2003 Dubai
Park Place 58 2006 Dubai
21st Century 55 2003 Dubai
Al Durra II 51 2008 Dubai
Al Salam 51 2005 Dubai
Le Reve 50 2006 Dubai
JBR Towers Various (x50) 2007 Dubai
Bahrain World Trade Centre 50 2006 Manama
Al Salam Tecom 47 2007 Dubai
Sky Gardens 45 2008 Dubai
Tiffany 41 2007 Dubai
Goldcrest I 40 2006 Dubai
Lake Terrace 40 2006 Dubai
Oasis Towers 40 Dubai
Indigo Icon 39 2007 Dubai
Goldcrest Views 39 2007 Dubai
Global Lake 35 2007 Dubai
Indigo Tower 35 2007 Dubai
Lake Terrace 30 2006 Dubai
Manazel 20 2004 Dubai
KG Tower 20 2006 Dubai
Rostamani 16 2003 Dubai
Al Yamamah 14 2003 Dubai
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Adnan Saffarini
Based: Dubai, UAE Since: 1960s
‘With its creative-minded and highly-qualified staff, the office is designing and supervising hundreds of projects all over the UAE as well as in other countries in the Gulf Region.’
Staff ? Google Hits 1,230 C LO
AL
Floors Built
1,433
www.saffarinidbx.com
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10 0
Project Floors Completion City
Al Yaqoub 72 2008 Dubai
Concorde 62 2008 Dubai
Khalid Al Attar 61 2006 Dubai
Sheikh Maktoum Pearl Towers 60 Various (x10) Dubai
Corniche 53 2008 Dubai
Dubai
Damas Tower I 49 2006 Dubai
Damas Tower II 49 2006 Dubai
ARY Digital 45 2007 Dubai
Dubai Star 45 2007 Dubai
Flamingo 40 2007 Dubai
Based: UAE, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain, USA Since: 1963
‘Founded in 1964, KEO delivers world-class professional design and management services. KEO offers award winning architectural design, progressive infrastructure engineering, and construction management known for quality and professionalism.’
C LO
AL
Armada 40/35/35 2007 Dubai
Lake City 36 2007 Dubai
Al Waleed 36 2007 Dubai
Al Hawai 31 2000 Dubai
Alareifi 31 2006 Dubai
Staff
1,400
Google Hits
42,700
Floors Built
Orbit Tower 30 2009 Ajman
Marina 1 24 2006 Dubai
Peninsula 23 2008 Dubai
Unnamed 20 2006 Dubai
Al Durrah 18
Al Riqqa 12
Dubai
Dubai
Marina 2 12 2006 Dubai
Gulf Survey
Introducing…
KEO
Falcon 40 2007 Dubai
822
www.keoic.com
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10 0 23 Marina 89 2008 Dubai
The Gate 70 2006 Kuwait City
Kuwait Business Town 2008 Kuwait City
LIWA Heights 40 2007 Kuwait City
Al Jon 40 2007 Kuwait City
AG Tower 37 2007 Dubai
AU Tower 37 2007 Dubai
Dar Al Awadi 35 2005 Kuwait City
The Reef 34 2008 Dubai
Madina 34 2007 Dubai
Al Massahleh 30 (x2) Kuwait City
Rakan 30 2005 Kuwait City
Al Muthanna Towers 23
Latifa Towers 22 (x2)
Kuwait City
Kuwait City
Sheraton 21 2003 Kuwait City
Design and Architecture Bureau (DAR)
Sheikh Tahnoon 18 2002 Abu Dhabi
Khiran Towers 17 (x10) Khiran
Al Bahar 14 2001 Kuwait City
Based: Dubai, UAE Since: 1985
‘DAR Consult was established in 1985 and restructured in 1996 jointly by Engineer Hussain Lootah and Architect Ibrahim Salem. Today DAR Consult provides through its diverse multicultural staff, state-of-the-art services that propel the aggressive growth of the UAE and the region.’
Shangri-La 12
Ghazwa Towers Union Center 12 12
Dubai
Kuwait City
Kuwait City
Emirates Palace 12 2005 Abu Dhabi
AMO
Project Floors Completion City
Staff 150 Google Hits C LO
167,000
AL
Floors Built
734
www.dar.ae
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10 0 Emirates Crown 63 2008 Dubai
Churchill 61 2008 Dubai
The Maze 56 2008 Dubai
Al Seef 44 2005 Dubai
Al Shafar 44 2009 Dubai
Al Gaith 44 2006 Dubai
Nuaimi 44 2006 Dubai
The Citadel 42 2008 Dubai
Kharbash 42 2006 Dubai
Goldcrest Executive 40 2007 Dubai
Al Shera 40 2007 Dubai
Tamweel 37 2007 Dubai
Al Manara 36 2004 Dubai
The Palladium 35 2007 Dubai
Al Thuraya 28 2005 Dubai
London Crown 24 2008 Kuwait City
Al Shafar 12 2008 Dubai
Al Sondo 12 2002 Dubai
Yamamah 12 2000 Dubai
Real Estate Bank 6 2005 Dubai
IBM HQ 4 2004 Dubai
Canon HQ 4 2004 Dubai
Microsoft HQ 4 2004 Dubai
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Project Floors Completion City
Interview
Mohammed Sadiyyah, K&A Khatib & Alami is one of the most prolific architecture firms in the Middle East. At any given time, it has large-scale architecture projects along Dubai’s Sheikh Zayed Road in every development phase. We were eager to discuss the firm’s success with the partner and head designer Mohammed Sadiyyah, an engineer with decades worth of experience in Gulf architecture. I would like to talk to you about your office and the projects you’re working on. Todd Reisz —
Introducing…
TR — MS —
About 700 people.
TR — MS —
How many people are working in those four offices? And how about Khatib & Alami in total?
2,100.
TR —
So you are working on tons of projects…
You know, we are a multi-discipline company. We cover civil engineering, architectural designing, environmental engineering among other things. We do airports, roads, we cover all these areas. As far as the building projects are concerned, we have about 40 projects under construction in the uae and another 30 under design. In the civil part, including transportation, traffic and even landscape architecture, we have in total about 30 other projects. MS —
So you have a total of about 100 projects going on at this time…
Yes, and that’s only in the UAE branch. We have three design centers – one in Beirut, one in the UAE and one in Saudi Arabia. MS —
TR —
You’re head of design for the UAE, yes? What does that mean?
I am actually the director of the UAE office and a partner. Each partner is a director. So, I am director of all design – civil, architectural, electrical, mechanical – anything related to design. MS —
TR — MS —
Does that also mean conceptual design?
Everything, from the inception until tendering and awarding of contract.
Who are your biggest clients?
Now that the private sector has diminished, what you see now are the big, semi-public developers – Dubai Holding, Sama Dubai and Dubai Properties, and Tatweer, for example. On the other hand, we have Emaar and Union Properties, who is one of our excellent clients. MS —
What’s interesting here is that you say that private, smaller-scale clients… TR —
The development of the construction industry in this country passes through phases. Up until 1990 the private developer used to build with their own money. The projects were a maximum of 100 million dollars. Then from 1990 to 2000, these clients increased their budgets to 400 to 1,000 million dollars. Since 2000 onward, the big developers have become semi-public. They started building projects that were never below 500 million. This transformed the market. MS —
How did that affect Khatib & Alami? How did you adjust? Where did you get 2,000 architects and engineers? TR —
I’ll tell you. When I came to the emirates twenty years ago, we were thirty people. Two years ago, we were 1,500 people. Then in two years we increased by 500 people. Our company had to become a partnership. There used to be only two partners. Now we are eight partners. So the responsibility is distributed and spread among more people. MS —
TR —
Does this affect the work? Did the product change?
The product changed in terms of the size. I can give you an example. This project on Sheikh Zayed Road, which is for Union Properties [pointing to the drawing], was the first ‘high-rise building’ as you call it in the current terminology. It is about 45 stories high. Until three or four years ago, we had many projects on this side [pointing to the Great Pyramid] and a few projects here [pointing to the Eiffel Tower]. Last year we found that there were more projects coming to the side of the Eiffel Tower. [laughs] This year we have two towers higher than the Eiffel Tower. MS —
TR — MS —
AMO
TR —
TR —
Gulf Survey
In the UAE, we have four offices in four emirates: Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Sharjah and Fujairah. Mohammed Sadiyyah —
to us and this is why we have repeat clients for many, many years. We never lose clients.
Most of your work is in Dubai from this office?
Let me say, 85–95 percent.
So, Khatib & Alami has been able to develop itself not only as an architecture firm but also as a planning firm. And you oversee the planning as well as architecture? TR —
MS —
Yes.
Two of the things that are striking about Khatib & Alami are that it’s a regionally based firm and that it is able to produce built work very quickly. Has Khatib & Alami developed a certain system that enables them to do this? TR —
We are an ISO-9001 certified company in the UAE, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia. Beyond this we have our own quality system, which includes policies and procedures. The design has many procedures which govern the flow from the concept until building. Supervision also has its own procedures. So, I can say that we are very systematic in our production. We care very much for our customers. Customer relations is very important
Khatib & Alami skyline with Eiffel Tower and the Great Pyramid
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Khatib & Alami
MS —
TR —
You are an architect?
Why are there mountains here in the background? To give it a little bit of a character? How long did it take for you to get your concept approved? TR —
I am not an architect. I am an engineer. In the UAE we have a General Manager, who is above me. He is a partner also. He is my partner and my boss at the same time. I am the Head of Design. And I have a deputy. So the responsibility is spread. As far as the organization is concerned, we are well structured. MS —
Is it a help or a hindrance that you are a Lebanese-based firm?
It depends. Sometimes you will find that clients want international, foreign companies. Those same clients sometimes get stuck because the international companies aren’t here. On many occasions we have been called to take over a project. MS —
TR —
Do you ever work as the local architect for a foreign architect?
Yes. Do you know the Infinity Tower by SOM? We were more than ‘local’. They did the concept, and we did everything else. And we are now alone, supervising the job. MS —
TR —
Is this an annoying role, or is it one that you are willing to do?
Introducing…
TR — MS —
Do you also work on competitions?
Yes, like the Fairmont Hotel.
TR —
Who did you beat for that?
The Fairmont Hotel, Dubai
No, not really.
When I look at this and compare it to other projects by Khatib & Alami, it’s extremely different. TR —
It depends on the client. And this hotel won’t even be in this style. He said, ‘I want this one to have an Indian theme.’ after we had made the presentation. Now we are changing the hotel into an Indian theme. MS —
TR —
So the client did say that they wanted something more traditional?
The main developer has given each hotel a theme, which they specify, so that they don’t have similar themes. There are about 40 hotels, and they want each hotel to have its own theme. MS —
Why is it that Lebanon has so many good firms as opposed to other places? TR —
The education in Lebanon has been the best up until recently. We have the American University, which is the best university in the region. And we have the Lebanese University, which follows the French system, and the Arab University, which follows the Egyptian system. So you can see, American, French or Arab – to cater to a wide spectrum of market needs. MS —
TR —
But you say the ‘best up until recently’?
Because you can now see more universities coming to the region. Lebanon has the best, but new schools in the region are becoming a challenge, in Kuwait, the American University in Sharjah, the UAE University in Al Ain… MS —
[Meeting had to end with the arrival of an important client to Cityscape booth.]
Hotel for Palm Jumeirah, Dubai
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The Tower, Dubai
MS —
AMO
A lot of international firms. Tower Number One for Union Properties was also a design competition. Although UP was our client when they selected the winning design, they did not know that it was ours. They were surprised that it was us. Let me show you this job. This is a job for a Kuwaiti investor on Palm Jumeirah. Our contract was to do the design development for the selected architect, which I’m not going to name – international, American… The client didn’t like the concept which was presented to him. He was working with them for more than a year, and we were waiting for our turn when they’d finish their concept. We ended up taking over the project and changing the concept. MS —
Then it is more economical to go with you. One year with an international architect, three weeks with Khatib & Alami… Did the client ask for something with a more traditional look or feel?
Gulf Survey
We have played this role many times in many places. We have very good relations with the international firms, like SOM, HLW, HOK… MS —
This concept was done in three weeks. The client liked it very much.
TR —
TR
TR —
MS —
Interview
Babji Rao, KEO KEO’s steadfast reputation has grown beyond its start in Kuwait. It is one of the most successful Gulf-based consultancies today. Combining a subtle balance of international panache and local know-how, KEO has already sold its services beyond the Middle East, to China, Bulgaria and Uzbekistan.
knowledge base in all disciplines. Our young architects and engineers join us because they believe in an institution like a university – and they are not wrong as the knowledge flows freely among our professionals. Thirdly, we have a technical staff base, which itself creates a selfsupporting system among the people committed to the organization. We call ourselves the KEO Family. Once you join, you’re a KEO person, and then you’re always a KEO person. Even if you go away, you go only to come back to KEO. It’s professional loyalty. TR —
How has KEO been able to do that?
Our sustaining capability is tremendous. Most of our staff members make long-term careers here and KEO takes extreme care to provide a method for their professionals to follow a career development track. For example, this is my 28th year with KEO. By virtue of our long stay most of our staff know Kuwait physically and culturally. Meanwhile we associate with major international firms such as WATG, SOM, HOK and DAIQ on a project-to-project basis. And then we have people who have the experiences of working in other offices and countries. BR —
Todd Reisz —
First of all, can you tell us the scale of KEO International?
KEO is a completely multidisciplinary firm with about 1600 people right now. Pretty big for a consultancy. Our offices are located in Kuwait, Abu Dhabi, Al Ain, Dubai, Qatar, Bahrain as well as in Oman, Lebanon, and now in Ajman. Babji Rao —
TR —
So ten offices…
TR —
Which division is the biggest?
TR —
What is KEO’s vision for itself? Is it to be a kind of GCC professional?
It’s a professional, respectable organization in the region that is able to offer services of international quality and style along with the local knowledge. That’s what makes a difference. We belong here in GCC but at the same time, we can offer services with the same knowledge base and confidence as any international consulting firm. BR —
TR —
Why do you think that KEO has been so successful at this?
TR — BR —
So KEO will have worked on three GCC Palaces?
Yes.
TR —
Does KEO have a design policy?
Yes. What we have to do is an architecture that relates to this region, design with a contemporary thought using the most up-to-date technology. We really can’t go back to barjeels (wind towers). But projects are clientdriven, so you have to respect their style preference. BR —
TR —
What about the Souk Sharq in Kuwait?
This was one of the first projects implemented on a BOT (Build-Operate-Transfer) method in Kuwait. DAIQ from Boston prepared the initial concept and planning, then we transformed it completely to relate to the region. The ultimate image that came off was very much in keeping with Kuwait’s character. BR —
Do you think that this represents KEO’s design policy more than these glass towers? TR —
All the clients based here are trying to build a Manhattan. They want to build landmarks to stand out. They come here and tell you, ‘I want a landmark. I want the tallest building’, although the floor plate can only be 160 square meters. It may not really be what we want to do as architects, but we try to influence their ideas as much as possible and bring them to something of quality. BR —
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TR — BR —
And by ‘quality’ you mean connecting to the local culture?
Yes, and to heritage.
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Firstly, we have a progressive leadership at the top. Our organization is led by two professionals: our president Dr. Abdul Aziz Sultan, with a Ph.D. in civil engineering from the University of Michigan, and our CEO Donna Sultan. Both of them have a vision and commitment for the region and its culture and heritage. Secondly, we are a multidisciplinary organization equipped with a BR —
Yes, that’s simply because we belong to the region and are providing services of international standard for over 43 years. For example, we did the GCC Palace for Abu Dhabi in 2005, but we had already done a similar GCC Conference Center (Bayan Palace) for Kuwait in 1982. We have a past related experience for any project type. Currently, we’re working on refurbishing the existing Al Bustan Palace Hotel in Oman for the GCC conference to be held in December 2007. BR —
AMO
KEO can offer all services needed in the development industry under one roof. Naturally, the design division is big, but PM/CM has been growing recently. In the design division, we provide master planning, urban design, architectural design, interior and graphic design, landscape architectural design and structural, HVAC, plumbing, fire protection and electrical engineering services. In infrastructure we provide engineering services in the planning and design of various water-related systems. Initially, we did the infrastructure master plan for the whole state of Kuwait, out of which all of the wastewater treatment plant projects were generated. We designed and supervised the construction of four major ones. Then our third unit, PM/CM division is providing services to major projects in the region, including Qatar Education City and Qatar Energy City. BR —
It also seems that there’s something about KEO’s image, which seems both international and local. TR —
Gulf Survey
Introducing…
Yes, including a liaison office in Washington DC though we don’t do any projects in the US. Our projects are spread out all over the Gulf region. In terms of services, there are three business units: KEO design, KEO Infrastructure and KEO Project and Construction Management (PM/CM). All three units are very strong with their own and related fields and are managed by professionals with vast experience and knowledge in the industry. BR —
TR —
The speed of design is unbelievable.
It is very true especially in this region. We have the capacity to deliver projects with record speed and to meet stringent deadlines. Abu Dhabi Emirates Palace and the Pearl Qatar are two of our finest projects we delivered in record time. BR —
Earlier you called this project ‘brand new’, but you already have a rendering of it. TR —
Yes, we can do it just like that. [snaps his fingers] ‘Brand new’ means a couple of weeks old. KEO is completely up to date in technology. Our offices and our construction sites are completely networked. I sit here today working in Kuwait, then in 20 days I press a button and print out at the office for submission deadlines in Abu Dhabi. We can say two or three weeks for business. We usually prepare two options for what we call a ‘design workshop’. BR —
TR —
How long does it take you to get through to conceptual design?
Introducing…
Speediness made possible only with your local understandings and know-how… TR —
‘A integrated approach to the assembling of consultancy teams – ensuring they interact with project managers and market researchers will ensure diversity in planning and built form outcomes and an authentic realization of His Highness vision of “world’s best practice”.’ ‘Welcome to this mad part of the world.’ We are greeted with what will soon turn out to be the standard greeting of the many consultants in the peer review of a large urban project. Apart from a few locals, the overwhelming majority of review participants are of Western origin. Initial presentations include dissertations on examples of ‘timeless urbanism’ in Brisbane, East Perth and Sydney. Panel members bicker over what is the appropriate style for the new city: should it be Islamic, neo-Mediterranean, hybrid or contemporary? But in one respect all members of the peer review panel find themselves in complete agreement: to make a good masterplan there are ‘MANY HANDS REQUIRED’. With consultancy now a self-propelling, multi-billion dollar business, one wonders what other conclusion could be reached… The main problem of the whole operation actually seems to be the reviews themselves. It is disheartening to see how each new version of the plan is essentially weaker than the one it replaces. The “plan” is the result of a random sequence of subjective interventions. The logic of each is virtually impossible to reconstruct. In the discussions – as in the initial greeting – there is much talk about the supposed madness of this part of the world. But if the peer review is anything to go by, one wonders who the real authors of the madness are. To what extent is the madness that almost all consultants refer to a madness of their own making? – RdG
Gulf Survey
That depends – we usually prepare two options following a ‘design workshop’ with client participation. But as you know clients will never say, ‘I want Concept A or B’. They will say, ‘I want something from A and something from B, maybe even C.’ That’s how it goes. Generally, it takes four to six weeks to get through concept design. BR —
February 10, 2007
Yes, we belong here and we are here to stay with many more professionals joining our KEO Family. BR —
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Entrance of Souk Sharq, Kuwait
Interview
Rory Hopkins, WATG
TR — RH —
This means that you have to constantly one-up yourself…
Yes, but it keeps us on our toes.
Doesn’t it eventually become absurd, or do you find that there is a certain amount of integrity that comes with the one-upping? TR —
Yeah, it gets harder every time because you always have to do better than you did before. But it hasn’t become completely outlandish yet. A project we are working on right now in Oman is very much in the Omani palace style and in keeping with Omani architecture. RH —
Rory Hopkins was the project architect for Wimberly Allison Tong & Goo’s design of the Emirates Palace in Abu Dhabi. Based in London, he lived in Abu Dhabi for three years to see through the execution of the design in time for the 2005 Gulf Cooperation Council Summit. WATG, London-based international design firm, specializes in leisure, hospitality and entertainment projects.
TR — RH —
You are an architect?
Yes.
TR —
Are you based in the Middle East?
I’m back in London now. I’ve worked out of London for some time. But I lived in Abu Dhabi for three years while the Emirates Palace was being built. I don’t like doing a bit of a project and then letting it go. I like to start and take it to the finish. I worked on the design of Emirates Palace from the London office, then moved to Abu Dhabi to complete it and ran the site for WATG. There were maybe 120 consultants on the site. We did quality control as well, making sure that our original concept design was being carried through right there. RH —
Todd Reisz —
First of all, I’d like to know how you got the Emirates Palace project.
Introducing…
I understand that this is more than a hotel. Was that Sheikh Khalifa’s idea? TR —
About quality control, Abu Dhabi seems to project a culture of restrained luxury. There’s an ability for luxury to unroll or unfurl out of control. Do you find yourself, as an architect, ever having to roll it back up? TR —
It was originally conceived for the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) conference in December 2005. Then during design development, it came up that they could also use it to house the Arab League Council when they were in town. With the GCC and the Arab League, there are so many people who have to be attended to in such an order and hierarchy. You have grand suites, normal suites, and normal guest rooms. The Emirates Palace was designed firstly as a palace for the GCC conference, so it wasn’t really designed to operate as a hotel.
Gulf Survey
We were invited to the competition held by Sheikh Khalifa. The Sheikh had been to the Mövenpick Hotel in Jordan, which we had designed, and he enjoyed it. The Emirates Palace project was a collaboration with KEO, a Kuwaiti firm. We did the architecture right up until construction; they did a lot of the engineering and services. We didn’t do the interiors or landscaping. KEO eventually took over the initial idea of landscaping, which we had done in the master plan. Rory Hopkins —
RH —
AMO
I read that other emirates had seen this hotel and wanted the same kind of design. Is it becoming a concept? TR —
We’ve been approached by others. Each emirate and each Arab country likes to do or have something similar. They say, ‘We like it, but we want something different and better.’ RH —
TR —
Is it like a state guesthouse?
No, it’s like a national monument but open to the public. The Emirates Palace is a government-funded building; it’s the first government palace that the public can enjoy and is allowed to enter, as long as they can pay. I think that’s a first for anywhere in the Middle East. TR —
Does this reflect some of your office’s work for high-end luxury?
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Emirates Palace, Abu Dhabi, UAE
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Yes, the main work we do is luxury hotels and leisure resorts, such as the Palace of the Lost City in Sun City, South Africa and Atlantis in the Bahamas. We’re now doing the Atlantis in Dubai. It was back in the 1990s that we worked on the Royal Mirage and the Ritz Carlton, which were among the first hotels to be built in Dubai that acknowledged the vernacular of the Gulf region. There was nothing back then of this detail and quality. RH —
www.emiratespalace.com/en/ExteriorPic.htm on 30 march, 2007
RH —
Yes, it’s just briefing the clients and making sure that they understand that what we’re designing is in their best interest. But I think everybody agrees that Abu Dhabi has been a great success. The Emirates Palace has put them on the map. People picture the Emirates Palace exactly as it is, even if they don’t exactly know where Abu Dhabi is. RH —
TR —
Why do they notice it?
The building has become such an icon, like Burj Al Arab has become an icon for Dubai. This is what Abu Dhabi wanted. They are more traditional. I think they’ve got it right. They’re a lot richer than Dubai, a lot more traditional and a lot more restrained. RH —
Mövenpick Dead Sea, Amman, Jordan
Courtesy of WATG
Gulf Survey
Introducing…
Back in the 1990s we worked on the first hotels to be built in Dubai that acknowledged the vernacular of the Gulf region. There was nothing back then of this detail and quality.
Atlantis at Palm Jumeirah, Dubai (model, Nakheel offices in Dubai)
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www.the2mikes.com/Cruiste%20May%202005.htm
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Atlantis Bahamas, Bahamas
Document
Cityscape 2006 Report
Gulf Survey
Botch: A Call to Design
For three days in December 2006, Dubai hosted one of the world’s largest real estate fairs. Dedicated mostly to development proposals along the Arabian Coast and in the Arabic world, the annual event is increasingly attractive to more international projects, ready to display their proposals to a public eager to invest. Open and free to everyone who can present a business card, the Cityscape event is at once high-risk seriousness and frivolous entertainment. Comic relief, music, light shows and robot performances are fair game in attracting the roaming public. Private rooms behind display booths shelter sensitive sales negotiations, but it is impossible to conceal all the deals. Salespersons, sometimes clad in uniforms similar to flight attendants, cannot make potential customers wait for a free room. Negotations become part of the spectacle; awkward moments of deal-making, guarded price lists forgotten on display models. Investors are no longer men in dark suits; they are dentists, retirees-to-be, even families who carry the bags of information catalogues as if they are spending a day at the mall. The comparison is not one missed by developers. A trip to any mall in Dubai also affords the chance to invest: Cityscape booths fit nicely in malls opposite outlets for Zara or Chanel.
1. D ubai Towers Dubai, having introduced its concept ‘Dubai Towers’ to Istanbul, Doha and Casablanca, Sama Dubai returns the concept to its source. No architect of record at the exhibition
AMO
2. Najmat the Natural Choice. ‘Natural’ because it is a development on a naturally-occurring island in Abu Dhabi
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Disclaimer for IPad Tower, by Omniyat Properties. As apparently expected, design has since been modified for subsequent real estate fairs
9. Tyrannosaurus rex which has become the perplexing mascot of City of Arabia, Dubailand
12. Better Homes real estate agency invites world citizens to become educated consumers
4. Omniyat Properties served investment opportunities, robot entertainment and beverages (served by a robot)
7. The robot performance held every couple hours at Omniyat Properties. Chairs at other booths served merely as stools for the crowds further back
10. E maar’s model for King Abdullah Economic City, Saudi Arabia.
13. H alcrow’s presence as one of many expert firms looking to interact with aspiring developers
5. The Palisades, where ‘the legacy of an era lives on.’ Women in Victorian dresses served beverages to visitors of the full-scale bandstand
8. Model for Nujoom Island, Sharjah. Marketed as a new town with a ‘harmonized’ lifestyle – a focus on traditional Islamic family values
11. Beverages and diversion at Cityscape
14. Detailed modeling for Dubailand theme park, Aqua Dunya
Gulf Survey
6. One of the most visited stands at Cityscape: City of Arabia in Dubailand. The giant model served as fantastical sales counter
Botch: A Call to Design
3. Cityscape booth for Zaha Hadid Architects. Touching is encouraged
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21. Culture Village, Dubai. Beyond the expected mix of residenital, resort and commercial development, the ‘Soul of Dubai’ will include cultural institutions, schools, academies for art, music, dance, pottery and other crafts
24. Moutamarat’s IDF stand
16. I Pad by Omniyat Properties. An insertion of gadgetry fetishism into architecture. Inspiration apparent but architect unnamed
19. Symbolism not lost. International Real Estate and Business Center, by Bonyan Properties. Location not revealed at Cityscape
22. Silicon Gates as part of the Silicon Oasis development project, where luxury living meets technology park. Traditional style with modern amenities
25. Diyar Najd Special Projects. Contractors and developers from Saudi Arabia
17. M usic and movement performance for Yas Island, Abu Dhabi, which will include a Ferrari-branded theme park
20. Non-stop musical entertainment at Emaar’s travertine-clad display
23. Emirates Industrial City: to maintain the Emirate of Sharjah’s prominence in industrial development
26. Inspiring backdrops of imaginary landscapes for casual conversations
Gulf Survey
18. H igh-brow entertainment, provided by one developer
Botch: A Call to Design
15. Al Kaheel, a Dubailand development featuring equestrian-themed resorts and living
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Gulf Skyline What is left to be invented when it comes to the creation of a landmark? So far the 21st century – in a desperate effort to make one building stand out from the next – has been characterized by a manic production of extravagant shapes. Paradoxically, the result is a surprisingly monotonous urban substance, where any attempt at ‘difference’ is instantly neutralized in a sea of meaningless architectural gestures.
Gulf Survey
Botch: A Call to Design Norr Group
WS Atkins
Architect unknown
Architect unknown
Farayand AEC
Zaha Hadid
WS Atkins
National Engineering Bureau
OMA/Rem Koolhaas
WS Atkins
KEO
Architect unknown
Aedas
WS Atkins
Norman Foster
Norr Group Consultants Int. Ltd
WS Atkins
Architect unknown
Arquitectonica
Architect unknown
Architectural Services International, Inc.
Pei Partnership Architects
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Norr Group
KEO
Eric R Kuhne & Associates
Architect unknown
Santiago Calatrava
WS Atkins
Borja Huidobro/Atelier 4 Architects
Shankland Cox
WS Atkins
Jean Nouvel
RMJM
WS Atkins
Architect unknown
Architect unknown
SOM
Cadiz International
Dar Al-Handasah
OMA/Rem Koolhaas
KEO
WS Atkins
AMO
SOM
Gulf Survey
Botch: A Call to Design
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Interview
Wake Up
— Sheikh Majed Al Sabah Wants to Save Cities
Sheikh Majed Al Sabah’s passion for fashion first emerged when he encountered the tailoring genius of Comme des Garçons and Yohji Yamamoto as a teenager. His Villa Moda brand, a series of high fashion stores throughout the Middle East, has grown to become an international phenomenon. At the convening of The Arab Strategy Forum organized by Moutamarat in Dubai, Al Sabah spoke with Rem Koolhaas.
the bazaars from around this region. That is the model for me. When you consider the souk and the bazaar, they are the most enduring experiences of shopping… the chaos, the lack of uniformity, the ability to touch and taste and smell. That is the philosophy that I would like to implement in my retail environment, but when it comes to established luxury brands, they are still protective of their image. When it comes to my outside world, I like for it to be chaotic, to use the influence of the bazaars and the souks from all around the world. RK —
I think, from a philosophical point of view, the most inspiring are in Damascus, Isfahan, Istanbul and Teheran. Not Dubai. So you are mostly talking about places where the market economy has barely entered…. RK —
SM —
Last night at The Arab Strategy Forum, you were very outspoken about current urban development in the Gulf. You could start perhaps with giving your general opinion about the Gulf’s development as a whole. Rem Koolhaas —
So far yes, but my voice is getting heard. In Kuwait, I’m trying to get involved through specific government institutions. I’m trying to convince them to bring in quality architecture within their new projects. They will end up paying the same thing regardless of which architect – sometimes paying even much less for quality architects. It’s been a proven experience from my retail side. The government and the decision-makers started to see that: ‘Okay, you have succeeded in what you wanted to do; it’s a very good model, very successful. Why can’t you come and help us?’ SM —
RK —
What is your model?
Fortunately, we’ve avoided that kind of kitsch. You have to be innovative and diverse. To be creative. That’s the key. In our philosophy, when we make any decision, we like to be innovative, but we also like to work with quality architects. SM —
But the problem is that everyone thinks of him/herself as incredibly diverse and innovative… RK —
They market themselves to be incredibly diverse and different. There are so many beautiful projects, which I’m sure you bump into, especially the old 60s-inspired buildings here and there. But these projects are not marketed. Today the hype is to put Andre Agassi on the heliport, announce ‘This is it!’ and run commercials all around the world. Here, that is a building. This has happened as a kind of default in the absence of real architecture. The way to overcome such a thing is to always ask a quality architect… and to give them the right briefing and the right direction and ask them not to copy others. I once invited Philippe Starck for a brainstorm. I told Philippe that people from the Gulf go abroad – to Europe, to America – and there they enjoy shopping. Most of the shopping experiences in the European or Western countries happen on streets. You can see this on Avénue Montaigne, Via Monte Napoleone, Fifth Avenue, etc. So, how can we create a street which is luxurious, beautiful, different, and compatible with the Middle Eastern world? That was the challenge – to avoid the shopping mall. SM —
What kind of criticism do you think is effective in this world? Yesterday you were amazingly blunt. You even addressed corruption. What vehicles do you think we can develop to address this situation? How can designers address this kind of environment? RK —
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The decision-makers – the government and businessmen – they need direction. They are misled by events like Cityscape1, ‘Oh, there’s something called Cityscape. We have to go there so that we can see what the others are doing, and then we can do the same.’ If quality architects and quality projects come together under one SM —
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My model is in the fashion business. I am very bored by shopping malls and department stores. So, the idea that I do is to come up with the environment itself. I’m not a mono-brand; I’m a multi-brand. When I come to design a space, I always like to take influence from the souks and SM —
So you have been able, you think, to avoid the same kind of kitsch transplant that happened here [at the Madinat Jumeirah]?
AMO
How do you see that kind of opinion – to be completely expressive about what is going on in the Gulf – taken by other people? Does it start to register with others at some point? Have you been on a one-man campaign? RK —
Yes.
RK —
Gulf Survey
Botch: A Call to Design
The Middle East has been experiencing an appalling status, when it comes to architecture. Ever since the 1970s, we keep seeing that there is sometimes very good direction – that there are invitations from the government for well-known architects from around the world to come and be involved in some of their projects. Nevertheless, in the 80s and the 90s, we started seeing a decline in architecture and design. We kept on seeing people take models of existing cities and projects – from different cities in Asia or in America, for instance. They would say, ‘This is a beautiful project in Las Vegas or in Hong Kong. Let’s do the cut-and-paste idea, or use the same kind of theme.’ So that’s why I feel that what is needed is a wake-up call for all the decision-makers: ‘Look, what is happening is quite appalling and disastrous, so why can’t we fix that?’ Sheikh Majed —
Which souks do you think are the most representative?
SM —
umbrella, and I can lead it and say, ‘Governments, real-estate developers and companies, come. This is what we feel that Kuwait should look like… or Qatar should look like.’ It takes an effort to put such a thing together, but at least we have a voice. The voice of Cityscape has brainwashed the decision-makers. RK —
What about corruption? How direct and open can you be about that?
Well, it’s the ministries who make the decisions when it comes to architects, designers, or planners. The minister himself is obliged to take a message to the Council of Ministers, in order to address the decision-makers. Under the minister, there are people who are short-listing or approaching architects. For example, if there is a big project in Kuwait, and they would say within the ministry, ‘We are going to shortlist some architects. Let’s see who designed the Madinat Jumeirah in Dubai; who designed the King Abdullah City for Emaar in Saudi Arabia.’ Then, someone from the ministry calls prospective architects and says, ‘You will be on the shortlist, provided that x commission is given to me.’ That’s the corruption. SM —
RK —
Is it your ambition to move beyond commercial?
Yes.
RK —
So what would be the next level of your ambition?
I think master planning…master planning of new cities. Remember, the entire Middle East and Gulf region is totally underdeveloped. There are so many aggressive plans from all of these governments to plan new cities, to develop new areas, new zones. So, why can’t we try to take one of their new plans and make it into a model? SM —
RK —
‘Live your dream… Imagination becomes reality… History rising… A place that lives… Delivering distinction… Real estate with real deadlines… Call it home by calling… We think out of the box so you don’t have to live in one…’ To what extent have the disciplines of urbanism and marketing merged? Once urban plans were designed to accommodate the masses, today the masses have to be seduced. If 25 years ago urban plans were still produced to cater to an actual demographic necessity – a more or less delayed response to a more or less urgent need, today urban plans are designed to attract the very population they are planning for. During the last thirty years, almost anywhere in the world, the initiative to build the city has been transferred to the private sector. The discipline of urbanism now must give shape to developments whilst at the same time it finds itself entirely at the mercy of the market to make those developments happen. Rather than organizing and giving form to a known quantum of clearly defined uses, the task at hand becomes the accommodation of an imagined future: to preempt an urban experience while the precise substance of that experience remains as of yet undefined. The primary challenge is to be vague and explicit at the same time. The consequences of this shift have largely left the profession of urbanism in limbo. It is as though the ethic of thorough analysis and accurate planning has become worthless overnight. In its place have come advertisement slogans and marketability analysis. Renderings precede plans, the sale of land precedes the planning of infrastructure, the image precedes the substance… for every engineer there are a hundred sales representatives. – RdG
Gulf Survey
Botch: A Call to Design
SM —
February 13, 2007
Are you speaking specifically of Kuwait?
I’m speaking about Kuwait and beyond. When it comes to making decisions on architects and designers in the Middle East, there are no leaders – only followers. SM —
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Sheikh Majed Al Sabah at The Arab Strategy Forum organized by Moutamarat, Dubai, December 2006
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1. Cityscape is the annual property investment and development exhibition and conference held at Dubai’s World Trade Center
Theo Deutinger
Simplicity™ Highest quality awesome pure exclusive island community ideal urban community straight most exclusive brands substantial full exhilaration of the city awesome design solutions objective peaceful environment vibrant atmosphere predictable most exclusive stunning views ultimate privacy original wonderland of beaches integrity, transparency and efficiency honest ultimate holiday destination unprecedented dynamism ultimate address unique financial services fair new reference point for the world.
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Botch: A Call to Design
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Interview
Vernacular is a Mirror
— Yasser Mahgoub on Kuwaiti Architecture
An architect and scholar from Cairo, Dr. Yasser Mahgoub is currently an assistant professor of architecture in Kuwait University’s Department of Architecture. After completing his doctoral degree at the University of Michigan, Dr. Mahgoub held teaching positions in Egypt and at UAE University in Al Ain (Abu Dhabi) before joining the faculty in Kuwait. He is currently involved with the professional community in Kuwait and was involved in the founding of the Kuwaiti League of Architects. Can you describe how things have transformed in Kuwait since the end of the First Gulf War? Todd Reisz —
Yes, and people are finding opportunities to invest more and do more. But there is also the urgency to upgrade the traffic system and to build new communities. The third master plan was revised recently and I think that the municipality is now going to implement it. Major projects are under way: the Subiya new town, the New University City in Shedadiya, the Failaka Island and the other islands development projects, the regional train line, and the interstate highway between Gulf countries. These projects will have a big impact on the country. YM —
TR —
Is there such a thing as Kuwait architecture?
Being visionary while maintaining certain self-restraint – can we say this is one kind of tradition in Kuwaiti architecture? TR —
Yes, I can say that, in general, it is. But, there is currently too much bureaucracy that is holding back the speed of development in comparison to other Gulf countries. While it’s a good thing that everybody is participating in the decision process, projects don’t go as fast as other places like Dubai, Bahrain, or Qatar. There is an exhausting bureaucratic process that projects have to go through. They have to be reviewed and approved by many governmental agencies, whereas in other Gulf countries decisions are made much faster by smaller bodies of authority. The bureaucratic process has an impact on how projects are implemented and procured. YM —
TR — YM —
So the proposal of Silk City is more of an exception than the rule?
Yes.
What do you think about Kuwaitis’ openness now to projects like Silk City? TR —
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Silk City is adjacent to Subiya City, which is approved and is going to be implemented soon. Because Silk City was not part of the scope of the current master plan, they are trying to bring the two ideas together. They require coordination because Silk City is a private organization while Subiya City is developed by the government. So they are trying to see what they can do about the two. YM —
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People refer to traditional and vernacular buildings as the only true Kuwaiti architecture. I think that is a misconception. As I see it, architecture is a mirror of society. Like any other vernacular architecture, it was a pure reflection of the conditions and the social needs of a time. It reflects what is going on and what has happened in the past. The ‘vernacular’ and the ‘traditional’ are a reflection of a particular time and conditions. Today’s architecture is also Kuwaiti architecture. For example, mud bricks and stones YM —
Yes, Kenzo Tange was commissioned to design the airport building. At that time an intellectual, cultured group of people were running the municipality. They were open to new suggestions and opinions. They wanted to see the world and wanted the world to see them and interact with them. Yet they had their own values and were aware that they had conditions that should be respected. For example, Hamid Shuaib, the first Kuwaiti architect to graduate from a university in the West, was working in the municipality and participated positively in selecting and implementing projects. Saba George Shiber was appointed as a consultant for the municipality and participated in monitoring the progress of the implementation of the master plan. YM —
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Do you think that the optimism comes from Kuwaitis simply feeling comfortable with asserting themselves? TR —
In the early years, modernism wasn’t necessarily coming from the West but also from the East, specifically Japan. It is exciting to think that the government was clearly aware of architecture’s true potential at that time. TR —
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Things are changing fast, not only since the liberation of Kuwait in 1991 but also in the last few years with the regime change in Iraq. There is a feeling of optimism in the country and a greater sense of security about the future. New projects are constantly being introduced, and so are chances to compete equally with other countries like the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Bahrain. And this optimism is being accommodated with changes of building regulations that allow high-rise buildings, first from 40 floors to 70, and now up to 100 floors. Kuwait is a dynamic, hybrid society, and is changing fast. The impact of globalization is approaching the country in a different way than before. It is more positive now whereas it was more negative in the 90s. Of course, consumer culture and the exposure to other cultures have been continuing. Yasser Mahgoub —
were local materials, but wood had to be imported from India or Africa. After the discovery of oil, more resources became available to build in new ways. New expertise came in, and different ideas were imported from other parts of the world. People were able to go abroad and visit other places and come back with their own ideas about what they want and what architecture should be. It was at this point in Kuwaiti history that the first master plan was made. What I call ‘hyper identity’ or ‘hybridity’ has changed architecture from its primitive, vernacular and traditional condition to a more vibrant and changing one, reflecting the people’s ambitions, what they want to be, what they are, and their history. It’s an overlap of many layers of meaning that does not allow us to look at each one separately.
If we consider monumental buildings in Kuwait – like the National Assembly by Jørn Utzon or the Ministry of Information by Raili and Reima Pietilä, have they become Kuwaiti, or are they still seen as foreign bodies? TR —
They have become part of the landscape and the collage of styles that is present in Kuwait. They are not understood by everyone, but definitely by specialists, as representing part of Kuwaiti architecture history. YM —
But beyond the collage effect, have they had a more resonating effect on what Kuwaiti architecture is? TR —
I don’t think so, because Kuwaiti architecture is always changing. Everybody agrees that before oil there was pure Kuwaiti architecture. But after that, there have been many changes and forces that are still pushing and pulling people between their modernism and postmodernism. You find dissention between being modern and being traditional. At a recent seminar this issue of identity was discussed. Some of the practicing architects said that we shouldn’t be concerned about the matter at all. We should just do what we think is functional and technically advanced. We should be part of the human condition; we should try to advance with others and not separate from them. Others disagree and say ‘no, we should adapt technology and human thinking to our own cultural background and values.’ People have to look inward and see who they are in order to be able to deal with others, and how to hold to the values and culture while benefiting from technology and advancement in new lifestyle. At the end, you will find that most architects are being influenced by the economy and clients. One particular Kuwaiti phenomenon is Saleh Al Mutawa. He is a developer and architect. He has built many buildings here in Kuwait, and they represent his vision of what ‘Kuwaiti architecture’ should be.
Salmiya Palace Hotel and an Italian shopping mall (a separate development) built ca. 2000 Saleh Al Mutawa
TR —
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Khaled Adham
YM —
Do you like his architecture?
I study it. It’s a case worth studying. He’s influential and has resources to build his own buildings. So, he is there, active and building. He is a graduate of the US, and has written a book about his vision and buildings. But other architects don’t like it at all. They think that it is copying and pasting and that it is a Disneyland. Some people look at identity as a negative thing that’s separating Kuwait from the rest of humanity and a way of ‘labeling’ Kuwait. In my opinion, there is no one answer to the question of identity. It’s very difficult to find a cause-effect relationship between architecture and identity. Instead, there are context and conditions. A historical moment is happening.
New development encircling old Kuwaiti houses off of Arabian Gulf Street
National Assembly Complex by Jørn Utzon
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Salhiya architecture (scheduled for demolition)
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Kuwait Petroleum Company Building
Courtesy: Center for Research and Studies on Kuwait
YM —
Architect/developer Saleh Al Mutawa brings Arabic reference (the objects of which are likely to be purchased in Egypt) to modern comfort at the Salmiya Palace Hotel, Kuwait City. His hotel towers off the Arabian Gulf Street are the two most shocking towers in Kuwait City, defying both contemporary minimalism and the harmonized traditional. Al Mutawa himself keeps a balustraded office on the ground floor lobby – despite its central position, it is only one space in the hyperactively charged arcade. Does he keep his office there so that he can measure the pulse of the people?
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Essay Todd Reisz
Market Narrows — A Visit to the Souk
Souk: From Arabic قوُس, sūq, from Aramaic, šūqā (‘street’, ‘market’); from Akkadian sūqu (‘street’), from sāqu (‘narrow’, ‘squeeze’). Agora: Greek αγείρειν meaning ‘to gather’, ‘to collect,’ ‘large place’
1. Perhaps why agoraphobia is both the fear of crowds and of large spaces.
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2. Holden, David. Farewell to Arabia. 1966
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Nighttime is the time for shopping in Kuwait’s souk: the temperature is lower and the chance of a cool breeze is higher. Night also ensures a strangely temporal scene, a typical street dissociated from its everyday feel. Light is fluorescent-bright, but it quickly subsides to an impenetrable darkness – sharp white to gold and then to black. What extra light there is for atmospheric effect sheds a soft golden tint on external surfaces – like dirt roads and new paving bricks, glimpses of the pitched ceilings above. Despite the fact that layers of city exist above the shops, at night they disappear as if Kuwait were still a one-story village. Fellow shoppers remain in cool shadows – an urban community but one that provides the ease of privacy. Translating souk to ‘market’ misses an urban nuance, because market implies a distinct space – like agora. Whereas agora implies the ‘gathering, assembling’ of unused space into a definable void or center 1, souk’s mercantile roots come from ‘narrow’ and ‘street,’ an attenuated alternative to a Western version of market – easily inhabiting portions of the city not ‘gathered’ but ‘squeezing’ into underused space. Agora is destination; souk is more like city – it streams out and occupies the ground level of a city; it seeps underground functioning like a nervous system. Display is at once artless and captivating. Every surface within a stall is covered with at least two layers of merchandise – even the inner sides of open doors and door jambs are real estate too prime to ignore. No shop can be fully inspected. There is always something your eyes miss. No matter how many shoppers there are, there is still a certain dignity to shopping. Crossing from one covered street to another can signify a world of difference – in terms of products and also atmosphere. A quick turn in an alley will place you in Kuwait’s center of Arabic perfumes, and around the next corner the souk is a dusty road where dates and figs are sold by twenty different vendors – each obeying a presentation custom of mountains of the fruits broken in a way so that you can easily taste the products. More renovated streets of the souk are paved with ceramic tiles, much like the produce section of a supermarket. These spaces are teeming with South Asian men waiting to be hired to push your purchases in their carts. On other roads marked with potholes and broken rocks, these modern inventions
can hardly be maneuvered, in a way that says modern conveniences are not encouraged. Souk streets determine their preferred shoppers. Cities touched with the modern tendencies of market forces see their souk cultures deform and dwindle, perhaps to return as a nostalgic, selfconscious aftermath. First crumbling into devastated outlets where little is on sale, then tourism development grabs hold of souk’s romantic notions and rebuilds a tourist’s paradise of exotic variation, but selling only the expected: packaged incense to bring home; knickknack souvenirs; beach toys and cheap sandals. Where capitalism has hardly had its way, the souks have maintained an authentic nod to past trade customs and the protocol of gestural bartering. Kuwait’s souk sits comfortably between worlds. In a constant play between public and private, the souk challenges what is open space and closed. Narrow streets open to a larger space. This is a coffee shop as much as an urban square, as it is a closed courtyard. Several streets – filled with vegetables, home goods, clothing and perfumes – converge on this essential space. The café business seems neither to own the courtyard nor be franchised public space – they exist only with each other. In 1966, a travel writer noted that the ‘ragged old souk had mostly vanished’.2 The mud bricks and rusty corrugated steel of earlier days are now all gone. Ever since the 1950s, Kuwait has tried in numerous ways to update its souk. What remains are various manifestations of modernism, rejected and revised. More diversion and discovery.
1. The Left Alone. Stores built in the 1950s from concrete and brick to replace the mud brick stalls – they have seemingly transformed themselves back into what they once were – a patina of wear and resistance returns ancientness. The roads in these areas are dirt. These are the areas where a stillness is obvious.
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2. The Modernized. Parts of the souk show the obvious signs of modernization, that is, opened up by the broadening of streets and clear demarcation of sidewalks from roads. American Main Streets. Car traffic is let in and encouraged. Stores get bigger, so do their signage because it can be read from a greater distance. Double parking traffic jams so that traffic doesn’t go too fast. Honking and waving. Another kind of street life.
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3. The Reinstated. Sometimes modernism is embraced. At other times it is swallowed by a stronger, more ancient order. Storefront shops unfold out onto designated sidewalks, opening facades to be extensions, if not replacements, for interior spaces. Shoppers are then directed to walk in roads. The squeezing of modern voids to a minimum; souk makes an etymological return to ‘narrow.’
4. The Rebuilt. After the Gulf War, the souk experienced its own ‘Kuwaitization.’ Traditional mud brick stalls are visually reintroduced as concrete block stained mud-brown, with fresh new wood and iron cast street lamps, like those from a Dickens-era movie set.
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5. The Bedouin’s Return. Modernizing Kuwait saw a need to accommodate cars. Souks and old buildings were torn down for new developments and parking lots. If these modern voids are not rightly filled with the new, souk vendors return with shed-like islands – an electric-light oasis in the middle of a dark vacancy. The vendors here sell light merchandise – canvas bags, tin teapots, light bulbs. There is the feeling everything could stay for years or be moved out tomorrow.
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Reflections on a Regional Narrative
— An Architecture on Gulf Sensibility
Born in Jerusalem in 1945, Rasem Badran received his education in Ramallah and later in Germany, where he graduated in Architecture in 1970. His practice, Dar al-Omran, formed together with engineer Laith Shubeilat, is based in Amman, Jordan. In 1995, Badran was a recipient of the Aga Khan Award for Architecture for the Great Mosque of Riyadh and the Redevelopment of the Old City Centre.
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Through my work, I have persistently pursued a dialogue containing social patterns that define this region and respond to its unique environmental conditions. A new perception of physical space is generated, which rehabilitates communal values, through understanding the level of perception of the inhabitants and the users. An intelligent living network can then balance between the material and the spiritual. My experience with architecture has involved a search for an environment that responds to the essential characteristics of the Gulf region and the community patterns that have evolved over time. Our proposal for the Museum of Islamic Arts in Qatar, for example, narrates the story of the city through the institutionalization of the museum structure, based on a micro-urban concept. My architecture is influenced by the cultural and religious values of Islam. It engages the dialogue between public and private by the juxtaposition of the introverted family within an extroverted
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society bound to traditional values. This social pattern has been merely enhanced through the everyday life in the public domain, and experienced by walking through the alleys of this living fabric of most Arab cities. New urban approaches should provoke traditional social behavior, encouraging the user’s imagination both to interact with spaces and to seek their social ties. The outcome must be an unfinished pattern that interacts continuously with the surrounding conditions. This can be clearly perceived in some of my office’s modest models of approach, such as the Grand Mosque in Riyadh and King Abdul Aziz Museum complex (Al-DaraRiyadh), which are approached through the urban socio-cultural identity in which the concept of an old city is revitalized and renovated. Nonetheless, we can’t deny the vertical growth that the city is witnessing. The approach towards verticality, however, is based on statements rather than events. Verticality must explore the idea of continuous additions through time, not as final manufactured objects. References to these modular additions can be inspired from our own urban inheritance of cities, such as Sana’a and Hadramout. This approach to the vertical can guide our understanding of the term ‘high-rise buildings’ beyond the limited benefits it provides today. My architectural proposals reveal my attempt to reach an epistemological model to prevent our cities from becoming abandonments where the elderly await the inevitable and final end, where the child looks outward at uncertainty.
Essay Dr. Rasem Badran
The Grand Mosque in Riyadh
Hafeet project in Al Ain
Courtesy of Dar Al Omran
Courtesy of Dar Al Omran
Courtesy of Dar Al Omran
Proposal for Museum of Islamic Arts Qatar
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Courtesy of Dar Al Omran
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Urban fabric of the old city of Isfahan
Interview
They Will Come to the Desert
— Al Areen Holding Company Creates an Oasis
During the days of Cityscape Al Areen Holding Company’s general manager Waleed Ishaq Saffy shared insight about the company’s largest Bahraini project, the pseudonymous Al Areen, located a short drive from the urban sprawl of Bahrain’s capital Manama. On a development map of the Gulf, Al Areen stands out as an isolated oasis in the desert, without expectation of any other development to connect it to the most coveted development asset – coastline. What kind of strategy was behind this daring move?
This portion of the island was purposely developed in order to utilize a desert environment that doesn’t have beachfront. Before the Formula One racetrack came to Bahrain, there was no development at all on this part of the island. After having seen a lot of attraction come in for Formula One, we thought of developing the desert area adjacent to it. Initiators of the development had the idea of bringing in Banyan Tree Hotels and Resorts, a Singapore-based luxury chain operator of six spa facilities, to operate the Banyan Tree Desert Spa & Resort, Al Areen. But that alone was not enough. It would be difficult to get people from downtown Manama to drive a half hour just to visit a spa in the middle of the desert. We decided to expand the idea into a destination where people can live or come for a few days – not just a one- or two-hour stay. WIS —
TR —
It’s a natural Wildlife Park, not a safari, and is open to the public. There are enclosures, but you can see gazelles, ostriches… It’s really interesting. You go by minibus, and then pay a small fee for a tour. TR —
What really strikes me about this project is that it claims to embrace the desert, which no other development project does. TR —
TR —
Do you imagine that people who live here will also work in Manama?
It is possible, since the development is only a 25-minute drive from the city centre. We’ll have around 800 villas of different sizes here. We will also have approximately 2,500 flats distributed throughout the development. WIS —
TR —
What is the economic range – mixed, very high or middle income?
Al Areen is definitely not for the lower- but for the upper-mid and higher. House sizes range from mid-size to villas and palaces. In the entire region, homes in a mid-price range have been upgraded. The price of construction has gone up tremendously, not just for Al Areen but globally. So middle-class families have to deal with a new price range. We have what we call ‘Downtown Al Areen,’ which includes a shopping bouvelard with high-end boutiques, cafes and a residential area with townhouses and condominiums. For residents and others from out of town we are also building a medical park very soon with a Rehabilitation Centre and luxury accommodation units for long-term stay. WIS —
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We feel that we are creating a destination that takes part in one of the most beautiful desert areas of the Kingdom of Bahrain. In the last twenty years, there have been towns developed outside Manama, but they were never a complete package. At Al Areen people can actually live or visit for quality entertainment. By having proper quality control, appropriate concept development, construction and infrastructure, we feel that this project can afford to be different. It’s a low-rise development where you are free from the buzz and headache of the city. For example, one of the feature ideas is to have an area with controlled traffic movement and a lower speed limit. Despite its lack of waterfront, the Al Areen development is considered one of the most important real estate projects in the Kingdom with total investments exceeding 1.2 billion US dollars. This luxury, mixed-use health, residential and family leisure and tourism development spans over two million square meters close to the Al Areen Wildlife Sanctuary. Waleed Ishaq Saffy —
Will you call it a city?
I don’t want to call it a city. It’s a small town, a community, with its own facilities. WIS —
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There is something that seems different about the Al Areen project when you compare it to other projects. Todd Reisz —
Is the wildlife component more like a zoo, or a reserve?
WIS —
In your marketing materials, you stress Banyan Tree Al Areen as a spa and resort in the desert. Is there a desire to keep it sustainable, to embrace desert landscape? TR —
Since it can get quite hot in the summer, you have to make it a bit different. Water features will help with that. Banyan Tree Desert Spa & Resort, Al Areen presents a total of 78-luxuriously appointed villas; 56 one-bedroom Desert Pool Villas and 22 two-bedroom Royal Pool Villas and featuring private open-air swimming and jet pools, over-sized infinity bath tubs and sprawling master bedrooms. Capturing the essence of Arabia, each villa is designed to incorporate an intimate fusion of traditional Middle Eastern and contemporary Asian architecture. The interiors combine arabesque style furnishings with elegant Far Eastern fabrics, wrapping guests in sheer luxury and total tranquillity. The Banyan Tree Spa features eight Deluxe and four Royal Spa Pavilions, the world’s first Garden Hammam, a Hydrothermal Garden and extensive fitness facilities.
Master plan of the Al Areen development
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Courtesy of Al Areen
WIS —
Interview
Ras Al Khaimah’s New Realism
— Izzat Dajani Shares a Vision for Total Lifestyle Package
scapes – between coastline and the mountains, between the plateaus and the valleys – is really interesting. We also look at things from more than a real estate point of view. Part of the success factor is in how we differentiate our products. TR —
Yes, and what we also realize is that, unless we come with a total lifestyle package, we’re just another development. TR —
Ras Al Khaimah, one of the seven emirates of the UAE, is out to define itself from its neighbors. Measuring the feats and attempts of other emirates, RAK wants to define a path unique to Ras Al Khaimah, connected to its particular geography and history but also offering the modern day lifestyle expected of its resident-to-be. Izzat Dajani, chief executive from RAK’s government, made time during his hectic days at Cityscape to outline what is in store in the next five years.
And one of those things is geography?
ID —
What’s a ‘lifestyle package’ ?
You see, we have thought through all the components of life. The house that you buy or you rent is connected to the restaurant you visit; it’s connected to the theme park that you take your kids to, to the hospital that you go to when you feel sick, as well as the school that your kids go to. It’s a whole lifestyle experience. It’s no good building the most exquisite resort if it’s not part of a full lifestyle package. We have a holistic approach whereby every project that we do is going to be integrated with the overall components of a full lifestyle development. ID —
Saraya Islands will occupy the pristine 7 kilometre Julfar Island
Courtesy of Investment and Development Office, RAK
Izzat Dajani —
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The Saraya project, for example, is a fully integrated project, meaning, it has a happy and clever mix between components of lifestyle. It has the real estate which people live in. It has the hotels which are a creative linking to the real estate. Just staying in a gated community can sometimes be dull and boring, or you don’t want too much activity inside your living quarters, so you want something close by such as hotels. Then, you add a boulevard to that so that within a five-minute drive you move from a fully residential, gated community to a boulevard that’s full of shopping and life. It has coffee shops like Starbucks and all the malls. We are also thinking of linking that boulevard to the mountains with a cable car and probably a nine-hole golf course at the altitude of 600 meters. So that’s a whole experience. By linking the hotels to the boulevard to the shopping area to the recreation for children, to the fully secluded atmosphere for grown-ups to enjoy the time with their family with peace of mind, linking it to an experience in the mountains and, at the same time, creating the environment close-by for first-class education and first-class health care, it becomes a reality.
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Let’s start with the GDP so you can understand where we are. You can find that 59 percent of the UAE’s contribution to GDP is from Abu Dhabi, 29 percent is from Dubai, just under 7 percent from Sharjah and Ras Al Khaimah has 2.9 percent. That is one of the elements that are defining us, depending on our economy size and population. Ras Al Khaimah’s GDP grew by a phenomenal 18% in 2005 to a total of $2.5 billion. Our population is just over 200,000 people. We’ll double both in the next five to ten years. In terms of size, we are the fourth largest emirate after Abu Dhabi, Dubai, and Sharjah. That said, Ras Al Khaimah is a really different place with a new vision in place. It’s about finding a destiny. It is like an unpolished jewel – ironically, there’s a lot of rock here! Over the past three or four years there has been a reorientation of Ras Al Khaimah’s vision based upon the realization of Ras Al Khaimah’s potential. This new confidence is a sign of HH Sheikh Saud bin Saqr Al Qasimi’s coming to office as Crown Prince & Deputy Ruler. Ever since the new leadership started looking at new ways of doing things, we have been moving with a new realism. That’s very important. TR — What is ‘new realism’? ID — It’s not enough to dream. Everyone dreams. Everyone here at Cityscape is dreaming of realizing his or her own project. The trick is, those with a realistic vision that can be materialized will succeed. The others will just become frustrated. In Ras Al Khaimah today, we have a vision that can be materialized. We go on a realistic time process. We look at things over five years, not over fifty years. And we keep refining the model. What’s happening basically is that we realized that we have great potential in the real estate and hospitality markets. One of those reasons is that the land topography is very attractive. The mixture between different land-
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What is Ras Al Khaimah trying to do and what is it trying to be in terms of its relationship with other emirates and other cities developing along the Gulf coast? It’s out to be different, especially from Dubai. But what is it that makes this emirate different? Todd Reisz —
I talked to people from a project where they are also selling a lifestyle package. But it’s a traditionally Muslim lifestyle, making sure that people who come to live there are not just buying a type of house or place, but also a type of community. They are sharing it with a similar type of people. Is that anything that Ras Al Khaimah is looking at? TR —
You have to think these days outside the box. You can’t confine yourself. What I mean by lifestyle development is that you take the components around you, and you make sure that whoever is buying here gets the full benefit of the surroundings. ID —
We are just trying to catch the reality of the day. Although the weather here can actually be a bit harsh in the summer, you have at least sun all year round. You can enjoy your life outside all year round – especially people who come from a less hot environment. But importantly, no investor would park money in a place where you don’t trust health care. If people trust the education and the health care, they have to come. TR —
And the health care system of Ras Al Khaimah is now in place?
Courtesy of Investment & Development Office
Saraya Islands
How do you convince home-buyers that your hospitals are of quality and your schools are of quality? TR —
What is particularly striking is that Ras Al Khaimah is selling something that it’s had – an ancient landscape – and things that it needs simply by bringing them in from afar. TR —
ID —
TR —
So, you have two universities…
Yes, with more coming. We will also have a premiere boarding school which will probably be one of the well-branded, well-structured boarding schools. ID —
TR —
We look at ourselves as a small unit in a much bigger one. We are like a fish in a big pond. That pond is too big. Within a two-hour flying radius from the UAE you can get superb health care, send your kids to a good university, or put them in a boarding school… ID —
TR — ID —
What about sustainability, environment?
If you do the thing right, it sustains itself. TR —
But that’s also something to be marketed.
They always ask me, ‘What makes countries succeed? What makes Ras Al Khaimah succeed?’ I say, ‘Leadership, leadership, leadership and luck!’ [laughs] We’ve put the first three right, and I hope there could be the fourth. ID —
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The proof is in the pudding. Our projects speak for themselves. We don’t promise the future; we promise the present. That gives a sense of confidence. Ras Al Khaimah has done so much in terms of investments in education. We are really serious about education. We have the first fully integrated American campus: George Mason University. My office, Investment & Development Office, has been a strong instrument in bringing a full campus of a top key American institution to Ras Al Khaimah, so students can go to a real American campus that’s branded. We have also signed up with Tufts University for its renowned nutrition program. Tufts’ School of Nutrition is the premiere nutrition institution in the United States and globally. We are just trying to catch the reality of the day.
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We are now talking about delivery. This is going to be a premiere place for a health care delivery system. Because of the components that we are bringing in, people will trust health care and education in Ras Al Khaimah. We have signed up with one of the premiere hospitals in the United States. They will be opening a fully integrated health care system in Ras Al Khaimah. I can’t announce the name, but they are one of the premiere hospitals based in Texas. They are now working with us to set up specialty clinics, medical centers and hospitals. Health care with our partner will kick in a bit earlier, early 2008. ID —
Is it a new school or a branch of an existing school?
It’s a new school. Educators from premiere schools globally – from Australia, Britain, the USA, or Canada – are on the advisory board sitting with us to make the structure for that school. ID —
How would you define Ras Al Khaimah’s five-year vision?
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Al Hamra Academy boarding school
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Ras Al Khaimah is about offering people a fully integrated lifestyle where they can come and feel the difference. Remember, this part of the world offers zero taxation: no income tax, no corporate tax, no duty, no sales tax, no capital gains tax. For the European, the American, the Arab and the Asian, this is nice. It’s an ideal place to buy a second home: people can come here, park money in a house or a home or a unit. The more the value goes up, the more money you make. ID —
Courtesy of Investment & Development Office
TR —
Reinier de Graaf
Sustainable City
— Ras Al Khaimah at a Crossroads
Not this…
…but this.
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Regional Case Studies
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The city had a compelling reason, once… to share scarce protected land among the largest possible number of people – a place where working, living, and playing formed a single integrated whole. Industrialization, followed by an explosion of wealth, gave rise to a gradual dismantling of the city’s traditional properties. The integration of human activities was abandoned in favor of zoning, concentration in favor of dispersal, and collective forms of settlement in favor of ‘home and garden’ as the ultimate symbol of individual wealth. In an attempt to overcome the traditional ails of the city, the 20th-Century elevated the anti-city to the status of blueprint. But 20th-Century cures may yet prove to be 21st-Century ails. In the face of an imminent depletion of resources, everything we have grown to like – low density, lawns, spaciousness, luscious green – has come to represent an ecological time bomb. For some time desert developments have been constructed as though they could have been constructed anywhere else. Large sections of the desert are being turned into high maintenance lawn. Levels of energy and water consumption are representing immense ecological cost. Amidst the harsh climate conditions of the desert, a return of the city’s traditional properties – concentration, density, and integration – seems unavoidable. Ras Al Khaimah (RAK) is at a crossroads: even with pressures to join the development race in the UAE, the Emirate still feels relatively virgin. Not yet ‘developed’ to the level of Dubai or Abu Dhabi, RAK could still avoid the type of rampant global modernism that has hit other parts of the UAE and opt for a more considered approach. With 150,000 new inhabitants on 4 square kilometers, the Gateway Development Project represents a quantum leap in RAK’s development. It marks a decisive moment in the course of the RAK’s future planning. But beyond RAK itself, the Gateway Development Project could acquire a regional or even global relevance: a showcase of sustainable development in the most adverse conditions – a key moment in the rehabilitation of the city.
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Gateway Development
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Regional Case Studies
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Gateway Development plan, November 2006
September 25, 2006
We have been invited to take part in an obscure urban planning project. Main feature: a mysterious Russian professor who claims he can make rain in the desert. His presentation includes news flashes of a recent – and very unusual – flooding in the UAE as proof. All of this is made possible through the use of ‘Magnetic Technologies’, the remnants of an aborted science program for climate control from Soviet times, which the professor has now patented. His portfolio includes a credential letter signed by Leonid Brezhnev. Weird antenna-like equipment is loaded onto pick-up trucks (much like the infamous SS20 nuclear missiles) and driven into the desert. The antennas shoot ions into the atmosphere provoking clouds to burst and cause rain. The professor’s presentation continues to show pyramids of snow, sphinxes of ice, and photographs of himself and various high-ranking government officials in the burning desert sun, testing the hardness of freshly fallen hail. A question about the possible undesirable side effects is rebutted with the confident statement that the only real problem of the technology is keeping count of the many positive things that occur in its wake. Amongst the many blessings of the artificial rain are: increased human fertility rates, cured cases of skin cancer, and the mass return of animal species until recently considered extinct. – RdG Gulf Survey AMO 261
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Argument
Terraforming ‘We haven’t done anything new. We’ve just given dredging its shape.’ ‘What you are about to see is like seeing the pyramids being built thousands of years ago.’ – marketing representative for The World
Gulf Survey AMO Nakheel compares the scale of its projects to the building of the pyramids. But another man-made wonder comparison might be the Great Wall of China. All the sand that has been transferred to create The World could build the Great Wall around the earth’s equator
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Land reclamation was once based on need: for infrastructure, for defense, for streamlining nature. Projects were based on logic and an aesthetic of efficiency and minimal intervention. In The Gulf, reclamation is for the first time related purely to pleasure – adopting a logic of maximum whimsicality. The ‘coast’ is no longer a fraught and utilitarian encounter between land and sea, but an orientalist and fractal plotline. Since ‘coast’ is the main selling point of The Gulf, this shift has generated not an isolated indentation or pier, but a shoreline of systematic multiplication, a stretching, ad infinitum. Formerly the scene of a millennial struggle against the elements, the sea has become, like the desert, a developer’s new, frivolous canvas for unlimited exploitation. Development ambition drives technological advancement. Technological advancement urges more development ambition. Urbanization through virtuous circle. Founded in 1864, Van Oord is the conglomerated summation of Dutch engineering companies that, approaching epical proportions, stabilized the Netherlands’ at-risk relationship with the sea. It is arguably the world’s largest land reclamation company. The 20th-Century saw Dutch land engineering establish a globally admired reclamation science, whose intelligence will be evolved and poetized in the 21st-Century. When Dubai was considering land reclamation in the 1990s, Van Oord was invited to tender. Realizing that the situation demanded something more than the usual landfill project for a harbor, they demonstrated to the Dubai developer Nakheel that land reclamation could generate terrific revenues. Van Oord won the contract and, with the emirate, redefined land reclamation’s potential in the process: a calculated pursuit of 15 million beach visitors per year. It was eventually an idea from Dubai to engage the palm motif, not only because Nakheel means ‘palm’ but because the shape naturally extends surface (coastline) without expanding land area. Beyond extravagant shapes for extravagant hotels, the exported vision has been able to convince clients in and beyond Dubai that the price of land reclamation can be lower than coastal land costs, provided that materials are available within acceptable transport distances and that wave climates are not too extreme. Property buyers at The World will not only be able to freely build as they desire on their empty islands, they will also have the chance themselves to try terraforming within their territorial waters. England might suddenly be reshaped: a B for Branson. – AMO
How to Terraform
Making Palm Jumeirah in 21 months
KEEP CLEAR
KEEP CLEAR
OF
OF
PROPELLERS
PROPELLERS
Courtesy Van Oord
MAIN ENGINE 2 WARTSILA 12V46C
LO P
100 meters!
1. Jumbo-size dredgers dump sand to approx. -10 meters, then…
2. L arge-size dredgers dump sand to approx. -7 meters, then…
3. M edium-size dredgers dump sand to -5 meters, then…
4. Followed by ‘rainbowing’ up to +2 meters…
January 7, 2001
5. And finally shaping and leveling.
January 29, 2001
Courtesy Van Oord
Palm Jumeirah: Engineers work to determine means of erosion protection
August 1, 2002
September 22, 2002
AMO
Courtesy Van Oord
If the new coastlines being built in the Gulf were assembled end to end and attached to the northern tip of Kuwait, the extended coastline would end somewhere in Pakistan.
‘The World’ being shaped with the ‘rainbow’ technique
Gulf Survey
Terraforming
May 4, 2002
March 25, 2003 Singapore’s land mass has been increased by 25% as a result of land reclamation. Van Oord was involved in almost every effort of this territorial growth
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February 11, 2007
July 10, 2003
October 3, 2003
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The company logo of the precursor to Nakheel, translated into Logos Island by Van Oord
We hear there is a large variety of decoy techniques to simulate site activity in the face of impatient decision makers: ranging from visual presentations showing construction activity on different projects than the one at hand, to pointlessly having trucks move sand from one corner of a site to the other. The most extreme one is called ‘Rainbowing’: during one of His Highness helicopter visits – at tremendous expense – one of the boats that suck sand out of the middle of the Gulf had to turn its pumps on and spray over the land. Only this time, it wasn’t sand, just water. It was nothing other than a façade to have His Highness saying, ‘It is happening, fantastic, it is happening.’ – RdG
Courtesy Van Oord
Courtesy Van Oord
Logo Islands, Dubai
Document
Visiting The World
Hamza Mustafa:
Press:
Hamza Mustafa looks to his assistant
‘We’ll first approach The World via South America, then head through the Panama Canal to the Atlantic Ocean. Then we’ll cross the Atlantic Ocean and pass Africa on the way to Europe. We will set foot there. The islands will do the rest of the talking. I will not. Geography is everything here.’ ‘Which country are we visiting?’ Gulf Survey
Terraforming
Assistant: ‘Denmark.’ Hamza Mustafa: ‘We will be visiting Denmark.’ Invited members of the press – mostly from Millionaire-like lifestyle magazines arrive at the Nakheel office in Dubai.
AMO
So began our press group’s introduction to The World. The man-made islands, which from a bird’s-eye view take the shape of a world map, lie 4 kilometres off the coast of Dubai. The concept of bringing the world to Dubai is fully credited to HRH Sheikh Mohammed Al Maktoum and is being realized by his company Nakheel. The bare islands (or countries) start at about $30 million and are sold on an invitation-only basis to those with not only tremendous wealth but also celebrity panache. Greenland is already occupied. We boarded two boats and headed toward The World on the temperate Gulf waters. Nothing but water and sky lay before us. If I hadn’t known we were heading toward new land not yet visible on the horizon, I would have said we were heading straight to Iran. Dubai, however, has extended its reach further into the historically contended waters. In a body of water that can’t even be referred to by a proper name – the Persian Gulf or the Arabian Gulf? – everything about this project seems pleasantly absolute and oversimplified: the World is in the Gulf. I asked the marketing director if the project would ever be visible from shore. No, except maybe on a clear day from the top-floor restaurant of the Burj Al Arab, the world’s only seven-star hotel. Having once redefined luxury, Dubai has now released it from the confines of icon. Invisible is the new look. Press: ‘Is this the endgame of luxury?’ Hamza Mustafa:
‘Yes. There is nothing after The World.’
Model of The World at Nakheel offices, indicating how the 300 islands could be used as private villas and exclusive resorts.
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December 2006
Images provided by Nakheel PR.
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Recent satellite photo of Dubai. Inset indicating boat route to and around The World, crossing through the Panama Canal into the Atlantic Ocean, entering Europe through the Mediterranean Ocean and then up a fictional waterway to our destination: Denmark.
Gulf Survey
Terraforming
Greenland, the original showcase island, was purchased by a courted purchaser. We asked to get closer to the island, but this is as close as we could get.
A barge arrives from Ras Al Khaimah to supply rock for The World’s breakwater barrier.
Approaching the Mediterranean, with Africa to the right (the cliff).
AMO
Our steersman and the approaching breakwater barrier. Once crossing this threshold, the Gulf waters become almost eerily still – hardly a wave breaks on shorelines.
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The World Press Conference Hamza Mustafa is Nakheel’s General Manager for The World development project. Luis Ajamil is an engineer for the firm Bermello Ajamil & Partners, Inc. based in Miami, USA. On a day during Dubai’s Cityscape exhibition, a group of international press took a short yet exciting journey to Denmark with the two expert navigators.
Terraforming
Press —
Gulf Survey
Good afternoon. It’s nice weather, everybody. We are now at The World, 7 kilometers in length, 9 kilometers in width. It will add 232 kilometers of new beach. Now that’s very important. Dubai, as you see it, is a coastal city. All development happens on the beach, and that’s in line with our tourism industry. The tourists come to Dubai for two reasons – the sun and the beach. The sun’s not going anywhere, but our beach was fully developed by 1999. The government of Dubai placed the order to add new beach lines to Dubai. So, Nakheel’s main objective is to add new beach to Dubai. The Palm added 130 kilometers. The World has added 232 kilometers. Together, all of Nakheel’s projects will add 1,500 kilometers of beach to the original 67 kilometers. Dubai has positioned The World as its most exclusive development ever. Hamza Mustafa —
There will only be 300 islands; there will only ever be 300 buyers. Only 300 people will help us implement Dubai’s greatest vision. You can see for yourself why we are so careful when we choose our buyers, why it’s such a process to decide who gets to play a part in owning a piece of these beautiful islands. Up to now we have sold about 45 percent of the project. By next year, we will have stopped sales completely. We will then let those who have already bought construct. Once that construction is finished, by 2010 or 2011, we will sell another 50 islands. When it comes to real estate terms, you can think of this project as Dubai’s Limited Edition. Want to walk with me? This island, Denmark, gives you an idea of the size of one island. The average price of an island is 30 million dollars. But you can see the size of it. There is a lot that can be built here, from hotels to residential villas to multi-use developments. This is far north and basically over the Gulf. We are now standing 12 kilometers into the sea. That’s Dubai behind us. Over there is Europe. Asia’s over there. North America is on our left. Let me introduce Luis Ajamil. Luis is the main engineer and the planner behind the project. Luis and I spend a lot of time planning and deciding how The World community’s going to work. Luis has his own development company. I asked him to join us today because it’s an opportunity for you to see the people who are behind this project. Could you comment on luxury? Is this the end-game of luxury?
Yes, absolutely. There is nothing after The World. Not everybody wants to buy a lot of land, but everybody dreams of buying an island. That’s what you’re doing here. See that island over there? That’s a 200,000 square foot island with a 20,000 square foot villa on it. I built that place as HM —
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Approaching Denmark’s landing, twelve kilometers from Dubai’s shore. Van Oord dredging ship in background.
a show villa. After one of the guests came and saw it, they were so impressed that they bought the place. That gives you an idea of a lowdensity single family estate. We’re not going to have a lot of those – about 15 of the 300 islands will be that type. That is luxury. You’re talking about a 40 million dollar home. But the rest of the products, even as they get denser, will be incredibly luxurious. What’s exciting about this is, once you live out here, you’ve got all of these islands, and each of them has something to offer. One night you can get on a boat to go to a restaurant, the next time you go to see a movie. Everything you do regularly, you can do it here in an exclusive way, by boat, as a community. You begin to think about just spending time here and visiting other islands. The potential is just incredible. It’s so big that you are never going to get tired of it. Working collectively and having each developer come up with his own ideas will make this a truly unique place. Press —
What are the names and nationalities of some of the developers?
Terraforming
If the developers do what they wish with the islands once they buy it, does that mean they are going to be freehold? Press —
What are some of the challenges you have faced in developing this? What are some of the things, in terms of construction, that you have had to change around a bit to adapt? Press —
The World will be divided into four zones and each zone will be served by one hub. Each hub has an emergency service: you have your fire station, your police station, your healthcare provider, to which you will have instantaneous access. Each one is so designed that, if you were crawling at a slow speed, you’ll get there in ten minutes maximum. On average, it’s about seven minutes to get there. Most of the islands are five minutes away. Again, from that point of view, it’s going to be easier than trying to get an ambulance to your place through traffic. Press — How many people will be here at any given time? LA — The average population is 150,000, and it will peak at about one quarter of a million on holidays when the hotels are all going. That’s with permanent residents, transient visitors and people that work in The World. To give you an idea of the scale, Venice fits in less than a quarter of the size of The World. So, it’s a very large-scale project. HM — I think most of you want to go back to Cityscape, so let’s head back to the boats. Press —
Did you work with one particular dredging company?
There’s one company doing all of the dredging: Van Oord, a Dutch company. The largest dredging company in the world. The ship on the opposite side of this island is a dredger. They look like regular ships, except that their cargo space is filled with sand. They go out there [gesturing toward the Gulf] and pick the sand up. LA —
Press —
Whose idea was this?
Sheikh Mohammed Al Maktoum. He came up with all of these concepts. It was all his idea. HM —
Everything you do regularly, you can do it here in an exclusive way.
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The challenge is just the massive scale and speed at which this is going. It has required having a good construction company to keep the production rates. The next project that Nakheel will announce, one of the Palms, is the largest reclamation project of land in terms of the volume of earth that has been moved. And it will be done in just a few years. That’s really the major challenge. LA —
And in case of emergency?
AMO
Absolutely. Everything you see here is freehold. We sell it freehold, and the developers build and sell it freehold. This will always remain as a freehold title. Luis Ajamil — You’re buying a plot that includes the water up until the water of the adjacent island, and each island has been carefully set. So when a developer plans their community, if they want to have, say, a cove here and surround it with beautiful houses, they can do that. Or if they want to build a marina, or fill part of a bay in, and do something else in the middle, they can do that. Each developer will have the flexibility within certain guidelines, so that they don’t affect the surrounding islands and navigation. In a way, you can create your own island – Hamza calls this terraforming. You couldn’t ask for a better situation. It’s very easy to shape, yet it’s very strong. HM —
Press — LA —
Gulf Survey
Our developers come from England, from Ireland, from Kuwait. We have a Russian developer, an American developer. The list goes on. We haven’t announced all of our developers. We hand over the islands in 2007 and the developers start construction after then, and it takes them four years to finish construction. They don’t decide to launch the projects until they actually break ground. Nobody wants to wait for eight years until a project is ready. So we talk about The World as two things of construction at the same time. We have to build the land, and then they have to come and build on top. HM —
Now the challenges will switch to the infrastructure side. In certain ways, this is a lot easier than building on land. If you were to build a project of this size in the middle of the desert, you would be worrying about roadways and conflicts with surrounding land uses. Transportation is your biggest problem because everybody relies on a single-person car. Most of the people here will be arriving here by ferries because of convenience. In a way, we’re building a community from a resource conservation perspective. We don’t need to build roads. We don’t need to put down asphalt. We don’t need to worry about pollution. As the population goes up, you just increase the ferry service. All we would have to do is maintain the navigation aids. From this point of view, it’s really going to be easy.
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Hamza Mustafa, project director for The World, poses for French telejournalists on Denmark, the rest of Scandinavia lies in the background.
February 14, 2007
A shocking account of events around a recent urban development: apparently the sale of plots had preceded the planning of utilities and amenities. By the time the need was identified, the sale of land had already been completed. The result: a community of 200.000 people without schools, fire stations, electricity or even a single mosque. The money involved in buying back enough land to accommodate these amenities allegedly consumed the entire profit of the development. Who said the free market was a selfregulating intelligent system? – RdG
Gulf Survey
Terraforming
A view from Denmark over Europe and Africa toward the Dubai skyline. The rising Burj Al Dubai (here at 86 stories) and other Sheikh Zayed Road towers form a two-dimensional skyline.
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Korean reporters taking snapshots. A picture from Dubai without iconic backdrop – will this be the most sought after experience in Dubai? Dubai without Dubai?
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Palm Jumeirah under construction, March 2006
Argument
Export Dubai Tunisia $1.88 bn Marina Al Qussor waterfront development project to include residences, retail, tourist attractions and golf course. Morocco $2 bn Amwaj project waterfront metropolis in Rabat is ‘a realization of the vision of the two countries and reflects the strong bond between the UAE and the Kingdom in diplomacy and economy.’
Morocco $6.9 bn Contract with King Mohammed VI to develop communities comprising residential, commercial, retail, leisure and entertainment facilities and mountain and sea resorts. Egypt In Cairo, an extensive project will acquire a prime location on the east bank of the river Nile. The Cairo Nile Corniche Towers, will express ‘Qatari culture and sophistication’ on Cairo’s skyline.
Djibouti $1.5 bn Nakheel is constructing Djibouti’s first 5-star hotel in a first-phase project for a luxury tourist destination.
Egypt $16 bn 30 million sq. m Gamsha Bay township project in Hurghada ‘will offer the very best of Egypt with its coral reefs, hills and beautiful coastline.’ Egypt $4.15 bn Emaar signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Egyptian Government to start work on an integrated community based in Egypt’s new Smart Village in Greater Cairo. Other developments include Cairo Heights and Alexandria.
Morocco $0.6 bn Al Houara Resort in Tangier is the first overseas project for Qatari Diar, offering an authentic and unique Moroccan way of life for its residents, suited with the company’s understanding of the Arab character.
Saudi Arabia $26.7 bn King Abdullah Economic City. Largest private investment ever in Saudi Arabia.
Seychelles ‘A 5-star resort with full leisure and shopping amenities and residential villas.’
Russia $11 bn The Great Domodedovo project is the first offering in Europe in partnership with Russian development company Coalco to develop ‘a fully-fledged and structurally balanced city.’ Turkey $5-10 bn Joint venture Lakeside project outside Istanbul with Turkey’s largest gold exporter. First phase includes luxury villas, shopping centers, commercial space and hotel developments.
India $4 bn Over five locations identified for development of ‘residential, shopping, landscaped gardens, civic facilities.’ India $20 bn Nakheel and Delhi- based DLF Group sealed deals for two township projects in India, one near National Capital Region and the other in Maharashtra, along a coastal region.
Saudi Arabia $0.25 bn Saudi develop- ment venture with Nakheel seen as part of Dubai’s efforts toward improving pan-Arab business cooperation.
Oman Working with the Omani Ministry of Toursim to create an eco-tourist resort inspired by the local wildlife and environment.
Turkey $5 bn Istanbul investments include the $500 mn tallest twin tower project in Europe to begin construction in 2006. Architect is not known. China Satellite office in Shanghai for pursuit of participation in the Chinese development boom. Also, ‘modern community centric lifestyle developments in Beijing and Shanghai’ including hotels, retail and schools. China $2.7 bn Project to establish a presence in China through a mixed use residential and commercial project in Tanggu District, overlooking Tianjin Port. Pakistan $20 bn The 25,000 ha Karachi Waterfront development ‘will be a new Karachi’. The new city will also be home to Special Economic Zones. Paksitan $2.4 bn Master planned communities in Islamabad and Karachi, including over 14,000 residences, shopping, hotels and amenities. Malaysia In December 2004, Dr. Mahatir Mohamad, former prime minister of Malaysia, visited Emaar for a briefing on all major projects. Indonesia ‘New Bali’ multibillion dollar develop- ment includes resort and residential development on Lombok island. The project is a joint venture with the Indonesian government of 6,070,000 sq m. Oman $1 bn Salam Resort & Spa Yiti development is the first project under ‘Salam brand’ to be launched by Sama Dubai in Oman.
‘The Dubai Model’… a newly minted term for the empirically perfected development package of financial inspiration and exportation. Its definition has been cultivated mostly by semi-public companies based in Dubai and Qatar: Emaar, Sama Dubai, Nakheel, Limitless, DAMAC, and Qatari Diar. These corporations have established a euphoric construction zone of shopping centers, Mediterranean-style homes and luxury hotels within the largest swath of the globe barely touched by globalism. This once ignored void, not only shunned by investors but also gingerly approached by IMF bankers, can now be listed alongside other world-class luxury destinations. Resorts, second-home villas and greened deserts are now the tell-tales of a new hybrid of money management and foreign policy. Emaar claims that among its built and proposed projects, it will ‘cover’ 1.5 billion people, more than China’s population. – AMO
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It’s not just about the Gulf, it’s about where the Gulf is going. In order to keep making returns on their public-private investments the Gulf’s major developers are bursting at the seams with domestic projects. After an accelerated push for development in the region, it is now an opportune time to consider the built – there is now something to react to, protest against. In the meantime, the development companies are highstrung kinetic machines of investment, in need of release. Hence Modernism’s second exportation – this time from another source – the world’s largest re-export hub.
Syria $0.5 bn Eighth Gate project in Syria ‘to recreate the luxury and style that are features of Emaar’s world-class Dubai developments.’
AMO
Sudan Qatari Diar has signed a strategic investment agreement with the Sudanese Government to develop a major tourist and residential resort on the banks of the Blue Nile. Built on a prime site opposite Khartoum’s Presidential Palace, it will span 100,000 sq m.
Syria Ibn Hani development will host a resort develpment of stunningly designed villas, beach houses, apartments, and a luxurious 5-star hotel.
Gulf Survey
Morocco $0.5 bn Marina de Casablanca twin-tower development includes a ‘business and life’ center, and will house a 5-star hotel, offices and entertainment / shopping center.
Jordan $0.5 bn The Dead Sea Golf and Beach Resort is one of the largest undertakings in Jordan property development.
The Real ‘New Middle East’ August 24, 2006 Los Angeles Times
Last month, as images of war and carnage in Lebanon filled Arab airwaves, more than 10 million Saudis joined together for a common goal. A massive political protest? No. A petition calling for an end to the fighting? Not that either. A boycott of American goods? No. So, what did 10 million Saudis more than half the adult population do? They bought stock. For 10 days Saudis rushed feverishly for a piece of the kingdom’s most ambitious development project ever: a $27 billion
Dubai Towers – Casablanca Two towers Architect unknown
Dubai Towers – Doha 80+ Stories RMJM Architects
‘A New City’
Dubai Towers – Istanbul 101 Stories Architect unknown
Gulf Survey
Export Dubai
Dubai Towers – Dubai 57 to 94 Stories TVS Associates
city that will create a seaport, an industrial district, a financial centre, an education and healthcare zone, resorts, and a residential area… As the headlines screamed crisis, the business pages told another story. When US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said that the Lebanon war was a sign of the ‘birth pangs of a new Middle East’, she was both dramatically wrong and partially right. A ‘new Middle East’ is indeed being born, but it has little to do with Lebanon or President Bush’s democracy agenda.
Dubai Towers™
Global Samples of Emaar Villas
Advertisement for King Abdullah Economic City Emaar WATG The Meadows, Emaar, Dubai
Smart Village, Emaar, Egypt
Amelkis, Emaar, Morocco
Emirates Hills, Emaar, Dubai
The Springs, Emaar, Dubai
Jeddah Hills , Emaar, Saudi Arabia
La Collección, Emaar, Dubai
Oukaimeden, Emaar, Morocco Alvorada Houses, Emaar, Dubai
Lakeside, Emaar, Turkey
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Marrakech, Karachi, Hyderabad, Beijing... Emaar plans the execution of its formulaic golf and resort villas along a bloc of nations historically linked to the Gulf. An Emaar house is at once a replica of Western suburban tradition and an identifiably unique company product
Gulf Survey
Export Dubai International Herald Tribune, August 16, 2006
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Haitham Mussawi/Agence France-Presse
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Lebanon, August 2006
And this project was also formed through governmental relationships? TR —
Interview
Emerging Qatari Diar
— Introducing an International Development Agency
It originated through the advocacy of the government. We are a real estate investment vehicle for Qatar. Since we’re part of a government bank, we were asked to look at the idea, and we decided to do it. LA —
Is there a certain type of development pattern or a system that Qatari Diar implements in other countries? Is there a formula? TR —
Qatar is on the rise in the international real estate development market. As the development arm of the Qatar Investment Authority, Qatari Diar was established in 2004 in response to Qatar’s booming economy. With Lusail, its first and flagship project in Doha, not yet even finished, Qatari Diar is already stretching its influence beyond into Morocco, Egypt, Sudan, Syria, Eritrea, and Cuba. Leanne Arnold, then the director of marketing, spared a moment at Cityscape to provide more perspective on Qatari Diar’s vision.
Export Dubai
It seems that the notion of going into emerging markets also makes a certain amount of sense. Why hasn’t it been done before? Why is it now that there seems to be a push to reconsider places that established Western developers have neglected? TR —
I think there’s a certain sense that people here within the Arab world know the area. And within the global real estate boom, there’s a demand for this kind of development. All of these emerging market countries have started to find a new real source of wealth. What do we do with that wealth, if we don’t develop the area? So, that’s really why the emerging markets have come to the fore for real estate development. There might be economic demand for it, or there might also be a demand because of governmental relationships. Khartoum is one example of that. LA —
TR —
Could you tell me a bit about the Khartoum project?
I can’t. We’ve just been involved with a feasibility project. It’s a very exciting project. It’s likely to be commercial, residential and tourism. LA —
TR —
So all three areas are ones in which Qatari Diar is established.
Yes.
For instance, in Morocco, while we might come from the outside, we want it to look like it’s Morocco. It’s about drawing on cultural heritage references. So there are the forts, the Islamic patterns, villas painted white – all have a feeling that fits the area. TR —
But is there something Qatari that’s in Morocco?
The biggest export of Qatari Diar is the notion of communities. Our strongest message is about natural communities, building a precinct. The country has a stronger sense of family. Qatari society orientates itself around the family. It’s an interesting marketing concept…a wider sense of community. LA —
TR —
How does that materialize in the projects?
It’s in the way we talk about the projects. It’s in the fact that we visit Morocco; we will have our research done in terms of percentage of the development that is geared towards tourism. We make sure that we’ve got a minimum of locals, residents who will live and work there. It’s about maintaining more of a community. LA —
TR —
So you make sure that it doesn’t become only timeshares…
Yes. Some percentage of each development will be maybe timeshares or people’s second homes, but in the larger sense, it will be a development for people who want to live in Morocco. LA —
TR —
And does that come from a certain government initiative?
No, I think that it’s something that’s generally happening in the development plans that are being built at the moment. LA —
I’m curious when you talk about ‘community’. I’ve heard it several different times this week, that this is a core characteristic of culture in the Gulf. Is that a positive thing that the region can share with the rest of the world? TR —
All of these emerging market countries have started to find a new real source of wealth. What do we do with that wealth, if we don’t develop the area?
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LA —
What does that mean?
AMO
We are backed by the Qatar Investment Authority, which is a government bank of Qatar. Some of our projects or opportunities arise as a result of our direct financial relationships with other countries. The other strategic push has been to focus on emerging markets. So, think about the projects that we’re currently involved in: Cuba, Morocco, Egypt, Sudan, Syria, and Eritrea. They’re all in emerging markets. We want to reach a critical mass with those projects now. So, from an investment point of view, to balance that investment portfolio, we are now looking to expand to Europe. And we announced last week our intention to bid for the Chelsea Barracks in London. So when real estate investment management funds look at us, they see that emerging markets are high-risk but high-yield. And you can balance that out with more solid investments in Europe. Leanne Arnold —
TR — LA —
Gulf Survey
What is fascinating about Qatari Diar is that it is taking itself beyond the borders of Qatar before it has finished a project at home. Is there a certain type of company model that you use when going beyond Qatar? Todd Reisz —
I think that we take a standard formula in how we approach development, in terms of market research and business planning. I think the issue for us is to be sensitive culturally in each area. LA —
I think this is a particular quality in Qatar, and there are questions about the future in terms of this. Other countries in the region are suffering from a brain drain. Young people go away to study and don’t come back. Close to 100% come back to Qatar. The reason they come back is they care about their country; they are passionate about their culture. In a world of 24/7 communication, the physical sense is being lost. I think that in parts of the Arab world, it’s not like this. LA —
TR — LA —
Do Qatari Diar’s developments embrace these ideas?
I think that they do.
Could you give an example of a Qatari Diar project that aims to achieve this? TR —
Lusail is planned to house 200,000 residents. We’ve planned for traffic controls, pollution controls, parking, public transport – everything that facilitates community to exist both in the whole and in each part of the development. You have to be able to build community, whereby each section of the city is supported by schools, mosques and other services. So it’s not just about large glass buildings with no amenities around them. Does Qatari Diar address issues of sustainability?
It depends how you define sustainability. I think it can mean a number of things. For instance, sustainability in growth and development. It’s not just the financial side of things. Are you building for ten years’ time, or are you building something that can’t be sustained in terms of sales. In terms of sustainability being ecologically sensitive … are we going to fundamentally change the way things are done? No. TR —
And where do you see Qatari Diar being in five to ten years?
The Lusail project in Qatar will be completed. I can see that we will have developed a number of our tourism and residential resorts in other parts of the world. Qatari Diar can also be dominant in emerging markets. LA —
Lusail development – a family environment fostering multicultural, inclusive community value
Gulf Survey
Export Dubai
TR — LA —
www.mec.gov.qa/upload/iblock/bd27a7a81e25d549d5b2ea0ad40ad5dd.gif
LA —
AMO
Qatari Diar and Sudan Sign Major Development Deal Reuters, October 2, 2006
Qatari Diar Real Estate Investment Company, a major force in global real estate development, has signed a strategic investment agreement with the Sudanese Government which will see the company develop a major tourist and residential resort on the banks of the sweeping Blue Nile in the Sudanese capital, Khartoum. The ground-breaking accord was signed in the Qatari capital, Doha, between
Nasser Hassan Al Ansari, Chief Executive Officer of Qatari Diar and Sudanese Minister of Physical Planning & Public Utilities, Abdul Wahab Mohammed Uthman. ‘This is a vote of confidence by Qatari Diar in the future of Sudan and a signal to the world that this country can attract major overseas investment,’ said Al Ansari. ‘The agreement marks the entry of Qatari Diar into the Sudanese market where we are investigating further development opportunities…’
Qatari Diar Signs Memorandum of Understanding with Eritrea The Peninsula, January 28, 2007
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Doha – The Qatari Diar Real Estate Investment and Development Company and the Government of Eritrea recently signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to invest, develop and construct several projects of International standard in Dahlak Island (Dahlak Kebir). The MoU was signed by the Minister of Finance, Burhan Ibrei, on behalf of the Eritrean Government and by Eng. Nasser Hassan Al Ansari, CEO, Qatari Diar Real Estate Investment and Development Company.
Speaking at the signing ceremony, Ibrei said: ‘The depth of relations between the two countries reflects positive mutual interests, continuous endeavor to develop bi-lateral cooperation between the two nations, and the MoU reinforces such efforts and a shared desire to develop investments.’ He said that the agreement lays the foundations for the development of several tourism projects in Eritrea, adding that it reflects the proactive efforts of the Eritrean government to support and enhance the Eritrean economy and investment activities contributing to the nation’s growth on the one hand and encourage direct foreign investments on the other…
Argument
expats 65% 1,746,550
Kuwait
other expats 30% 1,231,408
south asian expats 50% 2,052,348
na
t io
na
, 8 91
na
824
t io
na
‘The Gulf states have been in constant and timeless contact with fellow Arabs, Persians, Baluchis, Pakistanis, Indians and Africans and these are the races which have played the most prominent part on the southern Gulf scene.’ – The Trucial States, Donald Hawley
0%
ls
ls 2
35 %
ona
94
0,
45
0
2,687,000
nati
Import Expat
UAE by origin = 4,104,695
ls
62
%
45
Bahrain
0, 12 expats 38% 275,880 0
726,000
UAE by gender = 4,104,695
0
22
%
,8 406 0% ls 1
n a tio n
ts
ona
al
pa
male expats 58% 2,128,986 ma le na t io na ls 20 % 41 8 ,0 57 nati
fem
x ee
73 5,1 81
ale
a ls 2 8% 2 27,6 4
813,000
Gulf Survey
expats 72% 585,360
Qatar
fem
34
expats 80% 1,480,520
natio nals 20% 370,0 00
Abu Dhabi 1,850,000
expats 88% 1,170,400 na t io na ls 12 % 15 9, 60 0
Dubai 1,330,000
RAK 724,645
nat
iona
5% ls 4
,0 9 326
expats 55% 398,555 0
AMO
In The Gulf, outsiders – Philippino, Egyptian, Iranian, European, Pakistani, Indian, Sri Lankan, Thai, Russian, Australian, American, Libyan, Syrian, Jordanian, Lebanese, Palestinian, Chinese, and increasingly Iraqi – constitute 80% of the population. At no other time in the world has there been another precedent where 20% locals were able to coexist with 80% ‘foreigners.’ Throughout its history, this 80% has been fundamentally made up of three kinds of expats: 1 + 2) The first two are both in their own way economically active males (and females): enablers and users. The first comes to earn low wages, but wages advertised higher than in his homeland. The second comes with the know-how to participate in and encourage the speculative Gulf City. He may stay indefinitely and be pampered with tax breaks. With little emotional investment, both plan to leave eventually. 3) The third comes from other Arab countries, finding The Gulf a political or economic haven from instability. He or she gives The Gulf the semblance of a middle class. Often raising families and finding permanence, this expat is a national in mind but a foreigner on paper. The Gulf has never been anything other than international; however, it has always been a coexistence that accepts both integration and distinction, globalism and regionalism/family. It seems each ethnicity or nationality accepts its titular badge, accepting it as much as acknowledging those of others. ‘Live and let live,’ rather than ‘melting pot,’ is how The Gulf remains the most international place in the world. AMO has collected several stories of a particular moment of Western introductions into this international trade zone, principally at the moment when oil was being discovered. Oil of course redefined how others saw The Gulf and how The Gulf saw itself. Western architecture was ready to help to represent redefinition. The 1950s and 1960s saw the true roots of The Gulf’s audacity, its ability to achieve greatness in the face of accelerated development. How will The Gulf’s next transformation redefine its expat demographics? – AMO
At a moment when America is otherwise engaged, and Europe is hedging on its earlier embrace of an easy multiculturalism – tolerance, immigration, freedom of speech – it is fascinating to experience how the Islamic Gulf states live in completely synthetic societies – based on less than 20% locals, maybe another 15% Caucasian expats and another 65% that is an amalgamation of Arab, Asian and increasingly African nationalities. Is it the provisionality of this mass-migration and its typically limited duration that explain this seemingly peaceful coexistence, or are we witnessing a new sociological paradigm of an utterly ‘artificial’ community that ‘works’ at a moment when the world produces more and more evidence of populations that curdle…? 293
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Pre
1960
‘The Slave Market,’ Jean-Leon Gerome – Western dramatization
Regional Financial Center Investment1
Origin: Saudi Arabia, Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Palestine, Syria, Lebanon, India 9/11 forced a major shift in investment strategies for Arabs around the world, as they had to look outside a suspicious United States for more open trade markets. As a result, an estimated tens of billions of dollars 2 has been redirected to the Gulf. Sharia-proof investment programs, both in the Gulf and subsequently in the Western world (to re-re-direct those funds), have since blossomed to take advantage of more Islamic-minded customers.
An old port in Kuwait
Speculative Eden
Egyptian Samih Sawiris (left), Chairman of Orascom Hotels and Development, presents ‘The Cove’ project in RAK
Global Corporatism
Surveyor working on-site at a land reclamation project
HRH Prince Alwaleed bin Talal of Saudi Arabia is the 8th richest person in the world and through his Kingdom Holding Company, invests in real estate in the Gulf
http://en.wikipedia.org
www.flickr.com
http://www.communi-
http://www/uaeonlinepromotion.com
Property Weekly 14 June 2006.
Origin: UK, US, Japan, Australia, New Zealand, India, China Free zones – the practice is over a century old, but its scale of global attraction has never been greater. Tax holidays and constantly easing real estate regulations (freehold) draw more people every year to the Gulf, whether to participate in the building or to take advantage of a world hub. Awarded tax exemptions, well-paid workers – particularly childless bachelors – release their expendable income with abandon back into the local economy, once again taking advantage of tax-free zones and duty free airports.
The Thesiger Collection
Global Corporatism 3
King James I of England
Bertram Thomas on Khuwarah around his 1927 journey to Sharjah
Lord George Curzon, Viceroy of India, visited Sharjah in 1903 to secure smooth passage through the Gulf
Sir Wilfred Thesiger, explorer
Michael Jackson in Bahrain
Joseph Matthew, General Manager for International Business Development at Larsen & Toubro Ltd., India’s biggest engineering and construction company announcing future expansion in the Gulf
Sir Richard Branson opens the largest Virgin Megastore in the Middle East at the Mall of the Emirates
Philippe Starck of YOO with Ziad Barakat of the Galadari Investment Office (GIO). YOO will provide concept design for GIO projects
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1. w ww.economist.com/cities/findStory.cfm?CITY_ ID=DUB&FOLDER=Facts-History (28 August 2006) 2. Washington Times, August 27, 2005. 3. Heard-Bey, Frauke, From Trucial States to United Arab Emirates. Dubai, 2004.
Pakistani restaurant kitchen in RAK
http://www.answers.com
Origin: England, Portugal, Netherlands, Saudi Arabia, Iran Since the mid-17th-Century, the British were the premier imperial presence in the Gulf, replacing the Portuguese and Dutch of bygone eras. The intermixing of militaristic and mercantile interests was established from the earliest stages of British involvement, beginning with an official decree from King James in 1616 that permitted British merchants to pursue profit in the Gulf.
Colonialism
Investment
Face and Grant. The Emirates: The First Photographs. Stacey International.
Colonialism
A pearl merchant in the UAE
Surveyor working on-site at a land reclamation project
AMO
A Kuwaiti merchant boat returning from Africa
Waterfront of Sharjah 1907
http://www.uaeone.com
Origin: Saudi Arabia, Iran, Iraq, India, Pakistan, Malaysia, China, UK Before the discovered security that oil reserves would last decades, if not centuries, Gulf Cities searched for whatever means possible to draw regional merchants to their shores, both to supply its resources-starved Bedouins and to found coastal trading posts that would determine their authority on the Gulf waters. Semi-legal gold trade, re-export tariff-avoidance programs, and overflow textile industry from India were the seeds of modern Dubai business culture.
Wilfred Thesiger, Arabian Sands.
Trade
‘… without their passport they cannot leave… the family is waiting, full of hope…’
Gulf Survey
Import Expat
Trade
‘… 15 heat strokes and 15 accidents a day… they can leave a dead body on a site for more than 2 weeks… even the dead body has to pay his way back home…’
Van Oord. Dubai’s Future In The Making. July 2006.
Divers on a Gulf pearling dhow
‘… at 47 degrees C we normally stop the work… it’s now 55 degrees C on the building site… we don’t need labor unions because they are happy to be here…’
www.libanmall.com
Pearl Divers
http://www.ameinfo.com
Origin: Afghanistan, Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Egypt, China, The Philippines, Iran, Iraq, Russia, Morocco, Yemen Well over 50% of the UAE population is from South Asia, most working in low-paying construction jobs. Enticed by the hope of earnings to bring home, they often arrive to find that fees for obtaining work permits and other bureaucratic charges dash hopes of quick riches. Many go back to their homes, driven by dreams of their own contracting companies and prepared with building experience.
http://en.wikipedia.org
Pearl Building
Face and Grant. The Emirates: The First Photographs. Stacey International.
Origin: India, Pakistan, Egypt, Sudan, Morocco, Algeria, Libya, Eritrea, Somalia, Tanzania, Mozambique, Yemen, Oman, Mali, Ethiopia Ninety percent of the Gulf economy was once based on the pearl trade (today oil makes up just less than half). The industry, fuelled by indentured laborers and slaves, required men to live at sea for 6 months of the year, living in wet, cramped quarters with little to eat. If a voyage went well they might be able to afford a plot of land. If the harvest was poor, they could end up in debt for years. Japanese development of the cultured pearl devastated this economic round.
Wilson Graeme, Rashid’s Legacy
Pearl Diving
Jonathan Raban, Farewell to Arabia
Employment Opportunity
Pearl Building Footage from: Dans les soutes de l’Eldorado, Envoye Special (France 2) 22 September 2005
Pearl Diving
Post
Document
Marketing Multi-Culturalism
Gulf Survey
Import Expat
If marketing is defined as constructing uniqueness from the same ingredients, selling real estate in Dubai must be the Himalayas of the profession. Billboards show a surprising consensus: a pastel-clad, Caucasian population (fanatically engaged in harmless activity and vastly more fertile than the declining birth rate of the white race) meets contemporary Arab families in an über-idyll for idealized expats and perfect locals. They are virtual demographics that radically supress the multi-cultural richness actually emerging in the city, and that, over time, may be its greatest asset.
Residential marketing imagery taken form Dubai billboards
AMO
Analysis of Inclusion/Exclusion
Inclusion
Exclusion
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Composite image of Dubai’s virtual marketed community
Essay Natalie Al Shami, Sara Kassa
The Third Expat
— A Walk through Deira
Tucked away from Dubai’s modern glass towers is another city-within called Deira, where networks of trade, community, and tourism operate on a parallel economy outside new Dubai. A journey through the streets of Deira by night scratches the surfaces of this hidden city’s vibrancy.
Social scenes in Deira’s cafeterias.
Gulf Survey
Import Expat
Hotel signage disappears amidst the city’s lights and bustling night activity.
299
his way through the noise of the crowd, moving effortlessly across the busy streets, taking opportune gaps between people, and then disappears into a dimly lit alley. Among a commotion of signage is a half-lit sign for Sina Hotel. The sign marks a walkway that leads to an exterior elevator, which brings you to a sparse room that serves as the lobby. The space is devoid of furniture; its linoleum floors are immaculately clean. There is no apparent clientele, yet the man at reception says there are no available rooms for the coming two months. Outside again, you find groups of Indian and Pakistani men clustered around cafeterias, which were never designed to accommodate their clients, who sit on wooden stools on streets and sidewalks. Styrofoam cups filled with chai are delivered on small trays and drunk by everyone. A television set broadcasts a cricket match. The exterior setting resembles an interior of a family living room. Fittingly, laundry hangs above from windows and balconies to dry. Eager to find a crowd you can associate with, you try a group of Russian
AMO
298
Moving inwards through alleyways and arcades, behind towers from the 70s, 80s and 90s that are treated as passé by the new Dubai, your arrival in Deira feels like an accident. There is no monument that declares, ‘You are here.’ But soon the pace draws you in, towards the glimmering yellow, red, and green lights in the distance. Hindi music flows from the interiors of shops, replacing the traffic noise from the main road. The air feels warmer. Flickering lights make everything a blur under the night sky. The pace increases with pedestrians, shoppers, delivery trucks and bicycles, presumably heading toward a destination. It’s difficult to distinguish who is working and who is socializing; everyone seems busy. Street posts showing maps of the area stand deserted amidst the sea of people rushing by: Deira is for those who know. Shops selling printed t-shirts, brightly colored scarves and cheap electronic gadgets stretch over an infinite labyrinth of paths. You stop to examine one storefront only to be interrupted by a persuasive shopkeeper inviting you into another, or by the voice of an old Emirati woman negotiating the price of silk textile from behind her shimmering gold burgu1. An Indian hammal, having used his wooden cart as a street bench, stands up and gets ready to transport the load of packaged goods stacked impossibly high to somewhere. He makes
UNCLASSIFIED HOTELS IN DUBAI
High Land Hotel Al Maha Hotel
Al Jazeera Hotel
Alsahwa Hotel
City Gold Hotel
Al Isteqlal Hotel
Al Akhlas Hotel
Gold Plaza Hotel Al Sheraa Hotel
Khaibar Hotel
Lapaz Hotel
Howf Hotel
Deira Palace Hotel
Al Aman Hotel
Al Khail Hotel Al Karnak Hotel
Hasban Hotel
Sina Hotel Mirage Hotel
Aras Hotel Prince Stars Hotel Al Jaloos Hotel Al Hilli Hotel
New Avon Hotel
Al Madani Hotel
Hotel Al Isteqlal Hotel
City Gold Hotel Gold Plaza Hotel
Alsahwa Hotel Al Akhlas Hotel
Water Parks Sandy Areas
Sina Hotel
Landscape
Mirage Hotel
Pavement Tunnel Bridge Road
Burj Nahar Hotel
Aras Hotel Prince Stars Hotel Al Jaloos Hotel
Dolphin Hotel
Transportation
Hotel Delhi Darbar Bombay
Al Hilli Hotel Emirates Hotel
Dhiyafa Palace Hotel East Hotel
Atlas Hotel
Al Madani Hotel
Sports & Recreation Brigde Ped.
Niawaran Hotel
Sadhana Hotel Sahar Hotel
Al Marwa Hotel
Sweet Palace Hotel
Dudai Concorde Hotel
AMO
Other Emirates
Russian store sells fur coats in a mall in Deira.
Nile Hotel
Al Wehda Hotel New Avon Hotel
Al Wasal Hotel
Parking
Al Firdous Hotel
Al Badr Hotel
Al Khaima Hotel
Lapaz Howf Deira Al Sheraa Hotel Hotel Palace Hotel Hotel Al Aman Khaibar Hotel Al Khail Hotel Hotel Hasban Al Karnak Hotel Hotel
Hospital
Sweet Palace Hotel
Safari Palace Hotel
Al Maha Hotel
Al Jazeera Hotel
Residential/Commercial
Education
Al Marwa Hotel
Fal Hotel
Admin Boundary
Industrial
Sadhana Hotel Sahar Hotel
Gulf Survey
Import Expat
Unclassified Hotels
Government
East Hotel
Atlas Hotel
HOTELS IN DUBAI
Road Center Line
Nile Hotel
Dhiyafa Palace Hotel
Emirates Hotel
Niawaran Hotel
Residential
Dolphin Hotel
Hotel Delhi Darbar Bombay
Al Wehda Hotel
Al Wasal Hotel
Legend
Al Firdous Hotel
Al Badr Hotel
Al Khaima Hotel
Fal Hotel
Eureka Hotel Date : 05/04/2004
Scale : 1:12500
Safari Disclaimer : This Map belongs to Dubai Municipality GIS CENTER. Copying, distributing or providing the map contents to a third party in whole or in parts without the prior permission of Dubai Municipality is strictly prohibited. Copyright 2001. GISCENTER. All rights reserved.
Map of Dubai shows concentration of unclassified hotels in Deira.
tourists being invited into an incense store by a young Iranian shop keeper. They do not enter, so you decide to continue walking with them only to find yourself before a fur coat store. A whole row of fur stores, in a city whose 50-degree summers make even one too many. Two Russian men sit in the store whose interior fittings do not match the value of the furs; the silence in the interior almost competes with the street noise outside. This time the tourists enter and leave you standing behind. Where hotels and restaurants are classified as ‘unclassified,’ here impressions transcend infrastructure, and where activity defies building, this city is sadly no longer for you.
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1. Burgu A burgu’ is an Arabic term that means a long linen veil covering the face, with holes made for the eyes. Old local Emarati women can be seen wearing a stiff golden colored Burgu to cover their face.
Interior view of an alley in Deira reveals the underlying mechanism of services and industries provided by the city’s inhabitants.
July 27, 2007
Gulf Survey
Evenings in Dubai are weird. It is impossible to get away from the fundamental experiment Dubai is. Even ‘a night on the town’ incites conceptual speculation, albeit a different one than during the day. A bar, described by a fellow hotel guest as ‘very democratic’, reveals an instant X-ray of Dubai’s ethnic diversity: one half of the bar’s clientele are male, over forty and white, the other half is female, under 21 and… Chinese, Ethiopian, Sudanese, Moroccan, Turkish, Iranian, Uzbek, Turkmen, Chechnyan, Tadjik, Kazakh, Kirghiz and other former Soviet republics one wouldn’t even know existed. The bars reveal how Dubai is basically driven by two different kinds of expats. Dubai’s nightlife represents the city’s operating principle in its most blatant form: an orchestrated match of different, but complementary needs. It is here that the world’s most pressing asymmetries are converted into economic exchange and the basic underlying principle of globalization is presented in the raw. In Dubai, Houellebecq’s ‘Platform’ is acted out on a daily basis. Five years ago AMO, in attempting to identify the most pressing issues for the next twenty years, produced ‘The Atlas of Globalization’. The atlas identified the existence of an A-world and a Z-world: the A-world being the part of the world that was secure, rich, but old and stagnant; the Z-world being the part that was hazardous, poor, but young and vibrant. The basic principle of a global market, much like the flow of electricity, seems to be driven by the energy that is generated by the existence of opposite poles where the specific properties of one seem to automatically generate a demand for the opposite properties of the other. – RdG
AMO 303
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Essay Todd Reisz
Workers City
Gulf Survey
Import Expat Todd Reisz
AMO 305
304
A main street in Muhaisnah on Friday, the Muslim day of rest. Men wear clean pressed shirts and pants or lungis. Two women were on the street with children – the only women I saw in Muhaisnah.
Almost every camp I entered had this kind of notice board at the entry. Among other things, it often stated that visitors were either not allowed to enter or were required to register at the office. Once at Al Quoz, an overseer – who seemed to live with the other workers – asked me to sit down in the office. It had an old table, a wall calendar and plastic lawn chairs. The man was very nice; of course he offered his hand. I told him I was visiting to look around and take pictures. He asked me for my email address, but I never heard back from him.
Gulf Survey
Import Expat
AMO
Dubai has been described before as one large transit hotel – everyone stays with a check-out date in mind. Perhaps similar to bankers from England or engineers from the Netherlands, the construction laborers from South Asia come mostly on two-year (renewable) contracts. ‘No one cleans a rented car,’ is a known maxim in Dubai, where those creating Dubai have no vested interest in its outcome. But at Al Quoz, where many of the construction laborers live, things seem different. There one finds a careful treatment of surroundings. Clean kitchens, an almost militaristic orderliness of the shared bedrooms, collective utensils neatly scrubbed and stacked. Here there is a community. Sponsored usually by small, undetectable contractor businesses, the guest workers live in company ‘labor camps,’ the official name given to the barracks-like housing. On open roads just minutes away from the skyscrapers that line Sheikh Zayed Road, these rows of camps offer an experience in contrast to the neighborhoods they are building. Here people walk along roads, greet each other on corners and chat in the tight aisles of grocery stores. These seem like mundane activities but ones strangely absent in Dubai’s newness. It is this carefulness and willfulness of living that are overlooked in media coverage of these laborers. The purpose behind this reporting might have the interests of the over 500,000 labourers in mind, but it lacks a personalization of these workers beyond invisible demographics. It refuses to consider that these men continue to create a supportive society in the wake of their unstable existence and corresponding governmental and corporate opacity. Apparent in Al Quoz and other camps, as with any group dynamic, are extremes and mishaps. Upon visiting these camps, what stands out is a captivating humanism. The dire circumstances are not prevalent – perhaps because some companies have responded to criticism with improved standards, but more importantly because of the general spirit one finds among the men in these camps. In terms of what seems to be the everyday – a given weekend morning and weekday afternoon when night labourers are waking up – the atmosphere is disarmingly civilized.
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In this camp, alleys between barracks become extensions of the rooms (cabinets, kitchen counters, makeshift wardrobes, wash basins). This was an unusually active street scene in Dubai. It smelled of tea, onions and toothpaste.
At this mini-supermarket I counted at least twenty different kinds of fresh produce. I couldn’t identify most of them. They were mostly greens and looked fresh and healthy. I’ve never seen so many men shopping for produce in one place before.
An external kitchen – communal property thoughtfully cleaned and stacked. The largeness of pots and pans indicates meal-sharing. Many workers mention cooking with friends – Pakistanis share recipes with Indians and vice versa.
AMO
The absence of families, of wives, of children made for a different kind a culture. But it didn’t seem unusual or awkward to see just men. Personal stories were about missing people back home, but there was a strong tie among the men. The maleness seems also counterbalanced with neatness, upkeep, cooking, sewing, soaps, music and friendship.
Gulf Survey
Import Expat
This was the most primitive camp I saw. But it was also in some ways the most pleasant. Trees were the sign of irrigation experts. The spaces between barracks were filled with scavenged objects: inoperable video game consules, crates, furniture made from scrap wood, courtyards and closets. Open sky kitchens. I spoke to one resident who said he was an electrical engineer from India. He said that only engineers lived in this camp. He had a large bandage on the right side of his face. I asked if he had been injured. ‘No,’ he said, ‘I just had surgery.’
309
308
Gulf Survey
Import Expat
No one was ever taken aback when I stepped into the washrooms. I guess that comes from sharing with so many people. My presence was treated no differently than that of someone who lived there. I managed to make this man uncomfortable, unfortunately, when I asked to take a picture of him. He didn’t seem in such a hurry to get out of the washroom, enjoying getting cleaned up and washing some linens in the sink. He quickly checked his hair in the mirror for the picture, but I had taken the picture before I realized what he was doing. I didn’t want to bother him with a second shot.
AMO 311
310
A day of rest is a day of laundry. The courtyard smelled of damp clean clothes. The blues of labor uniforms mixed with the bright colors of linens and casual clothes.
No one ever opened their apartment to me without my first asking if I may have a look. There were no rooms with cross-ventilation. Each time I entered a private space, I braced myself for the stench of mildew or something worse. Each time I was proven shamefully wrong.
Gulf Survey
Import Expat
Construction workers – at this station mostly Pakistanis – at Dubai Marina. The most people you see in one place in Dubai.
AMO
This man stepped outside the single-file line and asked me to take his picture. After a moment’s deliberation, he chose the Grosvenour House Hotel as the backdrop. After I took the picture he nodded to say thank you. He wasn’t expecting to ever see the photograph. Some kind of documentation of his whereabouts meant something significant to him.
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These men were in their well-known formation, single-file waiting for the buses back to their camps. Everyone smiled beautifully, serenely when I pulled out a camera. I thought it would be very uncomfortable to ask to take a picture of them, but they were happy to entertain the diversion. There were some overseers inconspicuously standing behind them. One made a joke by pretending to take my picture with the camera on his cell phone.
June 26, 2006
12:15 pm Our projects are beginning to feel like teflon efforts: we have established enough contact to deliver our work, but almost all our endeavors lack engagament with the local situation. We want to recruit people with knowledge of the UAE and a command of the language. This takes us to the American University of Sharjah. For the first time in all of our trips to the Middle East, we manage to get lost. The campus of the university isn’t hard to find, but once we have passed the main entrance the whole system of wayfinding breaks down, or rather folds in on itself... Like a religious mantra, each road sign is a mere repetition of the university’s name. We get guided in all directions: North East South West. It is as though the American University of Sharjah has taken its mission to the extreme in an effort to exude its brand across the globe...
1 pm
Gulf Survey
We finally make it to the Architecture Department. The building is a large monumental structure built in a neo-classical, vaguely oriental, palace style. Strangely enough the style of the campus comes almost as a welcome relief after the random exuberance of Dubai, where the technology of the curtain wall now seems exclusively dedicated to creating ever more bizarre forms of high-rise. The architecture department of the University of Sharjah has opted for the full implementation of Robert Venturi’s ‘decorated shed.’ Inside the impressive exterior resides an extremely utilitarian interior: exposed steel and concrete and (occasionally) timber are the only materials to serve as backdrop to large rectangular tables with computer screens. Interior design is virtually absent. We instantly feel at home. 1:15 pm
AMO
So far in the UAE, nobody knew who we were; here our entrance provokes a collective stop and stare... The gap between our status in the worlds of business and academia seems to have reached its climax in the Middle East. The architectural department is mainly populated by young women. Architecture, we are told, is not considered an overly serious profession in the Arab world: as a form of design it ranks among the ‘softer’ subjects. Young men are dissuaded from pursuing this subject and encouraged to become engineers. The group of students we meet are all from the Middle East, but locals are a small minority. Interesting hybrid backgrounds emerge: Ukranian-Palestinian, TurkishJordanian. Most students we talk to are informed and sharp. By and large they appear to be immune to the stereotypical descriptions of development in the Gulf proclaimed by their (mostly American) teachers. One wonders just in which direction the educational process is being conducted... – RdG
315
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‘I can think of no more valuable asset to our country than the friendship of future world leaders who have been educated here.’
Argument
Education Diplomacy
Before 2001 After
More than $1.5 billion lost in tuition from foreign students. ‘This may well be the beginning of a renaissance of the Arab world that transforms the region from extremism to moderation.’
‘And we can build more enduring relationships than ‘take a Muslim to lunch’ day.’ John Hughes, a former editor of The Monitor, January 2005
S. Rob Sobhani, adjunct professor at Georgetown University, discussing Education City in Qatar
‘Less reconcilable with the idea of mutual learning is the fact that the American overseas campuses in Education City do not adapt their programs to their host country.’
‘This is a good way for the United States to represent itself overseas, particularly in Arab countries where in the past most of the trade has been in guns and oil.’
Sonja Strohmer, US Satellite Campuses In The Middle East: Cross-cultural Mediators Or Missionary Outposts? www.ostina.org
Antonio Gotto, Dean of Weill Cornell Medical College
AMO
1. www.economist.com 2. Science, April 7, 2006
586,700 students from developing countries applied for visas every year to study in the US.
Gulf Survey
The US conquest of educational markets in The Gulf is peaceful. Until 2001, the flow of students from developing countries to the US was rising by about 3.5% every year. But since 9/11, this rate has steadily declined, the first time in over thirty years. Foreign applications to American graduate schools fell by 10% due to increased security controls, the difficulty of obtaining a visa, and the image of America for the rest of the world, especially in the Middle East.1 Countries preparing for a future without oil or natural gas revenues need universities. Having previously imported skilled labor, Gulf Cities now want to nationalize their workforce, especially in anticipation of the rising Arab youth population. This demographic explosion will be either a grave crisis or an innovation boon. Handling centuries-old academic institutions like software platforms, Gulf Cities see no reason not to replicate and modify for the demographic shift. Gulf-builders speak of importing ‘brand-name’ universities, as educational institutions remain the one American product still able to make societal and financial headway without any resistance in the Middle East. Normally, the Gulf City supports the partnership by offering to pay for all buildings, overhead, and staff salaries. As one report states, tuitions ‘go straight into the universities’ coffers back home.’2 Branch campuses – often with the gated security of embassies – will not likely mean a mixing of students internationally (Kuwait’s new campus, however, will separate the sexes). Part of the draw for Middle Easterners is to acquire an American education without the Western societal contract, and for women – who make up at least 65% of The Gulf’s students – this means they can acquire an education while remaining close to home. – AMO
Colin Powell, Institute of International Education August 2001
‘A policy that limits too many smart people coming to the United States is questionable. The visa issue doesn’t make sense.’ Bill Gates, speaking on a technology panel at the Library of Congress, April 2005
‘… we are expanding the opportunity for a prestigious Sorbonne education… You will study in French, which is the language of many of the most important cultural achievements in world history.’ Jean-Robert Pitte, President Sorbonne Press Kit 2006
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Established academic institutions are converging in The Gulf
2002 Philippines 2006 USA
NYIT Bahrain
Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland Dubai Healthcare Management Quality in Healthcare
2006 UK
2005 Ireland
Medicine Nursing Healthcare management
2006 France Sorbonne University Abu Dhabi
International Hospitality Management International Leisure & Tourism Management International Retail Management International Service Management
2002 USA Weill Cornell Medical College Pre-medical Program Medical Program M.D. Degree
Georgetown University Foreign Service program
Business Computer Science
2001 USA
2004 Belgium
U.A.E.
2005 UK
College of the North Atlantic Qatar Business Studies Health Sciences Engineering Technology Industrial Trades Information Communications Technology Pre-Nursing programs
Middlesex University Dubai Accountancy Business Administration Psychology Communication & Media Computing Science Tourism Hospitality Management Publishing
2005 USA George Mason University
Pre-Medicine Business Administration Engineering and Information technology
2004 Iran Islamic Azad University Dubai Executive Business Management Computer Enginnering – Software Architecture Engineering Business Management Computer Science
India 319
318
Graphic: OMA/AMO
Business Engineering, Applied Sciences and Technology Environment and Health
Business Administration Marketing Management. Finance and Risk Managment. Human Resource Management. Business Information Management Arabic, Asian and European Languages
QATAR
Abu Dhabi
Centennial University Of DubaiLiberal Arts and Sciences
European University College Brussels Dubai
Dubai
Doha
2006 Canada
Diploams in Engineering, Law, Medicine, etc leading to a Specialist’s Diploma Commerce Management Law Economic Information Systems
Ras Al Khaimah Sharjah
Carnegie Mellon University
Texas A&M University Chemical Engineering Electrical Engineering Mechanical Engineering Petroleum Engineering
Manama
BAHRAIN
Brings updated medical knowledge, high-impact training, and state-of-theart professional development resources to the physicians, nurses, and allied health professionals of the region.
AMO
2005 USA
2003 USA
2004 USA
Business Administration Information Technology Marketing Engineering Management Applied Finance and Banking
Harvard Medical School Dubai Center
International Oriental Academy with The St. Petersburg State University of Engineering and Economics
NYIT Abu Dhabi
Virginia Commonwealth University Fine Arts in Graphic Design Fine Arts in Fashion Design Fine Arts in Interior Design
2004 USA
2005 Russia
USA 1998 USA
University of Wollongong Dubai
Business Administration Mechanical Engineering Construction Management **New** Quantity Surveying **New** Business Administration with Edinburgh Business School **New** Strategic Project Planning Construction Management Petroleum Engineering Oil and Gas Technology Food Science, Safety and Health
CHN University Qatar
1999 Australia
Gulf Survey
Education Diplomacy
Archeology & Art History French & Comparative Literature Geography & Urban Planning History & Geography Information & Communication Languages & Civilizations Music & Musicology Philosophy & Sociology Intensive French Program
Heriot-Watt University’s Dubai Campus
Germany
2000 Netherlands
2005 Ireland
Buisness Coputer Science Fashion Technology Tourism Studies
Computer Science Engineering Informatics Business Informatics International Studies Mechatronics Engineering Business Administration Computer Science
Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland – Medical University of Bahrain
Kuwait City
Mahatma Gandhi University
AMA International University
Business administration, Marketing, Accounting, Management of information systems, Computer science Communications arts Interior design Physical therapy
KUWAIT
2006 India
Bimal Mendis
Branding Qatar
— Education City
29
1 Qatar is rich and its education is free. Yet its literacy rate is lower than most countries with a comparable per capita income. Education City promises to change the status quo and set the stage for an Arab renaissance in learning. Through its affiliations with American campuses, Qatar has generated an influx of students and academics. A new campus in the desert presents a tabula rasa for starchitecture: 25 globalized architecture for globalized education. On a master plan by Arata Isozaki, academic institutions compete for identity with only limited interest in cohesion.
28 30
26
27
4
Gulf Survey
Education Diplomacy
1
8
3
2 5 22
14
15
9
21 17 24
18
6 16
7 10
23
AMO
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30
Qatar Foundation Headquarters Rand Policy Institute Central Library Weill Cornell Medical College Carnegie Mellon College of Business And Computer Science Texas A&M College of Engineering Student Center Georgetown University School of Foreign Service Expansion Islamic Studies Center and Mosque Academic Expansion – Male Student Housing Al Shaqab Ceremonial Court Think Tank College of Liberal Arts and Sciences Female Students Hostel Virgina Commonwealth Universityschool of Arts Temporary Qatar Foundation Headquarters East Student Housing Al-jazeera Children’s Network Qatar Academy Primary School Qatar Academy The Learning Center The Sports Academy Expansion Area National Data Center Convention Center Specialist Teaching Hospital Hospital Expansion Nurses’ Housing
20
13
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12
321
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Image copyright GOOGLE EARTH™ mapping service. GOOGLE EARTH™ is a trademark of GOOGLE INC.
19
Population
Area sq.km
Density
STATE OF QATAR
839,213
11,000
75 / SQ. KM
QATAR UNIVERSITY
8,600
8
1,077 / SQ. KM
EDUCATION CITY
5,000
3.14
1,592 / SQ. KM
TEXAS A&M
45,487
21
2,200 / SQ. KM
CORNELL UNIVERSITY
19,500
3
6,500 / SQ. KM
6,670
42
16,000 / SQ. KM
Population per sq.km
Gulf Survey
Education Diplomacy
Location
AMO
IIT, CHICAGO
The master plan for Education City has prescribed a density that is even less than almost every suburban campus in the US. For Education City, ‘city’ represents what is actually a paradox, thereby creating a new typology, one beyond suburban. In marketing their distinctive brands of education, the American franchised campuses – many already used to spacious territories – will need to adapt to ever greater spatial horizons.
323
322
Education is both a resource and a commodity. Branch campuses, such as Cornell University’s Medical College by Isozaki, market a branded education unique to the region. Internationally and historically recognized, they lend instant credibility to a new campus that is eyeing an untapped Middle Eastern demographic eager for higher education.
Gulf Survey
Education Diplomacy www.qf.edu.qa
The arrival of branch campuses from the US brings a new context for co-education in Qatar. This is particularly significant for Qatari women, who customarily do not travel abroad for education. On a campus where 65% of the students are women, and 33% are from countries across the Middle East and Asia, Education City’s goals for openness and integration will set new standards for the region.
325
http://www.loc.gov/rr/international/amed/qatar/qatar.html
AMO
324
Like most education institutions in Qatar, the more established Qatar University campus has separate facilities for male and female students, not all of which are equally available for women. In contrast, Education City is unique in its attempt to reflect societal standards of the imported educational systems. Still, the impact of ostensibly Western cultural norms on prevailing conditions in Qatar remains to be seen.
Essay Rem Koolhaas, Reinier de Graaf
Population Growth per Hour
327
326
Decline of Technological Breakthroughs
NewScientist.com news service, entering a dark age of innovation, July 2nd 2005
Twice as many students in the Middle East in 2020
AMO
McKinsey Local Research and Information
Gulf Survey
Education Diplomacy
Recent decades have seen the emergence of regions such as Asia and the Middle East. Already very noticeable in terms of demographics for some time – home to the largest and the youngest populations – these regions now see their demographics matched by an increasing economic significance. As a result, large groups of people are attaining access to education where previously they had little or none. Universities worldwide now have to cater to a dramatically increased demand for knowledge and an unprecedented number of students. This phenomenon does not only affect the size and structure of universities, but it also has a serious effect on their output. Simply to keep up with demand, the sheer quantity of knowledge that universities find themselves having to produce seems to know no limits. This is reflected in the numbers of ‘scientific’ articles that are being published, the amount of co-authors that produce them, and the increasing specialization of knowledge into different fields. Universities seem to operate on the unspoken principle that: the more people that there are learning, the more there must be to study. The emergence of the new regions has caused universities to open new local branches; the model of the original university gets multiplied – a kind of ‘franchising’ – in an attempt to reach new audiences. The term ‘Education Diplomacy’ does little to conceal the ulterior motive: rather than aiming to generate a local knowledge base, these universities seem predominantly committed to exporting existing knowledge for financial gain. Despite education now being a global billion dollar industry, its contribution to furthering science has largely been failing. Over the last decade we have seen a steady decline in the number of technological breakthroughs. For example: there has been a sharp increase in funds for pharmaceutical research with very few new patented medicines emerging. Contrary to what one would expect, increased funding does not necessarily result in an increase in innovative products. Once a monument of authority – an uncontested moral universe – the university has become an empty shell, manifesting itself in overblown logos and the interchangeable architecture of its buildings. Increasing affiliation with international corporations – almost as a stamp of approval – serves to conceal a fundamental shallowness. With no aura left of its own, the university has to resort to the supposed prestige of international company brands.
Graphic: OMA/AMO
The Future of Knowledge
A New Equilibrium
copyright – the universal sharing of knowledge is prevented precisely at the moment that we possess the technology (mass communication, the internet, etc…) that could make it possible to use that knowledge to address the concerns of our time on a global level. The lack of universal sharing of knowledge prevents an open debate on some of the most pressing global subjects. In the absence of a global debate, misunderstanding and double standards rule supreme. Human rights, corruption, freedom of speech, free trade, nuclear arms proliferation, and copyright. Undoubtedly many of these values and concepts currently considered to be universal will, in the long run, turn out to have been too narrowly defined – i.e. only from a Western perspective. In order to acquire true universal status, they will have to be renegotiated and become subject to a global debate. The University is the natural place for this debate to take place. Maybe the real Enlightenment is still ahead of us.
The Economist, from bench to bedside, Nov 2nd 2006; CMR International
Increased Funding
AMO
Eurasian Landmass
329
328
Since the events of 9/11 the US has separated itself from the rest of the world. The ‘Western’, or more bluntly the American, truth has lost its universal appeal and no longer holds the final word. (This is, amongst other things, expressed by the decreased enrolment of foreign students in US universities.) The world is entering a new equilibrium in which the centre of balance has gravitated eastward. America and Europe, previously a double unity, have increasingly become subject to a rift. Increasingly Europe is orienting itself towards Asia. It is as though once again the world is reverting to its pre-1492 configuration before the discovery of the American continent: the Eurasian Landmass, a single universe encircling the Mediterranean. This re-reading of the world as a single land mass, consisting of different spheres of influence with different values opens an exhilarating prospect: a world without a single majority, a world in which a truth can only be a truth once it is shared by all. Indisputably, the West has a lot to offer. Conversely, the West stands to gain a lot from concepts in other parts of the world. Asia now represents an area of unlimited scientific experimentation uninhibited by religious doctrines. It has also proved immune to some of the West’s most persistent pests: the myth of individual genius and the inseverable tie between knowledge and authorship. It is one of the bizarre dilemmas of our time that – in the name of
International Students Studying in USA
Gulf Survey
Education Diplomacy
One could argue that the task of the university in developing regions is relatively straightforward. A simple demographic scan shows that the parts of the world with the most youth – and therefore most in need of education – are also the parts where illiteracy is rampant (see Regional Statistics, pp. 70-71). Here the university could still sustain a confident claim of being able to educate without too many reservations; never before was there so much to teach to so many people. However, precisely in the face of this monumental task, the status of knowledge itself is increasingly in crisis. The effect of the internet in this respect has been enormous. The world finds itself confronted with an endless proliferation of opinions with a happy disregard for the empirical truth. The internet allows for the publication of absolutely anything, unedited, un-interpreted and especially unverified, giving rise and granting validity to almost any theory. Respected journalists are ranked effortlessly alongside the most insignificant amateur bloggers. Inside the modern medium of internet objectivity, the basic principles of science and knowledge seem distinctly outmoded. The uncritical reliance on the internet as the only source of information with no checking of sources has, in a way, produced a new kind of illiteracy right in the heart of the so called ‘developed world’ – the supposed ‘enlightenment stronghold’. In Google we trust! Knowledge is no longer absolute. The truth – at least what we call scientific truth – comes increasingly under threat.
Open doors 2004, International Students in the US, http://opendoors.iienetwork.org/?p=50137 Graphic: OMA/AMO
A Crisis of Knowledge
http://faculty1.coloradocollege.ed/~ahyde/web104/mapqui2104.htm
Document
Palaces for the People
Gulf Survey
Education Diplomacy
AMO
Entry to Culture = Wisdom exhibition
Emirates Palace Lobby
331
330
Abu Dhabi’s Emirates Palace revels in a luxurious paradox. It is the most exclusive hotel in the UAE and the most revered public space of Abu Dhabi. Could it be that the Emirates Palace is to Abu Dhabi what the Palast der Republik was to East Berlin – a moment when inordinate sums of luxury symbols are displayed and offered to the most casual of the general public? The porters greet everyone just as cordially as the next visitor and employees have smiles for everyone. The visitors are the ones who cast the discriminating glance toward each other – are you a gawker or a guest? In some ways a palace for the people, Abu Dhabi’s residents bring their guests to show the marvels. Every visitor knows that Abu Dhabi is rich, but the city remains frustratingly modest for the visitor who seeks the overstimulation usually associated with wealth. Emirates Palace is the concentrated fulfillment of this need. Once seen, one knows how rich Abu Dhabi is. Even if the hotel rooms were affordable, few could stay in its rooms. Part of its luxury is the unmatched ratio between staff and guests – one reason why it is not called a hotel. The complex is a building type of its own. If one approaches the elevator to the rooms above, the staff becomes accordingly more investigative than friendly. An overpriced coffee will have to suffice as one’s chance to ingest luxury. As part of the Emirates Palace public program, it hosted an exhibition detailing the expansion of Abu Dhabi’s display of self-confidence – a project that will move expression from the scale of a palace to that of an island: Saadiyat Island (the Island of Happiness). The emirate caught the world’s attention when a deal was signed with Guggenheim to build a branch on the island and to have Frank O. Gehry design it. It was a significant move, but one more of pattern than innovation. Abu Dhabi superseded global city protocol when it announced the unprecedented – the purchase of name and borrowing rights and a longterm training program from France’s Louvre Museum. Jean Nouvel’s design for the new Louvre / Classical museum can’t seem to garner the attention that the international museum deal made. Architecture remains a vehicle to cultural politics. In addition to the two new museums by Gehry and Nouvel, Zaha Hadid is designing a performance center, and Tadao Ando the maritime museum. The Gensler plan has fully grasped the requirements for this kind of architecture. Like land pinched away from the island, the Saadiyat coast affords each museum its own peninsula so that any context is reduced to still waters and a receded skyline. Museum architecture couldn’t ask for a better siting.
Booz Allen Hamilton
Methodology of sustaining Saadiyat Island feasibility, Booz Allen Hamilton
Market Analysis > Market size and growth potential > – – –
Consumer behavior: Demographic profiles Decision making process Price sensitivity
> Decision tree mapping visitorsegments and drivers of spend with key element of the cultural center
Initial Baseline > Initial interviews > Review of existing studies and data > Assessment of key hypotheses and model input: – Cultural District scope and quality – Architectural presence / facilities – Overall Saadiyat island tourism objectives
International Benchmarking
Business Case/ Scenarios
> Benchmarking framework: identification of key dimensions
> Cost for public authorities: subsidy / investment models
> Extensive set of case examples and comparables: – Museums – Biennales – Theme parks
> – – –
Direct revenue streams: Visitor spend Sponsorship Public Funding
> Value generation (direct return, real estate value, ...)
Economic Model
> Development impact: – Construction and development (hard and soft costs) – Real Estate Uplift
> Incremental cost / benefit perspective: – Direct, indirect and induced spending – Short term jobs and return potential – Permanent jobs and return potential > Social impact assessment: – Qualitative perspective (education, ...) – Quantitative perspective (business and cultural institution development, ...)
Guggenheim Museum, Frank O. Gehry
Museum of Classical Art, Jean Nouvel
‘The design of the Guggenheim Museum for Abu Dhabi was driven by the unique relationship between the desert landscape and the site location on the water. The building features central galleries stacked on four floors, around a courtyard. Two rings of gallery spaces radiate from the core which are less formally constructed, allowing for a tremendous amount of flexibility and variety for displaying art works.’ Architect’s Statement
‘The museum takes the form of a micro-city, along a promenade, covered by a large, light reflecting dome. The landscape is a microcosm of different desert landscapes from the oasis to the dune, from the pond to the archipelago.’ Architect’s Statement
Program
sq.m
Permanent Collection Galleries Special Exhibition Galleries Education Center Theater Retail and Cafe Visitor Services Areas, Gardens and Terraces Back of House
9,474 3,395 513 513 1,500 3,868 10,737
Program
sq.m
Exhibition Galleries Education Center Retail and Cafe Visitor Services Areas Back of House
8,900 900 1,300 3,400 9,500
Total
30,000
Total
24,000
Gulf Survey
Education Diplomacy
> Annual impact – Direct impact parameters (volume, price, resources,...) – Indirect and induced spending impact (multiplier effect)
Overall Development Perspective
AMO
Performing Arts Center, Zaha Hadid
Maritime Museum, Tadao Ando
‘The central axis of Abu Dhabi’s Cultural District is a pedestrian corridor that stretches towards the sea. The sculptural form of the Performing Arts Center emerges from this linear movement, gradually developing into a network of successive branches. As it winds through the site, the architecture increases in complexity, building up height and depth achieving multiple summits in the bodies housing the performance spaces. The building reaches a height of 62 meters and stretches over the length of the Cultural District, creating open views to the sea and skyline of Abu Dhabi.’ Architect’s Statement
‘The building is a unique space carved out from a single volume. The solitary form stands like a gate over a vast water court. Within the ship-like interior, visitors are guided through the exhibition space by ramps and floating decks. To create a visual link with the maritime environment, the musuem features an enormous aquarium, and floating dhows over the voids of the interior.’ Architect’s Statement
Culture District Master Plan, Saadiyat Island, Abu Dhabi
sq.m
Theatres and Concert Halls Institute for Performing Arts and Education Center Congress Center Retail Restaurant and Cafes Visitor Services Areas, Gardens and Terraces Back of House
16,283 3,577 3,849 975 1,766 7,016 18,915
Total
52,381
Program
sq.m
Exhibition Galleries Education Center Theater Retail and Cafe Visitor Services Areas, Gardens and Terraces Back of House
4,400 400 300 550 1,100 3,250
Total
10,000
333
332
Khaled Adham
Program
Interview
— Thomas Krens’ vision for Abu Dhabi as a ‘cultural destination’
After Bilbao
The Guggenheim has joined forces with Abu Dhabi to make it a cultural destination. Mastermind of the Bilbao phenomenon, the Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation’s Director Thomas Krens revealed his vision for Saadiyat Island – the next big step after Bilbao, and beyond the art biennale. Rem Koolhaas — We saw your exhibition at the Emirates Palace in Abu Dhabi
RK —
Was this in any way similar to Bilbao in cultural terms?
How did the notion of the art biennales fit into this thinking?
You have to understand that the Guggenheim was a consultant to a developing process. We participated in the discussion that was taking place in Abu Dhabi. We had a long history in this regard. Given our presence and prominence in Venice, we had already spent considerable time on an analysis of the biennale concept. We know that something like 131 art biennales already existed around the world. Some of these are relatively modest oneday events, some have a longer history. But there is none that has a longer history than Venice. If you look at the origins of the biennale concept, you can include São Paolo and Documenta. And then you ask, ‘What works and what doesn’t?’ This was the most logical jumping-off point when considering creating a biennale concept as part of a cultural destination.
RK —
How is Venice a model for a fresh biennale concept?
The collection of national pavilions in the Park [Giardini] at the Venice Biennale is really the snapshot of what the world was like in the 1930s – maybe thirty to forty national pavilions. There are almost 200 countries in the world, many of which – such as China, India, etc. – are still not represented by a permanent pavilion presence at the Venice Biennale. So, the thinking was that Abu Dhabi had to improve that situation by discarding the national pavilion model in favor of a more global, curatorially driven one. Another important concept was that an effective biennale had to have a critical mass of space, and that the pavilions that were built could ideally be used continuously throughout the year for a variety of purposes including educational and commercial activities. I think that the overall Venice Biennale space is around 50,000 square meters. In Abu Dhabi that was a point of departure. I believe that the plans for a new Biennale Park include around 65,000 square meters of exhibition space in 19 pavilions. These pavilions vary in size, from 2,000 square meters to 10,000 square meters – all of them different spaces. And each pavilion would have two faces: one that connects the pavilions together around a canal; and another that is urban and that engages the commercial development defining Saadiyat Island. Of course, there are similar program parameters: namely, on one floor, easy access to move things in and out, load capacity that would allow fairly large works. Abu Dhabi could envision very loosely a biennale that, instead of inviting nations to do their own pavilions, could invite a varied cohort of curators representing a wide range of geographies and intellectual ideas, whose projects taken together, would inevitably cover the contemporary cultural moment more effectively. TK —
I take it that this concept is something that you developed, and that you selected the architects.
RK —
334
Not at all. The Guggenheim as an architectural consultant supplied ideas to the Abu Dhabi planners, but the decisions at the end of the day TK —
335
Bilbao was different from Abu Dhabi in the sense that it had, more or less, a reasonably strong cultural infrastructure before the presence of the Guggenheim. They had good Fine Arts Museum, solid Kunsthalle-type spaces, and they had a commercial gallery network already in place. Bilbao is also within one hour flight time of 40 million people. So the new Guggenheim museum became a cultural symbol, but it was based on the foundation of a larger system. Indeed the Gehry museum was designed to be out of proportion TK —
RK —
TK —
AMO
That was an objective that came out of the original discussions with the Crown Prince Sheikh Mohammed and Sheikh Sultan, that Abu Dhabi strived to become ‘a cultural destination’. That concept had to be defined, because from a certain perspective no major world-class institutions yet existed in Abu Dhabi, the kind that would draw an international tourist audience. The question was: ‘How do you achieve an effective critical mass in terms of a cluster of cultural institutions that could make Abu Dhabi an international cultural center or destination?’ A single building – a Bilbao-type structure – would be irrelevant in this context. The notion for Saadiyat Island was based on several simultaneous and complementary elements. The participation of the Louvre, which was initiated by Sheikh Mohammed and former President Chirac, was a given before the Guggenheim became involved. As was the desire for a performing arts center and for two local museums that reflected local culture – the Sheikh Zayed National Museum and the maritime museum. So Abu Dhabi had commissioned a master plan from Gensler Associates – in 2004, I believe – that organized Saadiyat Island into six districts – one of them a cultural district, which called out for a cluster of cultural institutions and museums – and laid out a road, highway, and services network. This plan was adopted before the Guggenheim became involved. Thomas Krens —
Gulf Survey
Education Diplomacy
about the Guggenheim’s involvement in cultural development. I wanted to ask you how you saw this project in relation to past projects of the Guggenheim, namely Bilbao. Also, there has been mention of comparing this project to the Venice Biennale – namely that Saadiyat Island could offer what’s next after the biennale concept. I also read in one of the press articles that the objective for Saadiyat Island was to create a cultural destination that people would have to visit more than once. What was meant by that?
and out of scale with what existed; it was designed to be a destination visit in and of itself. But it also developed within an integrated relationship with the existing institutions. This model has been pretty successful. In Abu Dhabi, nothing of this type existed, which the leaders understood. They had already developed a concept for creating a cultural destination beyond a single building or institution.
were theirs. We are not involved in the plans for the bien������������������� n������������������ ale, only for the Guggenheim Museum.
RK —
Can you amplify the concept of the cultural destination?
We, too. It’s incredible, the weather. It seems you could have two scenarios. One is that for every Guggenheim that is not on Fifth Avenue, Frank Gehry is the architect. And then there is the scenario where you would experiment with that. Why did you ask Frank again to do it?
The desert looks surprisingly green. Some of the valleys even begin to show a strange resemblance to the type of luscious green on the omnipresent billboards of future urban quarters. At times, with the right angle, one could completely lose the idea one is in the desert. At regular intervals, empty bottles and paper wraps – the leftovers of picnics? – litter the thin crust of green. We are told that this is the result of an uninterrupted two-week period of rain during the beginning of January. The morning edition of Gulf News featured a long article on climate change and who would stand to gain or lose from it. This Emirate appears to be amongst the winners. But, as we drive on and the valleys continue to green, a strange feeling of discomfort enters our minds. It has been more than four months now since we encountered our mysterious Russian professor; meanwhile, what advanced state could his experiments have reached? – RdG
Gulf Survey
Again, this thinking was already underway by the Abu Dhabi planners when the Guggenheim became involved. We were both a source of ideas and a foil for ideas. I consider a cultural destination a place that would, at the very least, command the attention of a fairly significant cross-section of the global audience for contemporary culture. For Abu Dhabi to be a success as a cultural destination, it would have to have a major league status within the cultural/art world. The more each component, element, or institution is independently successful, the more likely they could create a destination. A critical part of this is also the network of infrastructure that was being planned for the greater Abu Dhabi. Roads, highways, airports were being planned that could service such a cultural destination. Hotels and accommodation facilities were hugely important. The Abu Dhabi Tourist Authority was the mastermind. Clearly their plans for Saadiyat Island include a fairly significant number of hotels that dramatically increase the capacity of the city to provide the services to anticipate these things on a larger scale. This is also joined with their notion about stressing education as well as culture in the long-term planning for the city. They already had signed an agreement with the Sorbonne. Yale University was discussing whether to bring a graduate program there. There are also significant health organizations – the Cleveland Clinic is setting up a hospital there. All of this was underway before the Guggenheim became involved. So, Saadiyat is currently a culture-based, knowledge-based, environmentally conscious large-scale urban development that will become a major tourist destination. Another key objective is to take advantage of this rather extraordinary coastline, the beaches. The weather, if you like warm weather … I’ve always found the climate quite delightful. TK —
January 31, 2007
RK —
AMO
You are forgetting about the Guggenheim-Hermitage in Las Vegas designed by Rem Koolhass. You know that I have a very close working relationship with Frank. In the end it wasn’t me who chose Frank. Sheikh Mohammed wanted Frank for the project. And I was in the comfortable position of welcoming that opportunity. Perhaps we might have steered more towards diversity within a Guggenheim network, but there was a very strong commitment among the Abu Dhabi leadership to what Frank Gehry could do, so I could hardly disagree. Frank is a genius and he is perfect for the site. TK —
Are you planning something similar to be realized anywhere else in the world … that you can talk about publicly?
RK —
There is another concept we are looking at for New York that is very new. I can’t really talk about it now. I have for some time been thinking about another kind of museum space and museum structure. It’s constituted in a fundamentally different way than the model of classic, encyclopedic, chronological museum … and it has an architecture that privileges some very specific objectives of efficiency and scale. TK —
337
336
Development Atlas
Project Name
Developer
Project Description
Area /sqm
Expected Completion Date
Expected Population /ppl.
Arifjan Residential Project
Public Authority for Housing
Residential units, commercial and ministerial complex, a private and a state university, a general hospital and fuel stations all located in southern Kuwait
40,000,000
2015
33,000
2
Khairan Residential City
Public Authority for Housing
Mega project including commercial, residential and industrial investment projects.
145,000,000
TBA
70,000
3
Low-cost Housing Project South of Jahra
Public Authority for Housing
Housing in the traditional Bedu area, confronting Kuwait’s severe housing shortage
TBA
2010
18,000
4
Saad AlAbdullah Township
Public Authority for Housing
Development of villas, public buildings such as mosques, schools, roads and sanitation systems, on the outskirts of Kuwait City
2009
5,000
5
Bubiyan Island
MPA Mega Projects Agency
Kuwait’s largest island aims to be the Gulf’s largest port, connecting Iraq and western Iran to the Gulf: a container terminal, a free trade zone and oil storage facilities, as well as residential areas and nature reserves, linked to Kuwait by rails.
850,000,000
2016
20,000
6
Failaka Island
MPA Mega Projects Agency
New harbour and marina for 300 boats including a holiday resort, chalets, entertainment and ministry buildings
43,000,000
2014
5,000
7
Failaka Island: Ikarus Entertainment
Ikarus Entertainment Project
Resort and spa including a water park with private marina, an eco-tourism and camping areas and a golf course
1,700,000
2008
N/A
8
Subiyah Resort
Resort complex comprised of a hotel, resort, a spa, health club and marina complex, located on Khuor Al Subiyah overlooking the Bubiyan Island
100,000
TBA
N/A
9
Subiya Causeway
MPW: Ministry of Public Works
Dual carriageway 6-lane bridge to link Subiya Island to Kuwait City
36,000 m
2010
N/A
10
Subiya New Town Master plan
Kuwait City Muncipality
Residential city with a commercial centre
TBA
2013
100,000
11
Madinat Al Hareer (Silk City)
Tamdeen Real Estate & Aijal Real Estate
Multi-purpose economic, commercial and residential city. its centrepiece will be Mubarak Tower, a 1001 m high structure that plans to dwarf Burj Dubai
250,000,000
2011/ 2032
700,000
12
Mall of Kuwait
Tamdeen Real Estate
Hypermarket, 5 anchor stores, the world’s best brands and spectacular entertainment facilities
150,000
2008
N/A
13
Madinat Al Fahaheel
Tamdeen Real Estate
Mixed-use project built around the traditional Fahaheel fishing harbor, including Fahaheel Waterfront: Al Manshar complex, Al Manshar Rotana Hotel and the primary shopping district Al-Kout.
17,200
Complete
N/A
14
Khabary City
Al Dar First Holding
Mixed-use community complete with residential houses, office space, hotels, hospitals and schools
232,000
2008
4,500
15
Heritage Village
Kuwait City Muncipality
Major residential and entertainment complex
54,700
2030
TBA
16
Sharq Sief Area
Kuwait City Muncipality
A study of the entire commercial area of the site, and a study on retaining the historical buildings and the sitting of proposed new commercial, governmental and residential facilities to be developed.
1,000,000
N/A
N/A
17
Green Island
Raka’ez Real Estate Co.
Dolphinarium, retail shops, restaurants, multi-purpose hall, Children’s World Area and Children’s Discovery Museum.
TBA
TBA
N/A
18
Kuwait Trade Centre
Al Tijaria
Complex of commercial mall in a podium and offices tower above
4,300
2007
N/A
Kuwait 1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
Gulf Survey AMO 339
338
TBA: To be announced
1
Project Name
Developer
Project Description
Area /sqm
Expected Completion Date
Expected Population /ppl.
Kuwait Symphony Complex
Al Tijaria
Complex of commercial shops with an office tower and a hotel tower above, both viewing the Arabian Gulf
11,500
2007
N/A
20
Bur Juman Complex
Al Tijaria
Offices and residential complex with a shopping mall
28,000
TBA
2,200
21
The Avenues
MABANEE Company S.A.K.
Kuwait’s largest shopping mall with office buildings and leisure facilities in two further construction phases
425,000
2007
N/A
22
Kuwait International Airport expansion
Infrastructural work, the expansion of the airport’s two existing runways and the building of the third runway to receive Airbus A380 super-jumbo aircrafts
85,000
2007
20,000,000 per annum
23
Kuwait University’s new campus
More than 25 faculty buildings, containing a 600-bed hospital for the medical faculty, dormitories, sports facilities and auditoriums
7,300,000
2014
30,000 students
24
Asian Olympia Project
United Resources Real Estate Company
Headquarters building for the Asian Olympia Council, a 5-star hotel, office and residential towers and retail areas
TBA
2008
900
25
Kuwait Business Town
Kuwait Business Town Holding Company (KBT)
9 luxurious office towers, shopping malls and new luxury leisure facilities and a multi storey car park
23,300
2010
N/A
26
Kheiran Pearl City Project
La’Ala Al Kuwait Real Estate Company
Residential city built as ‘the Venice of the Gulf’ with all house plots having berthing facilities and including developments such as Lagoon City
2,500,000
2009
100,000
27
Al Watiya Complex
Al Nakhil United Real Estate Company
Two 40-stoery commercial towers, a 28-storey 4-star hotel and a 25,000 sqm retail areawith a parking for 1,000 vehicles
TBA
2009
TBA
Commercial centre with retail, entertainment and administrative components, with focus on clinics, cinemas, recreation, parking, a botanical garden and a market
250,000
2009
500,000
Multi-use stadium for football matches and athletics
TBA
2007
65,000
Tennis stadium including a hotel and health club
52,000
28
Fintas Centre
29
Shaikh Jaber Al Ahmed Int’l Stadium
30
Kuwait Int’l Tennis Stadium
31
Salmiya Residential Complex
Ministry of Awqaf & Islamic Affairs
Middle-income housing for Kuwaiti nationals
TBA
2007
TBA
32
Kuwait Business City
URC: United Real Estate Company
Mixed-use complex consisiting of a commercial tower, a residential tower and a retail centre
23,000
2008
N/A
33
Al Abdali Border Passage
URC: United Real Estate Company
Warehouses, showrooms, industrial facilities, hotels and low cost residences located between Kuwait and Iraq, attempting to regulate customs and trading activities
8,000,000
TBA
N/A
34
Marina World
URC: United Real Estate Company
Marina Shopping Mall and Marina Seaside, includes Club el Marina, Marina Hotel and Marina Hall, within a coastal renovation scheme
3,000,000
TBA
N/A
1,351,300,000
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
N/A
AMO
TOTAL
Authority for Youth & Sport
19
Gulf Survey
Development Atlas
19
1,059,000
341
340
34
Project Name
Developer
Project Description
Area /sqm
Expected Completion Date
Expected Population /ppl.
Bahrain Al Areen Desert Spa and Resort
Al Areen Holding
Mixed-use development to transform desert into a thriving landscaped resort with a mix of hospitality, residential, entertainment and tourism components.
2,000,000
2008
2
Al Areen Desert Spa and Resort: Oryx Hills
Khaleeji Commercial Bank
Designed to take advantage of the natural topography of the site and blend perfectly into Al Areen’s hills through a residential development of villas
143,000
TBA
3
Al Areen Desert Spa and Resort:Sunset Hills
Abu Dhabi Investment House
Features luxury villas, town houses, terraced apartments and apartment blocks for shops and residences
47,000
2009
4
Science and Technology Park
Kuwait Finance House KFH
Attracts global science and technology companies of small to large sizes to grow niche markets in the Kingdom
2,000,000
2011
N/A
5
Bahrain Financial Harbour (BFH)
Bahrain Financial Harbour Holding Co.
Integrated financial community on prime seafront property with a diverse range of commercial, residential and leisure components.
380,000
2010
7,000
6
Bahrain Financial Harbour: Villamar at the Harbour
Gulf Holding Co.
Bahrain’s most advanced world-class waterfront residential complex and the first within the BFH
32,000
2009
5,000
7
Bahrain Bay Development
Bahrain Bay Development
Balance of commercial, residential and retail spaces set around the Manama waterfront.
1,100,000
2012
25,000
8
Bahrain Bay: The Four Seasons Hotel
Centerpiece of Bahrain Bay with 220 rooms, conference facilities and a private beach
400,000
2009
N/A
9
Bahrain Bay: Raffles City Bahrain
CapitaLand
High-end retail, serviced apartments and luxury residential units
220,000
2010
500
10
Durrat Al Bahrain Island
Durrat Khaleej Al Bahrain Co.
12 man-made islands with more than 2,000 villas and 3,000 apartments
20,000,000
2009
45,000
11
Lulu Island
Bahrain Gov. & Mouawad group Real Estate Inv. Co.
Designed in the shape of the number 9 with 39 residential buildings with a total of 1,217 apartments with waterfront or lagoon views
564,000
2009
6,500
12
Amwaj Islands; Al Fanar Resort
Ossis Property Developers
6 man-made islands – Najmah, Tala, Wardeh, Hamama, Delphene, Farasha – combine residential districts, commercial and leisure resorts with a unifying architectural theme and a smart city environment
2,798,000
2007
45,000
300
Amwaj Island/ Najmah: Lagoon Bahrain
The Abu Dhabi Investment House
Waterside commercial project located on a waterside strip of Amwaj Islands in Najmah district
55,000
2007
375
14
Amwaj Island/ Najmah Al Marsa Floating City
Al Marsa Real Estate Company
‘Waterfront’ district traversed by a series of waterways similar to Venice, which is the first ever man-made island in the Kingdom of Bahrain where waterfront villas, chalets and flats are being built
83,000
2007
700
15
Amwaj Island/ Najmah: Amwaj Gateway
Amwaj Gateway Co.
Luxurious residential development comprising six 20-storey towers
360,000
2009
1,100
16
Amwaj Island: Tala Island
Tala Island Development Co.
Townhouses, villas and apartments, shaped in an elongated curve, built in a gated community with sports facilities
110,000
2007
1,400
17
Salam Beach resort and Spa
Sama Duba
5-star beach resort hotels, spa and wellness centre, hotel villas, a vibrant souq, waterways and marina styled to resemble an Arabian citadel
500,000
2009
N/A
18
Bahrain Northern Town
Works and Housing Ministry
14 islands with 15,000 government houses, including a regional university, state-of-the-art transportation facilities, an interactive museum and an aquarium
10,000,000
2016
70,000
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
343
342
2
AMO
13
1
Gulf Survey
Development Atlas
1
Project Name
Developer
Project Description
Area /sqm
Expected Completion Date
Expected Population /ppl.
Bahrain Alargan Int’l Real Estate
Housing development
54,800
2009
700
20
Bahrain World Trade Centre (BWTC)
-
Landmark office, retail, and hotel development to be branded and operated as the Bahrain World Trade Centre, in which large-scale wind turbines are integrated to harness wind power for an alternative energy supply.
18,000 (Moda Mall)
2007
N/A
21
Bahrain City Centre
Majid Al Futtaim Investments
Shopping complex, the largest indoor water park in the region, an indoor amusement park, the largest cinema in the Middle East, and hotels
139,400
2008
N/A
22
Domina Bahrain Hotel and Towers
Domina Hotel Group & Al Hamad Construction & Develop. Co.
340 spacious rooms including 2 presidential suites, villas, restaurants, spa, leisure avenues and 1,860 sqm banqueting and conference facilities
20,000
2007
N/A
23
Super Yacht Hotel
Aquiva Development
170 m-long floating hotel with 100 rooms and a ‘world class spa’
N/A
2009
N/A
24
Hay Al Zahra’a View
Al Enma’a House
First joint government and private sector housing project to provide affordable housing scheme to Bahraini nationals
34,700
2008
700
25
New town in Hidd
Al Enma’a House
Divided into a northern part of tourist facilities such as hotels and private residences, and a southern part including government houses.
1,800,000
2012
20,000
26
Township for labourers
Al Enma’a House
Residential complex for expatriate workers
67,000
TBA
6,000
27
Waterfront housing and develop. project
Dadabhai Construction
6 residential blocks, a health club, 3 swimming pools, a business centre and restaurants
13,000
TBA
400
28
International Airport Expansion
Ministry of Works & Housing
3-phase expansion project intended to more than double its terminal floor area
125,000
2008/ 2010
15,000,000 per annum
29
Riffa Views Signature Estates
Riffa Views
Development of 1,000 luxury residences, an 18-hole golf course, a 9-hole short course, sports, leisure and school facilities
2,700,000
2008
3000
30
Sheikh Khalifa Sport City
Ithmaar Bank
Football stadium, multipurpose sports hall, worldstandard swimming pool, central tennis court, parking lots, gates and a road network
TBA
2007
3,600 spectators
31
Bahrain Investment Wharf
Al Khaleej Development Co. (Tameer)
Industrial Park, Business Park and Residential Park, strategically located in the Hidd industrial Area, providing direct access to major sea, air and road networks.
1,700,000
TBA
TBA
32
Bahrain Mega Equestrian Resort
Bahrain Wiggins
Idyllic lake-studded resort close to an international standard horse-racing course and equestrian club, with recreationaland residential components
3,700,000
2010
4,500
33
Bahrain Rail Network
Bahrain Chamber of Commerce & Industry (BCCI)
Light rail system as part of plans to create an integrated transport strategy for the country between its major upcoming projects
N/A
2011/ 2030
10,000 per hour
34
Muharraq
-
Garden project set as ‘a major face-lift’, featuring an amusement park and a shopping mall.
TBA
2010
TBA
35
Gilgamesh Island in Muharraq
Al Enma’a House
Artificial Gilgamesh Island project moved to another site because of potential environmental damage
TBA
2012
TBA
36
Ishbiliya Village Development
Al Enma’a House
Villas, apartments and commercial units with a mall, retail shops and restaurants
176,000
2008
3,000
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
345
344
19
AMO
Saar Gate
Gulf Survey
Development Atlas
19
Project Name
Developer
Project Description
Area /sqm
Expected Completion Date
Expected Population /ppl.
Middle East’s first environmentally designed and ecologically oriented Green City with EURO University set up to be the fist university in the Middle East specialised in environmental sciences; students and staff housing attached
TBA
2009
5,000
Bahrain 37
Green City
38
King Hamad General Hospital
Ministry of Works and Housing; Ministry of Health
General and teaching hospital, which will also have some facilities for the medical school, including a 200 seat lecture theatre
227,000
2007
N/A
39
Busaiteen Resort Development
Ministry of Muncipality & Agricultural Affairs
Resort including a 50-storey hotel, apartment blocks, villas and chalets, a mall, a theme park and other leisure facilities
442,000
2009
1,000
40
Two Seas
Dala Development
Waterfront development comprising residential clusters, luxury hotels, schools, hospitals, high-street retail opportunities, promenades and other modern amenities
11,000,000
On Hold
TBA
41
Marina West
AA Janahi Holdings Co.
Residential beachfront community on the Kingdom’s west coast including a retail and leisure development
345,000
2009
5,500
61,904,000
248,600
38
40
41
39
Gulf Survey
Development Atlas
TOTAL
37
AMO 347
346
Project Name
Developer
Project Description
Area /sqm
Expected Completion Date
Expected Population /ppl.
Qatar Qatar Real Estate Investment Co. (QREIC)
Mixed-use development in central Doha comprising a retail and office component and a residential component
30,000
2010
TBA
2
Doha Convention Centre and Tower
Qatari Diar Real Estate Investment and Develop. Co.
Office space and an exhibition and convention centre with 2 iconic towers, 60- and 100-storeys high, soaring on a prestigious location on Corniche
124,000
2013
TBA
3
Al Qutaifya Lagoon
Qatari Diar
Residential and commercial districts on reclaimed land including Chiva Som Qatar, designed blending Thai, Qatari and western cultural influences
TBA
4
Lusail Development
Qatari Diar
10 districts including a Marina and Waterfront, Boulevard Commercial, Corporate Office Park, Foxhills and Resorts.
35,000,000
2010
200,000
5
Lusail development: Fox Hills
-
Centerpiece of Lusail City is commercial, residential and civic facilities inspired by Qatari heritage and European influences
1,600,000
2009
TBA
6
Lusail development: Fox Hills – The Piazza
Damac Holdings
14-building Mediterranean-themed residential project located inside the Lusail development’s Fox Hills
TBA
2010
1,100
7
Lusail development: waterfront district
Qatari Diar Real Estate Investment and Develop. Co.
Pinnacle of seaside living, boasting the feel and excitement of a traditional Arabic souq while offering state-of-the-art amenities and entertainment options
600,000
8
Lusail development: Energy City Qatar (ECQ)
Al Addiyar Real Estate Investment Co.
Gulf’s first hydrocarbon industry business center, acting as an oil and gas hub, and providing a single point of access to markets and expertise in the field.
1,300,000
2013
N/A
9
The Pearl-Qatar
United Development Company (UDC)
Riviera-style man-made island, including villas, hotels, retail shopping and restaurants, entertainment and recreational facilities, schools and parks
3,660,000
2010
40,000
10
Education City: Al Shaqab Equestrian Academy in Qatar
Qatar Foundation
World-class equine management facility including an equine breeding facility, hospital, indoor outdoor arena, members’ clubhouse, staff accommodation, and entertainment facilities with museum.
TBA
2008
N/A
11
Education City: Carnegie Mellon University
Qatar Foundation
Pittsburgh based research university, offering Qatari students undergraduate programs in computer science and business administration
445,000
2008
100 students annually
12
Education City: Convention centre
Qatar Foundation
Auditorium, a theatre and a multi-purpose hall, where exhibitions, conferences and festivals are hosted
150,000
2009
8,000
13
Education City: Qatar Science & Technology Park
Qatar Foundation
Office and lab space, professional services and support programs to tenant companies in a complex of buildings.
1,200,000
Phase I: 2007
N/A
14
Education City: Sidra Medical & Research Centre (Teaching Hosp.)
Qatar Foundation & Weill Cornell Medical College
First all-digital, academic medical research centre in the region; highest standard in patient care, teaching, medical research and clinical practice
200,000 (built area)
2010
380 beds
15
Smart Industrial City
Al Rayyan Bank
Several clusters incl. World of Electronics and Future City exhibition centres
16
Ain Khalid Commercial Development
Barwa Real Estate Company
Mixed-use project comprising malls, residential apartments, retail outlets, exhibitions and restaurants
17
Al Khor Resort
Barwa Real Estate Company
Full-service town featuring residential villas, beach chalets and commercial centres for oil and gas industry workers
18
Qatar Petroleum Headquarters
7,990,000
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
TBA
46 plots
2014
N/A
2010
TBA
2013
80,000
Phase I: 2007
N/A
349
Office complex including training facilities, medical center, recreation and sports stadium, and a computer centre
5,000,000
1
AMO
348
Al Sadd development
Gulf Survey
Development Atlas
1
Project Name
Developer
Project Description
Area /sqm
Expected Completion Date
Expected Population /ppl.
Resort in a unique Qatari village architectural style, including a spa, a traditional Qatari Souq, and entertainment facilities.
98,000
2007
N/A
2 runways partially on reclaimed land, passenger terminal complex, a new 10-gate terminal, all associated airline and airport ancillary features, and retail space
Reclaimed land: 18,000,000 sqm Terminal bldg: 55,000 sqm
2008/ 2015
50,000,000 per annum
Pediatric, orthopedic, physical medicine and physiotherapy hospital in addition to a day care surgery center, home care center for elderly and a renal dialysis unit
500,000
2008
1,100 beds
Qatar 19
Sharq Village & Spa
20
New Doha International Airport (NDIA)
NDIA Steering Committee
Hammad Medical City
22
Al Waab City
Al Waab Development Company
Integrates a variety of housing types, small and large scale retail, offices, health facilities, a culture center and a world class hotel
1,200,000
2012
10,000
23
Al khor Housing Project expansion
Qatar Petroleum, QREIC
Housing Expansion project.
TBA
Phase I: 2007, Phase II: 2009
5,500
24
Dubai Tower Development
Sama Dubai
80-story tower offering high-end retail, state-ofthe-art offices, a 5-star hotel as well as top-quality apartments
218,000
2009
25
Grand Hyatt Hotel and Villas
Touristic Investment Company
Villas and a 5-star hotel complex
93,000 (built area)
2009
250 rooms (hotel) and 56 villas
26
Villaggio Mall
Qatar’s largest shopping centre offering comprehensive mix of major retail outlets, services and entertainment activities
145,000 (built area)
TBA
N/A
27
Museum of Islamic Arts
Important collection of Islamic art with areas for public reception, exhibition, education, technical and administrative facilities, and support services
45,000
2007
N/A
28
Qatar National Library
Qatar National Library, Contemporary Art Museum, and Museum of Science and Natural History
50,000
2007
N/A
29
‘Nine-Mile’ Development
Large luxury residential communities and entertainment complex, incuding the country’s largest theme park, a sport park with Formula One racing track, acqua park and a cruise ship terminal (This project may have been cancelled and compensated by an entertainment park in Lusail.)
TBA
TBA
TBA
74,148,000
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
AMO
TOTAL
Supported by Qatar Government
20
Gulf Survey
Development Atlas
21
19
336,000
351
350
Project Name
Developer
Project Description
Area /sqm
Expected Completion Date
Expected Population /ppl.
Abu Dhabi Al Raha Beach Resort
Al Dar
Residential district of high- and low-rise buildings, commercial and entertainment venues with a gated residential community of 365 villas (Raha Gardens)
6,800,000
2009/ 2011
120,000
2
Al Gurm Resort
Al Dar
International luxury hotel, exclusive villas and mangrove reserve
1,800,000
2008
3,000
3
Central Market
Al Dar
3 towers of a 5-star luxury hotel, an office tower and a residential tower with a modern souq
50,000
2010
1,000
4
Yas Island
Al Dar
Island with a motor sports racetrack, Ferrari theme park, water park, retail and entertainment venues, hotels and low-rise residential apartments and villas (Contractor: KBR)
25,000,000
2014
1,500
5
Al Falah Housing
Al Dar and others
Urban housing project of 15,000 villas for middleincome UAE families, in the outskirts of Abu Dhabi, comprising a series of villages encircling a town centre of civic and commercial activities.
1,000,000
TBA
80,000
6
Saadiyat Island
Tourism Development & Investment Company (TDIC)
6 districts of residential, leisure and recreational facilities, including a cultural district of 8 iconic architectural landmarks containing Performance Arts Centre by Zaha Hadid, Classical Museum by Jean Nouvel, Guggenheim Abu Dhabi by Frank Gehry, and Maritime Museum by Tadao Ando
27,000,000
2018
150,000
Between the Bridges
(TDIC)
5-star hotel, executive apartments, and villas, available along with gardens and private swimming pools
600,000
2008
N/A
8
The Quay
(TDIC)
Redevelopment of city’s previous Tourist Club site into a world-class tourism, residential and commercial shoreline hub
140,000
TBA
1,500
9
Golf Gardens
Sorouh Real Estate and (TIDC)
Luxurious residential villas and town homes, featuring recreational and commercial venues in addition to gardens and parks
347,000
2008
700
10
Lulu Island
Sorouh Real Estate
Hotels, restaurants, gardens, an aquarium, a museum, fun parks for children and a wildlife reserve
2010
N/A
11
Saraya Abu Dhabi
Sorouh Real Estate
High-rise development including residential and commercial buildings, serviced apartments and a hotel
125,000
2013
12
Al Shamkha
Sorouh Real Estate
Residential project intended for UAE nationals
11,000
TBA
32,500
13
Material City
Manazel Real Estate
Hub for UAE’s commercial services and trading activities related to construction and building materials with the first building materials exchange in the Middle East
230,000
2010
N/A
14
Al Reef Villas
Manazel Real Estate
Villas and apartments, grouped into 4 themed communities
929,000
2009
6,000
15
Manazel New City
Manazel Real Estate
New city outside Abu Dhabi of low-cost villas for emaratis and expatriates on 99-year loans
3,000,000
TBA
10,000
16
Reem Island
Tamouh Investment
Residential, comemrcial and business project built on Al Reem Island
6,317,400
2012
280,000
17
Reem Island: Najmat Abu Dhabi
Al Reem Investments
Urbane waterside community of residential areas, 2 five-star hotels, island resort, business district and amenties
1,860,000
2012
80,000.
18
Reem Island: Shams Abu Dhabi
Sorouh Investments
Residential units with commercial and recreational facilities
1,320,000
2011
100,000
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
353
352
2
AMO
7
1
Gulf Survey
Development Atlas
1
Project Name
Developer
Project Description
Area
Expected Completion Date
Expected Population /ppl.
Abu Dhabi 19
Reem Island: Addax Port
Abu Dhabi Towers Property Investment
Five 50-storey towers with luxury apartments and offices, a central shopping area, community facilities, landscaped gardens and marina
808,256,000
2009
5,400
20
Autopolis
Elite Investment House
Regional distribution centre for car manufacturers and dealers, built on an Island, which offes auto-themed amenities for tourists including a museum, boutique auto hotel, an exhibition and convention centre, and villas. A Car Hotel designed by Kas Oosterhuis will allow customers to drive with their cars right into the hotel lobby
1,200,000
2011
1,500
Autohub
Elite Investment House
Automobile operators, distributors, manufacturers and auto-related industries in Mussafah Industrial City
2011
N/A
22
Danet Abu Dhabi
Al Qudra Real Estate
Fully interactive smart digital community ‘designed to be one of the region’s best-planned communities… a welcoming oasis enhanced with a futuristic skyline, with gardens, parks, green boulevards, building, cafes, and leisure facilities’
210,000
2009
2,500
23
Zayed Bay
Al Qudra Real Estate
Mixed-use development offering office space with state-of-the-art services, exclusive residential apartments, prime retail spaces, 5-star Hotels and a conference centre on water edge
TBA
TBA
3,000
24
Abu Dhabi Financial Centre
Mubadala Development Company
Mixed-use development with outstanding visual impact, the centrepiece will be designed by a worldrenowned architect; consisting of a state-of-the-art securities market, supported by substantial office space, positioning itself as a preferred business destination
50,000
25
Abu Dhabi Airport expansion
Comprises a new midfield passenger terminal, a second runway, cargo, maintenance facilities and other commercial developments on land
34,000,000
26
Capital Center
District comprising of the Grandstand, 30 residential, office and retail towers: The Galleria multi-storey retail space; The Marina future home of super-yachts, marine exhibitions and floating hotels; and The Feature Tower
150,000
2009
3000
27
Khalifa Sea Port and Industrial Zone
Port complemented by an industrial zone catering to a number of medium and light industries
100,000,000
2012
N/A
28
Sheikh Mohammad Bin Zayed City
Commercial and residential project divided into 3 sectors: 1) a mall, office towers and furnished apartment; 2) and 3) residential buildings
6,300,000
2010
50,000
29
Workers City
Zonescorp, .
Residential complexes for workers
2009
100,000
30
CERTCity; Centre of Excellence, Research and Training
Higher Colleges of Technology
‘World class centres of excellence supported by a top class convention centre, 5-star hotel facilities, housing estates, shopping malls and state-of-the-art sports, recreation and leisure facilities’
1,000,000
2008
2.500
31
Al Fahim Resort
Al Fahim Group
Resort complex with conference and meeting facilities, recreation facilities and a cluster of residential serviced villas
1,100
2008
N/A
216,260,500
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
N/A
2010
50,000,000 passengers annually
AMO
TOTAL
Mubadala
20
Gulf Survey
Development Atlas
21
19
847,200
31
355
354
Project Name
Developer
Project Description
Area /sqm
Expected Completion Date
Expected Population /ppl.
Dubai Nakheel
Smallest of the three Palms containing mixed-use developments of commercial, retail, residential and hospitality offerings
31,100,000
2007
60,000 ppl. 45,000 visitors daily
2
Palm Jumeirah: Logo Islands
Nakheel
Personal islands for Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum
-
2005
N/A
3
Palm Jumeirah: The Atlantis
Joint venture: Kerzner Int’l Limited & Istithmar
Resort which will feature unique water attractions including one of the world’s largest marine habitats
500,000
2009
N/A
4
Palm Jumeirah: Golden Mile
IFA Hotels & Resorts
Will encompass premier retail and apartment residences within two parts: The Golden Mile Residences and The Golden Mile Retail
60,000
2009
1400
5
Palm Jumeirah: The Trump International Hotel and Tower
Joint venture: Nakheel LLC, and The Trump Organization
Luxurious 48-storey mixed-use condo-hotel and residence centrepiece of the Palm Golden Mile
130,000
2009.
N/A
6
Palm Jumeirah: Kingdom of Sheba
Fairmont
Mixed-use development of residential villas, apartments, hotels and resorts
141,500
TBA
TBA
7
Palm Jebel Ali
Nakheel
40% bigger than the Palm Jumeirah, containing mixed-use developments of water homes built on stilts that spell a poem written by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum
10,000,000
TBA
250,000
8
Palm Deira
Nakheel
Largest of The Palm trilogy, with 41 fronds housing mixed-use developments
80,000,000
2015
500,000
9
The World
Nakheel
Mixed-use private and commercial 300 island development ranging from 14,000 sqm to 41,800 sqm
55,100,000
2008
300,000
10
The Gardens
Nakheel
Residential community of mid-rise buildings and villas
2,200,000
Completed
10,000
11
Discovery Garden
Nakheel
Residential community arranged in 6 garden themes of Zen, Mediterranean, Contemporary, Cactus, Mogul and Mesoamerican courtyard gardens
2,400,000
2008
46,800
12
Dubai Water Front: Madinat Al Arab & Al Burj
Nakheel
Mixed-use development of 250 master planned communities with Al Burj anchoring the project as one of the world’s tallest buildings
81,000,000
TBA
500,000
13
Arabian Canal
Nakheel
Mixed-used residential, commercial, retail and hospitality arranged around a 80,000 m long canal ‘Dubai’s second creek’
TBA
2013
TBA
14
Jumeirah Golf Estates
Nakheel
Residential golf community with course designers Greg Norman for Fire and Earth theme and Vijay Singh for Water and Wind theme
11,190,000
2007/ 2008/ 2012
1,800
15
Jumeirah Islands
Nakheel
The World’s first man-made inland island community of 46 clusters
3,000,000
Completed
1,400
16
Jumerirah Village (previously known as JV South)
Nakheel
Residential community built in classic Arabian and Mediterranean architectural styles
7,500,000
2008
3,600
17
Jumeirah Park: (previously known as JV North)
Nakheel
Residential community with expansive parks, ecofriendly green spaces and family orientated amenities
3,500,000
2009
3,600
International City
Nakheel
18
Residential community comprised of four main districts: Central District, Residential District, Lake District and Forbidden City
8,000,000
2007
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
75,000
357
356
1
AMO
Palm Jumeirah
Gulf Survey
Development Atlas
1
Project Name
Developer
Project Description
Area/ sqm
Expected Completion Date
Expected Population /ppl.
Dubai International City: Dragon Mart Complex
Nakheel
Large trade mall designed in the form of a dragon that serves as a commercial center for more than 3,000 Chinese companies
8,000,000
2004.
N/A
20
International City; Dubai Design Centre
Nakheel
Exclusive area for permanent and temporary exhibitions of home furnishing and construction solutions
1,115,000
2008
N/A
21
The Lost City
Nakheel
Residential development inspired by famed cities in Arabian history
5,600,000
TBA
TBA
22
Dubai Maritime City
Nakheel
Comprehensive maritime complex offering maritime services and management, marine education and research, and other services
2,325,000
TBA
N/A
23
Ibn Battuta Mall
Nakheel
Retail development themed around the travels of the renowned 14th-century Arabian explorer, Ibn Battuta
2,043,867
Completed
N/A
24
Jumeirah Lake Towers (JLT)
Nakheel
Waterfront community of residential and office towers alongside hotels, leisure and retail outlets
1,350,000
Completed
25
Extreme Parks
Nakheel
Extreme branded experiential theme park
279,000
TBA
26
Techno Park Dubai
Dubai World Group
Designed to serve as a regional platform to launch international, local and regional technology businesses
23,000,000
Completed
27
Downtown Jebel Ali
Limitless
Commercial, retail and residential community of four quarters – East Quarter, East Central, West Central and West Quarter – all linked by a range of transport options
2,000,000
2007/ 2011
235,000
28
Dubai Industrial City (DIC)
Tatweer, a member of Dubai Holding
Industrial zone containing an Industrial Research and Education Centre, central warehousing and a quality control standard function
52,000,000
2015
300,000 workers
29
Dubai Media City
TECOM, a member of Dubai Holding
A tax free zone within Dubai providing a regional hub for media organizations
-
completed
N/A
30
Dubai Media City: Dubai Studio City
TECOM, a member of Dubai Holding
Part of DMC offering complete technical and community infrastructure catering to film and TV production industries
2,000,000
Phase I: Complete
N/A
31
Dubai Internet City
TECOM, a member of Dubai Holding
Free economic zone where companies can operate without restrictions
140,000
2007
10,000 workers
32
Dubai Outsource Zone
TECOM, a member of Dubai Holding
Free zone for outsourcing industry
-
Phases I & I I: Complete
N/A
33
Dubai Health Care City (DHCC)
Tatweer, a member of Dubai Holding
The world’s first health care free zone
2,024,000
2010
TBA
34
Dubai Knowledge Village
Dubai Holding
Learning community that will develop the region’s knowledge work force by housing various universities
93,000
2006/ 2008
N/A
35
Dubailand
Tatweer, a member of Dubai Holding
Entertainment complex divided into 7 seven exciting worlds with a range of projects to suit everyone. There are 23 projects capitalized on Dubailand and work is currently been carried out on phases, and some of the Dubailand facilities like the Dubai Autodrome and Al Sahra in Dubai Heritage vision are already operational.
185,806,000
2015/ 2018
15,000,000 tourists annually
36
Dubailand: 1. Attractions and Experience World
Tatweer, a member of Dubai Holding
16 projects themed on adventure parks including Aqua Dubai, Astrolab Resort, Aviation World, Snowdome, Great Dubai Wheel, Dubailand Theme Park, Falcon City of Wonders, Fantasia, Giants World, The Global Village, The Islamic Culture and Science World, Kids World, Legends Dubailand, Planetarium, Space and Science World, and Tourism Park
13,900,000
2015/ 2018
TBA
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
TBA
AMO 359
358
19
Gulf Survey
Development Atlas
19
Project Name
Developer
Project Description
Area /sqm
Expected Completion Date
Expected Population /ppl.
Dubai Dubailand: Space and Scienc World Tourism Park
-
Has the ambition to become the largest tourist park in the world
38
Dubailand: Snowdome
Emirates Star Properties (32 Group)
Includes a snow and ice leisure park, a deluxe hotel designed to look like an iceberg and a huge revolving ski slope
130,000
2010
N/A
39
Dubailand: Falcon City of Wonders
Falconcity of Wonders LLC & Salem Al Moosa Ent.
Residential, tourist, enetrtainment and recreational facility shaped like a falcon, containing life-size replicas of seven wonders of the world
3,716,000
2011
TBA
40
Dubailand: Legends – Dubai Land
Legends Development Company LLC
3 climate-controlled indoor theme parks, residential developments, themed hotels, 5 hotel apartments towers, a 9-hole golf course, entertainment and shopping area, and business developments
2,300,000
2009 / 2013
TBA
41
Dubailand: 2. Sports and Outdoor World
-
5 projects of mixed sporting venues, including Extreme Sports World, Dubai Sports City, Racing World, Polo World and Golf World
32,900,000
2016 / 2018
N/A
42
Dubailand: Dubai Sports City
Dubai Tourism Development Company
Sporting venues and academies featuring 4 giant-sized stadiums designed for international events, along with residential and commercial developments
4,645,000
2010
43
Dubailand: Tiger Woods Dubai
Tatweer, a member of Dubai Holding
A Tiger Woods-designed Golf Course, golf academy; a 60,000-square-foot clubhouse with the latest amenities; an 80-suite boutique hotel for VIP guests; 300 luxury villas; 20 mansions and a retail area
2,351,000
2009
1,000
44
Dubailand: 3. Eco-Tourism World
-
12 projects themed on nature and desert-based attractions, including Petting Zoo, Animal World, Equestrian Centre, Light & Sound World, Gardens World, Dinosaur World, Science and History Museum, Bio World, Sand Dune Hotel, Sandstone Villas, Camp World and Desert Safari
130,000,000
2018
N/A
Dubailand: Al Kaheel Park
Kaheel Park LLC
Tourist attraction with mixed-use residential and commercial components including a working horse farm.
929,000
2008
1,000
46
Dubailand: 4. Themed leisure and Vacation World
-
4 Spas, health and well-being retreats including Andalusian Resort & Spa, Women’s World, Wonders World and Holiday World
29,700,000
2018
N/A
47
Dubailand: Al Sahra (DHV)
-
Unique desert resort set in undulating sand dunes just thirty minutes from the heart of Dubai. A traditional Souk with arts and crafts of the region, luxury tented lodges and a Caravanserai boutique hotel ensure a memorable experience
3,716,000
2006 / 2010
250,000
Dubailand: 5. Retail & Entertnt. World
-
Retail facilities comprising of Mall of Arabia, Dubai Outlet City, Auction World, World Trade Park and The Flea Market
4,274,000
2019
N/A
49
Dubailand: 6. Downtown
-
4 Entertainment projects including The Towers, Dubai Walk, Virtual Games World and Teen World
560,000
TBA
N/A
50
Dubailand: City of Arabia
Ilyas and Mustafa Galadari Group
Elite Towers, Mall of Arabia (to be the world’s largest shopping mall), Restless Planet Dinosaur Park and Wadi Walk
1,860,000
2009
35,000
51
Dubailand: Dubai Outlet City
Al Ahli Group
First factory-outlet mall with a business park, a web marketing centre, an artificial beach with restaurants, residences and a hotel
910,000
2008
TBA
52
Bawadi in Dubailand
Tatweer, a member of Dubai Holding
Vegas-like strip containing 31 hotels of different themes and over 29,000 rooms
12,900,000
2010 / 2013
690,000 visitors
53
Arjan in Dubailand
Mizin, a member of Tatweer
Commercial, residential, retail and hotel developments in 10 demarcated zones with 157 plots
1,858,000
2009
TBA
54
Tijara Town in Dubailand
Dubai Properties
First project in Dubailand to offer integrated office, showroom, warehouse, and residential apartments as one unit
1,880,000
Phase I: 2008
14,000
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
51
52
53
54
361
360
48
38
AMO
45
37
Gulf Survey
Development Atlas
37
Project Name
Developer
Project Description
Area /sqm
Expected Completion Date
Expected Population /ppl.
Dubai 55
Jumeirah Beach Residence (JBR)
Dubai Properties
Waterfront community consisting of 36 residential towers, 4 hotel towers and a 1.7 km beachfront shopping boulevard
2,044,000
2007
25,000
56
Business Bay
Dubai Properties
A city within a city, with waterfront high-rise towers, both commercial and residential, along Dubai’s Creek
5,950,000
2010
TBA
57
Busiess Bay: Dancing Towers
Dubai Properties
3 towers designed by Zaha Hadid forming the centerpiece of the Business Bay, consisting of office, residential and hotel tower with a common podium.
560,000
2009
TBA
58
Culture Village
Dubai Properties
Divided into residential, commercial and retail zones with hospitality and entertainment sub-districts pertaining to the promotion of the Arts in society
3,716,000
59
The Villa
Dubai Properties
Residential retreat, inspired by generous spaces for outdoor living with Spanish style courtyard housing
2,700,000
2007
4000
60
The Lagoons
Sama Dubai
7 landscaped islands, comprising residential and office buildings, shopping centers and marinas, all interlinked with bridges and built along the Dubai Creek, with a focus on culture by housing Dubai’s first Opera House.
6,500,000
2010
Sama Dubai
Centrepiece of the Central Business District, comprising four state-of-the-art towers for residential, commercial, retail and hospitality purposes
62
Downtown Burj Dubai
EMAAR
Residential, commercial, hotel, and entertainment outlets with open green spaces, water features, pedestrian boulevards, an old town and one of the world’s largest shopping malls
2,025,000
2008
30,000
63
Dubai Marina
EMAAR
Man-made island of over 200 high-rise buildings, and 700 berths providing retail and leisure facilities, and luxury residential accommodation
4,900,000
2008
75,000
64
Arabian Ranches
EMAAR
Inspired by heritage of the Arabian horse, consisting of an equestrian centre, scenic desert trails, polo grounds, a world-class desert golf course, villas and townhouses
12,141,000
Phase I completed
10,000
65
The Meadows
EMAAR
Premium villas offering luxurious double-storied villas of 3 to 7 rooms
–
–
-
66
The Lakes
EMAAR
Villas & townhouses for lease
–
–
-
67
The Views
EMAAR
Water Side and Golf Side towers, offering pictureperfect views from its apartments
–
2009
-
68
Emaar Golf Homes
EMAAR
Mirador La Colección and Hattan III golf homes set on spacious plots close to the Emirates Golf Club, featuring Spanish and Islamic architecture
–
–
-
69
Dubai Metro
Dubai RTA
Fully automated metro network of a Red and Green Line, intended to provide transport coverage to strategic areas in Dubai, branching out further with future extensions.
69,700 m
2009
N/A
70
Dubailand: Dubai Zoo
Dubai Municipality
Large new zoo to replace exisiting, built at Dubailand with a safari and educational facilities for children
2,024,000 Phase I: 500,000
2008
N/A
71
Dubai Festival City
Al-Futtaim Group
Centrally located retail and hospitality project, occupying 4 km along Dubai Creek, consisting of the Marsa Al Khor, Festival Centre and Al Badia districts
6,475,000
2008
100,000
72
Aqua Dunya
Al Sharq Investment
A gigantic water theme park with thrilling wet/dry rides, water shows, aquariums and a resort with a residential community
745,000
TBA
TBA
58
59
60
61
62
63
64
65
66
67
68
69
70
71
72
2010
363
362
57
AMO
The Lagoons: Dubai Towers
56
Gulf Survey
Development Atlas
61
55
Project Name
Developer
Project Description
Area /sqm
Expected Completion Date
Expected Population /ppl.
Dubai Department of Civil Aviation
Residential, commercial and logistics complex with Dubai’s new World International Airport, previously called ‘Jebel Ali International Airport’ and ‘Jebel Ali Airport City’
140,000,000
2020
750,000
74
DubaiI Aerospace Enterprise
–
A company that leases planes, develops airports and makes aircraft parts to tap into growing demand for air travel in the Middle East and Asia, creating a new hub for aviation
N/A
2015
N/A
75
Dubai Investments Park (DIP)
dth Investments Park Development Company L.L.C.
Mixed-use industrial, businesss, residential and recreational development with ‘a pioneering concept of creating a city within a city, an area to work, live and play’
32,000,000
2010
100,000
76
Dubai investment Park: The Palisades
Pearl Properties
Commercial and residential community composed of eclectic property styles, inspired by the Georgian, Regency and Victorian eras
465,000
2008 / 2011
55,000
77
DIP: Dunes Village
Al Serkal Properties and Manazel Real Estate
A cluster of 19 mid-rise towers housing 950 apartments
43,000
2009
1,750
78
DIP Ritaj Development
-
Residential community featuring restaurants, cafes, shops, entertainment and recreational facilities
TBA
2008
4,000
79
DIP: Dubai Lagoon
Town Center Management Ltd
Residential apartment community planned around a man-made lagoon
162,000
TBA
7,400
80
DIP: Ewan Residence
–
Residential Community containing 75 properties
185,806
TBA
30,000
81
DIP: The Green Community West (Phase II of Green Community)
Properties Investments (PI)
Traffic-free environment with cobbled roads, residential apartments and villas with 6 recreation areas of 3 different types: luxury, family and bungalows
1,041,000
TBA
1,650
82
Hydropolis
Crescent Hydropolis Holdings LLC
The world’s first luxury underwater hotel
2,600,000
TBA
N/A
83
Dubai Pearl
Omnix International L.L.C.
Residential and comemrcial community with including 2 hotels and a retail and leisure centres
929,000
2010
3,600
84
Dubai Academic City
-
Group of 20 leading universities and colleges
12,077,000
2012
150,000 students
85
Dubai International Airport Expansion
Department of Civil Aviation
Terminal 3, Concourse 2 and Car Park that will increase passenger capacity from 33 million annually at present to 120 million by 2008
1,459,000
Phase II: 2007
Phase II: 70,000,000 per annum
86
Al Wasl City
Dubai Inv. Co. (EDIC)
8-tower residential and hotel cluster
56,000
TBA
TBA
87
Al Safa
Dubai Municipality
Housing and recreational project to reflect traditional heritage of Dubai
1,000,000
TBA
10,100
88
Uptown Mirdiff
Union Properties
Variety of residential properties, with the retail area arranged around a Grand Piazza with a covered colonnade leading to the open-styled walkways, cafés and restaurants
230,000
Retail complete/ 2007
1,000
89
Motor City
Union Properties
Business park for motor and motor-related industries with a residential district; the first of the kind 50-hectare Ferrari World theme park incorporating a museum, restaurants and exclusive shops
3,530,000
2005 / 2009
TBA
90
The Park Square
KM Properties
Business, commercial, residential, leisure and entertainment development
130,000
TBA
TBA
74
75
76
77
78
79
80
81
82
83
84
85
86
87
88
89
90
365
364
73
AMO
Dubai World Central
Gulf Survey
Development Atlas
73
Project Name
Developer
Project Description
Area /sqm
Expected Completion Date
Expected Population /ppl.
Dubai -
Enhanced central business district offering a significant amount of highly sought-after office space available at a time when Dubai is reaching capacity
200,000 (office accommodation)
Phase I: 2010
3600
92
DWTC: Dubai Exhibition City
-
Campus style office park, a major retail destination, 8 international standard hotels, and a trade hub for international companies to showcase products
3,000,000
TBA
N/A
93
Dubai Multi commodities Centre (DMCC)
Dubai Government
Free zone offering 100% ownership to resident companies with industry-specific market infrastructure and a full range of facilities for the gold and precious metals, diamonds and coloured stones, energy and other commodities industries (previously called ‘Dubai Metal and Commodity Centre’)
3,000,000
2006
N/A
94
Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC)
-
The world’s newest international financial centre with 6 primary sectors of focus: Banking Services; Capital Markets; Asset Management and Fund Registration; Reinsurance; Islamic Finance and Back Operations
445,000
2004
10,000
95
Dubai Silicon Oasis (DSO)
Dubai Government
Purpose-built high-technology park for microelectronics and semiconductor research, development and production
7,200,000
2007, 2025
N/A
96
Dubai Silicon Oasis (DSO): Silicon Gates
Al Derea For Real Estate Development
Residential freehold property of residential apartments
TBA
2008
1,500
97
Dubai Aid and Humanitarian Cities (DHC)
Dubai Holding; Ports, Customs and Freezones Corp.
The world’s first free trade zone offering support through warehouses, land, office buildings combined with value added services for humanitarian and development organizations, UN agencies, suppliers, service providers and donors in humanitarian sector
1,000,000
TBA
N/A
98
Intl Media Production Zone (IMPZ)
-
Cluster environment for media production companies in the 3P industries: Printing, Publishing and Packaging
3,995,000
TBA
N/A
99
Acacia Avenues
Abyaar Real Estate Development
Residential gated community of apartment buildings and villas
94,000
2009
600
100
Dubailand: Islamic Culture & Science World
-
Facilities for the promotion, understanding and research of Space, Natural and Human Sciences, as well as Islamic Culture, Arts and Literature
180,000
2010
N/A
101
Dubailand: Astrolabe
-
Immersive entertainment environment based on education themes in the Middle East. The entertainment themes will also highlight the golden age of Islam, as well as leading figures in different fields of science during that prosperous period
130,000
2009
N/A
102
Dubailand: Planetarium
-
Education based space themed project, comprising a planetarium, an education and entertainment centre, and several space themed hotels
153,000
TBA
N/A
103
Dubailand: Plantation
-
A Polo and Equestrian club with international standards. Components: 3 Polo fields, 5-star Hotel & Spa, Veterinary for horses and Polo Academy
1,858,000
2010
N/A
104
Dubailand: Dubai Golf City
-
5 themed signature courses, a golf academy, a sixstar resort hotel & spa, golf villages and retail souks.
5,110,000
2011
N/A
105
Dubailand: Al Bararri
-
Lush habitat of desert vegetation and gardens from around the world, with a spa of natural therapies, and academic and cultural facilities.
1,319,000
2008
N/A
106
Dubailand: Beautyland
-
Complex of international brand beauty-themed spas, also featuring a Beauty Museum, a Beauty Academy, a Boutique Hotel and a boulevard with an exclusive selection of cosmetic and luxury brands
323,000
2010
N/A
107
Dubailand: Dubai Bazar
-
The Islamic architectural design will capture the spirit of traditional Islamic marketplaces. Among the countless attractions, musical and artistic activities will be included.
186,000
2009
N/A
108
Dubailand: Dubai Life Style
-
One of its kind ‘World Class’ IMG Sports Academy in the region. It will be home to an exclusive boutique seven-star hotel with a destination spa and a premium retail walkway to cater for exclusive sports and wellness products and services
386,000
2009
N/A
91
92
93
94
95
96
97
98
99
100
101
102
103
104
105
106
107
108
AMO 367
366
DWTC: Dubai Trade Centre District
Gulf Survey
Development Atlas
91
Project Name
Developer
Project Description
Area /sqm
Expected Completion Date
Expected Population /ppl.
Dubai Dubailand: Dubai Great Wheel
-
One of the biggest wheels in the world (bigger than London Eye). During the exciting journey on the wheel, the visitor will be able to view distances of up to 50 kilometres and hence will be able to see all the wonders of Dubai
46,000
2009
N/A
110
Dubailand: Riverside
-
Wellness resort (health farm) with its unique blend of traditional and advanced therapies will ensure that the visitors can leave feeling relaxed, refreshed and rejuvenated
232,000
2012
N/A
111
Taaleem Beacon Education
Tatweer
The principal components of the Flagship School will include early childhood facilities, a primary/ elementary school, two secondary/middle and high schools and a Junior College. The schools will offer day and boarding placements and there will be a youth hostel to accommodate visiting students
249,000
2012
TBA
112
DubaiLand: Sahara Kingdom (Future Scope)
-
Arabian fantasy world that weaves together the excitement, adventure, charm and beauty of a 1001 Nights tales that happened in scores of places across the civilized world (alf layla wa layla, Shahriyar and Shahrazad). It is mix of complimentary retail, hospitality and entertainment. Each of the Resort components relates to the comprehensive storyline of the development, which sets the tone for the thematic approach to the development, and scripts the guest experience for the resort – Sahara Kingdom
4,645,000
2010
N/A
TOTAL
109
110
111
112
875,640,931
3,845,100
Gulf Survey
Development Atlas
109
AMO 369
368
Project Name by Country
Developer
Project Description
Area /sqm
Expected Completion Date
Expected Population /ppl.
Ras Al Khaimah Mina Al Arab
Rakeen
Mixed-use leisure and holiday beach resort featuring hotels, a theme park, a water park, a marina, a heritage village and cluster of residential units and villas
9,000,000
2011
7,000
2
Al Marjan Islands
Rakeen
First man-made island in RAK developed as an offshore destination for tourism, with waterfront homes, floating villas, resorts, sporting facilities, a marina, a water theme park and commercial areas
2,700,000
2009
TBA
3
Al Marjan Islands: La Hoya Bay Residence
Khoie Properties
Waterfront development with 725 studios and 1-, 2and 3-bedroom freehold apartments
130,000
2008
1,300
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Ras Al Khaimah Gateway
Rakeen
Compact urbanised area, where work and living form a single integrated whole, creating proximity between one’s home to variable cultural and social provisions.
13,000,000
2012
200,000
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Jebal Al Jais
Rakeen
Mountain Resort offering a landmark 5-star hotel and conference centre, a cable car, luxurious residential units, a climbing and abseiling center, paragliding facilities, and a Falconry Centre.
4,220,000
2009
20,000
6
RAK Offshore
Rakeen
Hub for offshore financial operations of the regional business community, including uniquely designed towers, offices, residential apartments, hotels, commercial areas and related services
750,000
TBA
1000
7
Banyan Tree Resort
Rakeen
Nature enclave of 30 deluxe villas, a 70-block hotel and an outdoor activity centre, among other facilities
1,000,000
2007
120
8
Saraya Islands
Saudi Oger Ltd (Saraya Real Estate)
Tourism development project containing 3 five-star hotels, 200 villas and cultural and commercial venues
1,000,000
2010
1,000
9
The Cove
Orascom Hotels & Development
Beach resort of 134 Nubian styled chalets and a 5-star beach hotel
202,300
2007
N/A
Global Spaceport Development Project
Space Adventures & Government of Ras Al Khaimah
Commercial spaceport with plans to expand globally: ‘the site where suborbital commercial space travel will begin and flourish…’
TBA
TBA
N/A
11
Al Hamra Village
Al Hamra Real Estate Development
Exclusive seaside resort with luxury apartments, villas, and townhouses, an 18-hole golf course designed by Peter Harradine, a purpose-built marina and the 5-star Al Hamra Palace Hotel
214 ,000
2007
3,000
12
Yasmin Village
Binna Real Estate
Rural residential and commercial project with a hotel overlooking lakeside or valley mountain views; solar energy will be used for lighting the development
427,000
TBA
3,500
13
Emirates Flag Project
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Seven 5-star hotels each being the centrepieces of seven blocks themed on each Emirate, which together will resemble the flag of the UAE
2,100,000
TBA
5,000
14
Mangrove Island
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Residential apartments, town houses and condominiums, with entertainment and leisure facilities set in villages. The Harbour Village; Khor Marina Villages including Mangrove Waterfront, Lagoon and Pearl Island; Pearl Island Ranch, Eco-Tourism Park and a Discovery Centre
800,000
TBA
TBA
15
Al Noor City
-
Residential development on a man-made islands off the coast from Ras Al Khaimah’s old town
4,000,000
TBA
TBA
TOTAL
www.angletechnology.com/ i11.photobucket.com/ www.investorsprovident.com/ medgadget.com/ www.lera.com/ www.qatartourism.gov.qa/ www.highrise-re.com/ Ammar magasine_aug_06 Ammar magasine_nov_06 uaeinteract.com/ www.shelteroffshore.com/ www.dubaiinternetcity.com/ www.kuwait-airport.com.kw/ doz.ae/ www.fahad.com/ www.bahiw.com/
www.hotelsmag.com/ www.nakheel.com/ www.gotodubai.net/ funhouse.bubble.ro/286/Dubai_Projects/ www.internationalhotelarchitect.com/ www.bahraintribune.com/ Courtesy of KEO www.bfharbour.com/ Brian Fisher www.dubaiindustrialcity.ae/ www.dubaiaerospaceenterprise.com/ www.uaehits.com/ www.ifahotelsresorts.com/ www.alshindagah.com/ www.bahraingateway.org/ www.gulfconsult.net/
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
242,000
www.bahrainbay.com/ www.dwtc.com/ www.keoic.com/ www.albawaba.com/ www.moh.gov.bh/ www.idcarchitects.com/ forum.skyscraperpage.com/ SSH_brochure www.alareenresort.com/ www.ossisonline.com/ realestate.theemiratesnetwork.com/ www.emaar.com/ www.dubai-properties.ae www.altijaria.com/ en.wikipedia.org/
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Sources for Development Atlas www.ameinfo.com www.designbuild-network.com/ www.bornrich.org/ www.bahrainairport.com/ www.answers.com/ www.skyscrapercity.com/ archive.gulfnews.com/ www.tamdeenrealestate.com/ www.rta.gov.ae/ www.pbase.com/t www.gulfconstructionworldwide.com/ www.urbanplanet.org/ www.weidleplan.de/ www.martinmideast.net/ www.alhamravillage.com/
39,413,000
2
AMO
10
1
Gulf Survey
Development Atlas
1
January 30, 2007
Final presentation of our design for a new city of 150.000 inhabitants… Suddenly we are summoned. The Dutch minister of Transport, accompanied by a delegation of Dutch businessmen, is visiting the emirate. An opportunity not to be wasted. But, who is actually the minister? One of the local delegate members politely offers a young blonde woman from the Dutch delegation directions to the bathroom so she can freshen up and fix her appearance. It is the minister. We get to attend the talks that take place on the same sofa that was used at our first introduction. The talks largely amount to an overall promotion of the emirate as the place in the Gulf to do business and to invest. The emirate contains a large free zone, where foreign companies that choose to settle here are exempt from tax. The emirate annual economic growth amounts to 18%. Then the conversation turns to sustainability. The emirate is presented as the sustainable alternative to other emirates. The Dutch minister interrupts and the following conversation ensues:
AMO
The lunch that follows is animated and constructive. His Highness and the minister talk about the latest developments in communication technology, leading to the comparing of their personal mobile phones and the exchange of numbers. In the evening of the same day I browse the internet to find pictures of Madeleine Albright and Condoleezza Rice trapped on the same palace sofa. Leaving me to wonder just how extensive HH’s phone directory might be. – RdG
Gulf Survey
Dutch Minister: ‘But I hear you have the largest per capita water consumption of the whole region…’ HH: ‘It’s not true.’ [Silence] HH: ‘You looked at statistics…You should never look at statistics…’ Dutch Minister: ‘Yes, yes, I know… I was a consultant once, I know you can manipulate statistics, but I thought th…’ HH: ‘What we want is… a holistic approach, in which everything comes together: business, investment and sustainability… we want to be a place where everybody can feel at home. What we want to create is what I call the city.’ Dutch Minister: ‘That is of course why you work with Mr. Koolhaas…’ HH: ‘Let’s have lunch.’
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What Must be Done: An Agenda for Design Everything mankind needs for its reproduction and realization has spatial implications. Responses to these needs occupy, organize and shape space. As a consequence, as long as mankind is deciding the fate of the planet there is a job for architecture. It may sound like a truism, really, but if we specify the needs answering them becomes imperative. Imagine that the majority of mankind lives in slums (a fact in the making) and architecture’s job to provide shelter acquires epic proportions. Imagine that the majority of mankind is threatened by violence, modernization and abuse; providing security then becomes a messianic challenge. Imagine the majority of mankind effected by climate change; imagine the majority of mankind suffering from profound inequality; imagine a world in which individualism, segregation, zoning and other shifts allow individuals to turn their back on one another. Providing sustainable environments, space for justice and dialogue then become such obvious opportunities for architecture that they may even be overlooked. The To Do list for architecture and design is short. The planetary action list for architects and designers is endless however. Of course design can aspire to innovate form, express power, cater to formal expectations, sanction regulations, and add value. In sum, it can be useful. But design can also be absolutely necessary. It can draw its legitimacy not from making things nice for certain people, but from making things livable for everyone. The ultimate question for design is whether you want to choose for what must be done. Sidelining that question means either sinking into oblivion or becoming a superstar. Both can be avoided: agenda enclosed...
Global Agenda
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www.flickr.com uploaded by Gareth Owens
Introduction
Global Agenda
Looking at
Shelter Almost all discussions of design today focus on what it means, what it sells or what it entails. But, first and foremost, there is the question of what design does. To understand and intervene in the performativity of design is to understand the challenges to design, the legitimacy of design, the intelligence of design, and to do something with them. For instance: provide shelter UN Habitat recently predicted that within 30 years every third person on this planet will be a slum dweller. Can this be a mission for design today?
Azerbaijan Syria
10,511
Chad
32,353
Ghana
13,591 Sierra Leone
56
Eritrea
54
513
Kyrgystan
426
Iraq
245
Nepal
1,506
Yemen
13,222
Benin
25,506
Uganda Rwan
Dem. Rep of the Congo
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23867 Rwanda 9886 Tanzania Burundi 1459 1518
Zambia
92
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2005 ASR
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Major new arrivals: countries in the world, which received displaced persons in groups bigger than 50 individuals.
Armavir-Hoktemberjan
Erewan-Artashat
Global Agenda
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Echiniadzin-Erewan
All images are Gelatin Silverprints, 50.5 x 40 cm, made between 1997–2004
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Ursula Schulz-Dornburg
Erewan-Mezamor
Goris-Tatev
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CRIT
Slum as Real Estate If authorities or private individuals have concluded that certain housing conditions for the poor can no longer be tolerated, it all starts with finding generalizable concepts or strategies to deal with the problem. But sometimes this work is not just about coping. It can also be about seeing opportunities where others didn’t.
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In order to implement the concept of ‘Slum as Real Estate’ yet also provide relevant redevelopment for slum dwellers, CRIT1 (along with the Slum Rehabilitation Society and the Tenants Federation) decided to support efforts that revolved around the idea of Self Development. Although the government’s strategy of rehabilitation was used, promoters of Self Development articulated three important measures: first, no contractors – the management and capital required were to be mobilized by other means; second, rehabilitation design was very critical and efforts were to be made to maintain open spaces, provide economic activities, etc; and third, all profits generated from the scheme were to remain with the new residents in order to maintain and sustain the projects. Hence while the model of Self Development managed to provide both relevant rehabilitation to slum dwellers as well as more housing for the city, it also did one more important thing: it brought the profits of this enterprise to the poorest. A further benefit is that the price and the amount of real-estate for sale were not left to speculative contractors. The efforts of various forces were required to execute the ideas of Self Development. Slum dwellers had to be mobilized and organized to manage the development. While large and diverse communities required considerable effort to form organizational integrity, smaller, homogenous groups were mobilized easily. Capital had to be mobilized from relevant sources. This required several kinds of innovative mechanisms including the securitization of profits with financial institutions, pre-selling of built-up space to large companies, and innovative loans. Technical support had to be mobilized to create appropriate designs and execute the project. CRIT has taken up many such housing projects in various stages of development; some at the stage of mobilizing the community and engaging it in the process of land acquisition and society formation, others at the stage of putting together the requisite documents to self develop. One such scheme, the ‘Betwala Sadan’, is currently being reviewed by authorities for permission to develop. The residents of Betwala Chawl are a community of migrants from North India who have squatted a plot of land in Central Mumbai for more than 75 years. Betwala Chawl would qualify as a heritage slum, if criteria to earmark heritage buildings were any different! With some activists’ help, the community has acquired the land. Betwala Chawl is CRIT’s first experiment with this model of self-developed, community-oriented housing practice. Architecturally, our attempts here are to modulate the built structure to achieve a comprehensible urban form, carving out as large an open space as possible, in a high density settlement (782 people per hectare) with a perimeter building typology that defies the rubber stamped tower
Global Agenda
Shelter | Real Estate
While about 50,000 houses are required in Mumbai every year, only 25,000 are built by formal systems of housing production. The rest must resort to informal housing. Hence more than 55 percent of people in Mumbai end up living in slums. With high housing demand and very low supply the price of real estate in Mumbai has skyrocketed. Discourses dealing with the housing shortage issue have formulated three reasons to explain it. First, there is an acute shortage of land due to obsolete environmental and land-holding-ceiling regulations. Second, there is a shortage of land due to sub-optimal use such as industrial parks and slums. And third, there are regulatory restrictions restricting land for higher development. ‘Slum as Real Estate’ is a concept which, following the second formulation above, attempts to solve the land shortage (and hence the housing shortage) problem in Mumbai by releasing land currently trapped under slums. While the slum upgrading schemes and the site and services of the nineteeneighties and early nineties provided better living conditions, they were not able to free up the land trapped under slums. In the early nineteen-nineties the government implemented a new strategy to use private enterprise to provide free housing to slum dwellers. The idea was that land under slums could be redeveloped such that every slum family would be relocated into a 25 square meter tenement. The strategy also involved building additional tenements to be sold on the free market. Profits generated from the sale of the additional tenements were to be used to provide housing to the slum families free of cost. With this master stroke the government was not only able to rehouse the slum dwellers, but could also use the land trapped under the slums for additional housing. The government also provided concessions such as open spaces, set-backs, fire regulations, etc., throughout the expected high density areas. The main problems with this new strategy, however, were management and capital expenditure. The ‘contractor’ then took center stage in this strategy to mobilize management and capital. An examination of schemes executed under this strategy shows that they were mostly implemented in areas with high land value. Slums in areas with lower land values remained untouched. By the beginning of 2000 the government also started building several roads in the city. These roads invariably cut through slum pockets. The government came up with another strategy to release land for the construction of important infrastructure: everyone affected by infrastructure projects would be relocated into free tenements built by the contractors. In return contractors received a ‘transferable development right’. With this ‘transferable development right’ they could build on additional realestate in any other part of the city. The consequence was that slum dwellers were moved from their original locations and resettled in areas with very low land value (generally at the outskirts of the city); contractors, of course, got to build more realestate in areas with high land value.
In both cases slum dwellers were relocated into typical eight-story buildings set three meters apart, devoid of adequate light, ventilation, water or solid construction. These relocation schemes create a kind of vertical slum, more dangerous than the original one. Moreover, in slums families used space for economic activities. Such activities seem impossible within the framework of these relocation schemes. Hence the economic rehabilitation of slum dwellers remains unaddressed. Also in both cases we see the operationalization of the ‘Slum as Real Estate’ concept. However, ambiguity remains as to whether this concept was articulated to address the housing or the land problem. Although they are related, the people affected are different; while the housing problem belongs to the slum dwellers, the land problem belongs to the contractors who either do not have enough land or are unable to exploit the available land properly.
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type popularized by city builders. We shall seek to tweak existing building bylaws and policies in order to maximize programmatic space for low income users. Large empty spaces in the rehabilitation building, distributed as double height punctures in the building mass, are designed to work as community work spaces. Urban housing policies, while addressing the issue of shelter, fail to connect it to the fundamental right to work. This design and community intervention will institutionalize a cooperative society with its own corpus financed from the sale and commercial components of their self-development project – empowering the community with new housing on its existing tenured land. Another project, part of the infrastructure-related rehabilitation program, is the Milan Society which is located on a proposed link in eastern Mumbai. The community that has lived here for more than 45 years is endowed with considerable infrastructure in the form of open spaces, fresh water and adequate sewage facilities. Moving into rehabilitation housing would be an anathema to them. They realized they would be left with some space after the expressway was accommodated so with the help of a local housing activist, they started negotiating with the state for the remaining space to develop their own housing. They realized that if they chose self development they could not only get the housing designed to their needs, but also deflect profits the contractor would otherwise make to their own society to help them maintain and sustain their premises. Accordingly, CRIT designed both a building for the community and another to be sold to generate funds. The initial design drawings became a bargaining tool for the community to negotiate for land from the relevant authorities. 1. CRIT: Collective Research Initiatives Trust www.crit.org.in / Prasad Shetty, Rupali Gupte, Aneerudha Paul, Aditya Potluri
Creative Design Agenda
No 1
• Invent Program… Global Agenda
Shelter | Real Estate
Stop thinking that all shelter design is about accommodating a given program. You can also design to change a program, to invent program, to campaign on a program.
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Urban Think Tank
Co-Ownership It seems hard to learn any general lesson from the grassroots practice of the average urban neighborhood. How can you derive universal principles from situations that are always unique and specific? Perhaps we must shift our attention from the design of rules or forms to the promotion of a certain attitude of suggestive power. Strictly speaking, a barrio is a city district; in Latin America it refers to squatter settlements – what our North American neighbors call slums. At the Urban Think Tank in Caracas, we use barrio as a synonym for the ‘informal city’, a condition of extra-legal and perpetual transformation that has changed the historic face of the Hispano-American city. As the barrio has grown in size and longevity, it has given birth to its own particular urban and architectural typology; this is neither good nor bad, but simply a fact with which planners and architects must contend. Squatter settlements are not new, nor are they unique to Latin America. Nearly every megalopolis has its version. They differ in cultural conditions and expectations, in the geography that dictates their form and building materials, in the abundance or scarcity of basic resources such as water, and in the factors that drive people from rural areas to cities – poverty, famine, natural disaster, war. What we have found in Caracas, and might well see elsewhere, is a genuine community, one that is rapidly moving from resistance to action to gradual acceptance. The Power of Powerlessness
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As we noted earlier, their differences notwithstanding, cities such as Caracas, Mexico City, Mumbai, Lagos and Abuja share this informal urbanization. It exists; it is a fact of 21st-century life; it is global. And it is time for professionals – architects, urban planners, social activists, and others – to confront the future by helping to build the
Archis
Inverse Development
To borrow from Michel de Certeau’s theory, conventional, formal ownership proceeds strategically, from plan to execution. Lacking recognized ownership, barrio-dwellers
The Growing House in the Growing Village
Housing in the barrio is as informal in its design as it is in its financing. Most units are built without the guidance of architects and engineers and without the support of lending institutions. There are conventions, but no codes. Materials are chosen for their availability and only secondarily for their inherent aesthetics or structural soundness. Nevertheless, these planning and building methods advance gradually by trial and error and produce a distinctive informal modernism in which the whole is more than the sum of its parts and buildings in the aggregate are more significant and valuable than each component unit. As a barrio grows horizontally, creating ‘urban sprawl’, individual units grow vertically, impelled or constrained not by zoning regulations or building codes, but by the needs of the occupants. Despite the compact shape of the barrio, each individual volume is a distinct unit of property stretching over several floors, even branching out over neighboring buildings. The variety of architectural elements is remarkable, full of details reflecting a common culture and an individual builder. The development of individual units also reflects conditions within the barrio, particularly its density, which inhibits ventilation and blocks natural light. To overcome such problems, barrio developers have adopted singular tactics that involve the appropriation of public space: cantilevering floors over public stairs and covered passages, and incorporating lampposts and power lines.
Global Agenda
Shelter | Barrio
If you look at the map of a typical mega-city you will not find evidence of these squatter communities. To draw them up on city plans would mean acknowledging their existence and permanence; it would also be an enormously difficult and costly effort, nearly impossible to justify. There is as well the underlying assumption on the part of modern urban planners that these settlements could simply be erased by relocating the inhabitants to public housing. Such an effort is, in fact, currently underway in Mumbai where its ultimate success is very much in question. In Caracas today the sheer size of the squatter community and the paradox of the stability that underlies its perpetual transformation have compelled a different way of thinking among planners and politicians. Recent constitutional reforms in Venezuela have made the barrio community a force to be reckoned with in urban development, shifting the balance of power away from historical top-town planning, management, and control. Negotiation for space is a constant in the barrio. Unlike modern urban development, these settlements upgrade their services – water, sewers, transportation, and the like – over comparatively long periods of time and in small increments. Once land has been occupied, settlers recognize the authority of their own committee or association to act as developer and coordinator. These groups are fairly formal, organized by district within the barrio and holding what amount to town meetings. The upgrading process is the product of group decisions.
proceed tactically, executing small, specific, and essential projects whose aim is the short-term alleviation of a problem or need. Thus, conventional urban development follows a top-down process: Ownership – the acquisition, usually by purchase, of a piece of land Infrastructure – the identification and/or construction of public roads, gas and power supply, water service, and sewers Construction – the drawing up of plans, securing of a mortgage, hiring of architects and contactors Occupation – move-in following the issuing of a legal permit or certificate of occupancy Development in the barrios turns convention on its head: Occupation – typically a matter of moving in overnight, often under cover of darkness Construction – accomplished incrementally over a period of 20 years or so Infrastructure – through government assistance, either legally or by ‘borrowing’ from public utilities, especially power and, where available, water Ownership – requires intense collective lobbying efforts to obtain legal title to the land Although we refer to the barrios as ‘informal’, their establishment is frequently a well-planned and carefully orchestrated undertaking. Acting on political contacts and/or on information passed along by city planning office insiders and others, the leader of a group identifies a site and rallies his followers – not by word-of-mouth, but with modern technology, especially cell phones, which have proven invaluable for initiating swift overnight occupations. ‘Outside’ assistance, although covert, is essential: political campaigns often encourage the occupation of a particular piece of land according to their own agenda, or promise to make construction material available. Cars and trucks, too, may be made available to bring in people and materials quickly.
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common, social spaces of their cities from the bottom up. It is time for them to interact forcefully but productively with politicians, policy-makers, and community groups and participate collaboratively in the construction of more equitable, workable, and sustainable cities. To these ends, we believe that architecture in particular needs a profoundly different concept of ‘innovation’, one that has almost nothing to do with the latest design ‘-ism’ and everything to do with purpose. Thus at the Urban Think Tank we have deliberately shifted our attention from the formal city of master plans, commissions, and clients to the informal city of slums, millions of impoverished ‘clients’, isolation from global capital, and illegal status. Because Caracas is our home and the ‘global South’ our culture, we have been seeking a new set of design tools specifically tailored to create social spaces that are meaningful in this context. In so doing, and in conjunction with conversations with colleagues around the world, we hope to help shift the focus of contemporary architectural practice away from its preoccupation with form, toward a marriage of design with social impact. As large as our goals may be, we deliberately employ micro-tactics, identifying small projects, working within communities and with their leaders, testing particular solutions to arrive at more general principles applicable to any informal city. Our approach, like that of the barrio dwellers themselves, is bottom-up: reusing, adapting, and modifying the existing infrastructure, and retrofitting and stacking generatively. Ultimately, we are seeking to develop an industrially-produced, interchangeable collection of tools that will serve as essential first-aid, an urban survival system for developing informal cities in urgent need of viable, affordable solutions. In our work with community leaders in the Caracas barrios we have identified three fundamental development problems in the informal city: A. The lack of ventilation, lighting, sanitation and potable water promotes physical and emotional debilitation and disease. B. The absence of safe and inviting public gathering and recreational spaces has a deleterious effect on individual and group psychology, impedes community organization and cohesion, and inhibits the dissemination of knowledge and information. C. Although centralized infrastructure – sewers, drains, stairs, and the like – do address some issues, particularly health, it is very costly, may have a negative environmental impact, and does little to address issues of density. We propose a variety of alternatives, simple to design and implement, that save energy and reduce waste. A roof, for example, typically represents 30 percent of the cost of an economical house. We have been studying solutions that use roof gardens to reduce heat transference, filter rain water, and promote urban agriculture. The latter may consist of vegetables and medicinal herbs for a family, plants to feed urban livestock, typically rabbits and chickens, or – as in one especially successful pilot project – orchids grown in a greenhouse and sold, providing income to the homeowner. We have found, too, that it is vital to create a program that teaches barrio-dwellers to build, install, and manage solar panels. Since stolen electricity is an enormous cost to Caracas’ electric company, we hope to persuade them to finance such an endeavor. Whether characterized by its absence or abundance, water is almost certainly the single greatest issue for the world’s informal cities. Distribution, equitable sharing, potability, sewage disposal, decaying aqueducts and mains are all systemic problems, exacerbated by lack of money and political will. At present, barrio dwellers improvise by tapping illegally into the public waterworks; sewage disposal has no such simple solution, however. In another pilot study we found that lost-cost dry toilets would both produce ‘sanitized’ fertilizer for urban agriculture and save up to 40 percent of the water now ‘stolen’ from the city.
It is beyond the scope of architects to deter urban violence directly, but we can and should address ourselves to projects that mitigate its underlying causes. The Urban Think Tank developed a 4,000-square-meter Vertical Gymnasium® community center in heart of the dense inner city. The prototype, built on the site of a dangerous dirt soccer pitch, was the first installation of its kind and has attracted some 15,000 users a month. Not coincidentally, since it opened the area crime rate has dropped by 35%. All such solutions must, of course, be specific to site, conditions, and culture. Yet since these are inherently simple, inexpensive, environmentally intelligent, and adaptable solutions, their general applicability is wide-spread. Taken together, they offer integrated solutions to the growing dilemmas of the growing informal city. Urban Think Tank is led by Alfredo Brillembourg and Hubert Klumpner.
Creative Design Agenda
No 2
• Invent Program • Empower… Stop thinking that all shelter design is about following the given rules and processes. You can also design alternative procedures, to empower people and give them pride in their own habitat.
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Bart Goldhoorn
Wild Dwelling There are many ways architecture has tried to free itself from the regime of the ‘building’. By concentrating on the façade, for instance, or by animating that façade, or by focusing on entirely new domains for design intelligence. But of course the most obvious exemplum of this desire to be free is to be found in the emphasis on the interior.
Global Agenda
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In Moscow all expensive apartments are built without interior walls. Svobodnaya planirovka – free plan is the term that is used to advertise these so-called ‘elite’ apartments in Moscow. To architects this sounds familiar – wasn’t this the term Le Corbusier used in his ‘5 points’: Le plan libre, with its interior walls independent of the column structure? At that time, this architectural concept was meant for internal use only: to free the architect from the harness of the load-bearing walls, enabling him to make free flowing spaces. It was not until the late 1960’s that the idea occurred that this concept could actually be used to give the inhabitant of the dwelling more to say about his environment. Architects would develop ‘construction kits’, giving the inhabitants ample choice of room-sizes, placement of doors and even windows. Notwithstanding the unmistakably political agenda, architects would not surrender their position as the ones to emancipate the people. Actually, an organization of architects with the name Open Building still exists, promoting the principle of the division of a ‘bearer’ and ‘infill’. So what is propagated by the idealistic architects in Europe and America is realized by project developers in Moscow who have no interest in improving the world, but just follow the demands of the market. When they started to develop apartment complexes for the new rich in the beginning of the 1990’s, they found out that the moment they would hand over the key to the new owner construction workers would move in to remove not only kitchens and bathroom fittings, but also all interior walls. Seventy years of Soviet housing design, with standardized floor plans across the Soviet Union, had led clients to believe that any apartment layout that was not custom made would not befit their individual taste or life style. Once developers understood this, they built all their apartments without interior layout. As a result, a huge demand for interior design developed; someone had to decide how the interior walls should be placed. Young architects, whose career opportunities were limited by a conservative construction industry, saw their portfolio’s filling up with interior design projects. A new type of architect was born. The Russian model of Casco apartment construction has solved the problem of collective space and individual use formulated by the Open Building movement. It realizes on a grand scale what has been tried in the West only in experimental projects. Of course this solution has a price: in Moscow, the price of an interior fit out including furniture can be close the price of the apartment proper. Also, the freedom to realize one’s own interior might very well be limited to the first user. Considering the investment made by the first owner, the price of a finished apartment will be much higher than an empty one, meaning that it will less likely be destroyed and replaced by a lay-out of one’s own. In any case the free plan principle leads to the solution of another problem – that of diversification: if all apartment interiors are designed by different architects, the consumer will have an enormous choice, one of which will certainly fit to his taste. In fact it can lead to a market for apartments that will have more similarities to the art market then to the real estate market.
The name of the designer will decide the price of an apartment interior as much as the name of the artist is decisive for the price of a work of art. Creative Design Agenda
No 3
• Invent Program • Empower • Provide Choice… Stop thinking that all shelter design is about providing homes. You can also design a system that leaves ample room for people’s own plans. Design the preconditions, by focusing on superstructure for maximum-free choice.
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Looking at
Security Almost all discussions of design today focus on what it means, what it sells or what it entails. But, first and foremost, there is the question of what design does. To understand and intervene in the performativity of design is to understand the challenges to design, the legitimacy of design, the intelligence of design, and to do something with them. For instance: provide security In an age of growing secularization, fanaticism, surveillance, crime, and the liquefaction of old patterns of social cohesion, there is a growing need for devices that make people feel more secure. Can this be a mission for design today?
Sweden
80.51
Guernsey
80.42
Switzerland
80.51
Andorra
83.51
San Marino
Japan
81.71
81.25 Hong Kong
81.59 82.19 Macau
Sierra Leone Liberia
39.65
Singapore
81.71 Zambia
38.62 40.03 Zimbabwe
Malawi Mozambique
39.29
39.82
Botswana
33.74
41.70 Australia Swaziland
South Africa
42.73
Lesotho
34.40
32.62
80.50
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Countries with the highest and the lowest life expectancy
Global Agenda
Security
Angola
OECD Factbook 2007
40.22
Global Agenda
Security
401
400
Monica Nouwens
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Arleta Sh. Principal: Linda Ann Calvo, 14200 Van Nuys Blvd., Arleta, CA 91331
Global Agenda
Security
Archis
Miguel Contreras Learning Complex. Principal: Heather Daims, 322 S. Lucas Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90017
403
402
Jeroen Mensink
Public Space Regained It is one thing to make things that help people protect themselves: walls, gates, corridors, road blocks, barbed wire, security posts. This is the booming business of today. But is it also possible to design safety by cleverly organizing time, event, act and experience?
Global Agenda
Security | Apartheid
Car Guard Strategy
405
When darkness falls, the wealthy only venture forth in their cars. They then park at their destination and the car has to remain there intact until they return. Wherever you want to park in a public place there are official and unofficial parking wardens. Some work for security firms, for example at shopping malls, but most are ‘selfemployed’. Some can be identified by their (hired) fluorescent vests, some are identifiable only from their greeting to the driver to indicate they will keep an eye on the car while he is away. When he returns to the car, the driver is expected to give the guard a small tip and receives well-intentioned, but often unnecessary instructions on how to maneuver out of the parking place!
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404
The release of Nelson Mandela in 1990 after 27 years’ imprisonment marked the end of apartheid in South Africa, and in 1994 Mandela’s ANC went on to win the country’s first democratic elections. The transformation of South African society is being hampered in particular by the problems in the cities. For years it was standard practice to keep the various population groups strictly separated. In ‘new’ South Africa the boundaries between the groups are no longer specifically determined by political decisions – economic inequality is now the main reason for the largely unchanged divisions in urban space. Although the contrast between rich and poor no longer entirely coincides with the distinction between white, colored and black1, the differences are still extreme. And that is one of the reasons why South African cities like Cape Town are among the most dangerous in the world. Cape Town is still, more than ten years after apartheid ended, a relatively white city compared with others in South Africa. The gap between rich and poor, between white and non-white generates tension that is, for instance, apparent in the city’s public space and public life. Streets, deserted after dark, and houses surrounded with high railings topped with barbed wire form the cityscape. The more wealthy neighborhoods are strictly separated from the townships and squatter camps, however much they are starting to approach each other in parts of the city’s periphery. Since Europeans landed in Cape Town in the 17th century there has been segregation between the white and non-white population. From the start of the 20th century it was also laid down by law. For example, the 1913 Land Act forbade black inhabitants to own or rent land. Apartheid became an official, active policy after 1948. Not only were marriage and sexual relations forbidden between the various races, but spatial segregation of the groups was decreed in the Group Areas Act (1950). The zones assigned to the different categories were marked on the map and anyone living in the wrong place was obliged to move. It meant that all nonwhites were forced to move to the homelands or, if they had work, they had to live in townships on the fringes of the city. Perhaps the most infamous example is the expulsion of 60,000 people from District Six to Cape Flats. Even today District Six is an emotive, barren spot in the center of the city. Interestingly, the official racial segregation in South Africa’s urban planning coincided with the then prevailing worldwide ideas on functional divisions propagated by the CIAM’s Modernist urban planning.2 The modernists’ separation of the various urban functions, such as dwelling and work, was adopted by the apartheid regime and translated into the rigid segregation of various population categories. One of the consequences of the Group Areas Act was that the poorest groups were suddenly obliged to travel great distances to work – or look for work. There was hardly any transport available, or it was too expensive, and many were forced to walk many kilometers from township to work (opportunity), and back. This is still a great problem. Some township inhabitants have never once been in the center of Cape Town.
South Africa can today be seen as the First World crossed with the Third. The country is fairly successful economically, compared with other African nations, but only part of the population benefits. In the United Nations’ recent Human Development Report, South Africa ranks very high on the Gini index, which expresses a country’s income inequality as a percentage. In addition, the economic boom has generated a great influx of poor immigrants from neighboring African countries. The tension produced by the gap between the group with money and the group without, aggravated by the differences in culture, language and origin, is decisive for public life in ‘new’ Cape Town. Differences in wealth have, for example, resulted in gated communities, protected, private shopping malls and high fences and walls around all the homes of the rich. Also, the tension between rich and poor has made an enormous impact on how the city’s public space is used. As soon as darkness starts to fall, public life comes to a halt. Trains and buses no longer run and the streets are practically empty. Hardly anyone dares to go out, unless they are going by car, with locked doors, from one safe place to another. Only those with nothing to lose will venture into the street on foot. The rest take refuge behind their fences with electric wiring and guard dogs. During the weekend many go to their second homes far outside the city. Yet the haves and the have-nots are closely interlinked. For instance, Imizamo Yethu township is sandwiched between two upmarket residential areas on the hillside of Hout Bay, a luxury Cape Town suburb. It is convenient for the wealthy group, as it means there is sufficient cheap labor for housework and garden upkeep, and essential for the poor group because they do not have the money or the possibility to travel far (by public transport). Even a bus ticket to the city center (8 rand, 1 euro) is too expensive for most. And so, in the daytime the poor people from the township build the fences behind which the rich hide at night. Rich and poor need one another and live close together in this residential district. Every morning a procession of large German SUVs wends its way out of the prosperous area to the white school, over the crossroads where the black day laborers from the township stand waiting to be picked up by minibus or pick-up truck for casual job. Despite cautious rapprochement, the spatial division between the housing areas continues largely unabated. The city’s public space is potentially where the various categories could get together. Apart from a few areas which are reasonably safe to enter during the day, encounters are hampered by fear of mugging (or worse). Those with money are afraid of those without, and those without money are afraid of those who might be even worse off. It would be possible, with relatively minor measures to reinforce existing, spontaneous initiatives, to increase the use of public space in Cape Town – and thus substantially augment the quality of life for both rich and poor. If there were more wardens in the public domain, more and cheaper public transport and more citizens’ initiatives, the paralyzing effect of fear might slowly be averted.
To start with, people are amazed that they are expected to pay a few coins to someone who is hanging round the car. But this form of ‘surveillance’ has a number of positive effects. It provides work, income and a degree of self-respect for a large group, some of whom are uneducated, others well-educated African migrants. At the same time these parking marshals populate the public space even at times Capetonians consider unsafe. If the vehicle is looked after, the car owner is more likely to go out in the evening, and so make use of public space than if the car were to be left unattended in the street. The Cape Town car guards are the true public space pioneers. This existing strategy of recovering public space and reducing fear might be extended to include the following means. Mass Public Transport
If public space is to become more accessible at night for those who cannot afford a car, there will have to be a wider network of public transport. The upcoming World Soccer Cup in 2010 is an excellent opportunity to address that. The townships of Cape Flats, located between the airport and the city, would benefit greatly from a new public transport link between the airport terminal and the center of Cape Town. The government should make the outlying townships and low-income housing areas more accessible by extending the existing railroad network and some bus lines. More railroad lines, buses or a variant on the existing taxi buses (which today are considered unsafe) to transport smaller groups, would serve that purpose. The accessibility of the city’s public space will only improve if that system is used by large numbers of the population. Nowadays, for instance, no-one goes by train once it is dark, because the absence of other passengers makes you easy prey for robbery. The station area is even seen as the most dangerous of part of the inner city. But if large numbers of people were to use public transport in the evening – for example if it were cheaper or even free after dark and there were guards on all platforms and in station concourses – large areas of the city could be rid of the prevailing feeling of insecurity. Big crowds of soccer fans for the World Cup might illustrate how Cape Town’s public space could work if there were enough people on the streets, at night time too. Neighborhood Watch Global Agenda
Security | Apartheid
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If Cape Town is ultimately to be freed from the alarming streetscape of high fences topped with razor wire, the fear of burglaries will first have to be reduced. Although it will never entirely disappear as long as there are such great differences between rich and poor, it would certainly be worth designating public space pioneers. Local neighborhood watch initiatives demonstrably reduce the number of burglaries drastically and also make streets somewhat safer at night. The neighborhood watch formula could be intensified, for instance by employing people from the poorer categories for that citizen initiative, for which the more affluent residents currently forego their sleep. It could be a way of providing more people with work and self-respect, would ensure the presence of more people in public space and so increase social control. But it can only be successful if public transport is also available at night and people from the poorer neighborhoods can get to other parts of the city. Fear occasioned by crime resulting from the gap between rich and poor, often between white and non-white, serves to immobilize public life in Cape Town. Almost all population groups retreat to their own enclaves after dark, whether it is the gated community or the township. If you do not barricade yourself behind a wall or fence, you risk mugging, burglary or car theft, only the most violent of which are reported in all their gory details in the newspapers.
Car guards have given Cape Town’s car owners a degree of freedom and made a start in recapturing public space. Comparable initiatives could help to break through the vicious circle of fear and crime. The rest of the city still remains to be liberated. Appropriate strategies will have to be devised to make public space attractive for as many people as possible, day and night. 1. A lthough these racial categories are completely outdated and the direct product of decades of apartheid policy, they are still used in Cape Town society. And that is why they are also used in this text. Black relates to the group of South Africans who are now officially termed ‘African’; Coloreds are those of mixed origin, while whites are those with a predominantly European background.
2. Simon C. Nicks refers to the role of modern urban design in the policy of apartheid in his article ‘Designing the interface, the role of urban design in reconstructing apartheid villages, towns and cities’ in Urban Design International, #8, 2003.
Creative Design Agenda
No 4
• • • •
Invent Program Empower Provide Choice Focus on Trust…
Stop thinking that all security design is about keeping people out. You can also design moments in which people can encounter one another beyond fear. Design a place where people do not just meet, but also synchronize.
Global Agenda
Security | Apartheid
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Ricardo Devesa
Safety or Security Thousands of refugees seeking safety, and others seeking prosperity attempting to reach the so-called developed world is a ubiquitous fact of our globalizing world. If you want to get rid of them, design ways to police them. If you want to help first, that is altogether a different task.
Phases
The following table details the 5 phases through which the African immigrant passes, the dangers entailed and possible social, political, legal and financial solutions. Furthermore, immediate, concrete suggestions for actions are added to prevent the future suffering of these irregular immigrants. Some have already been set up, but others could be carried out without considerable investment. Dangers
General Solutions
Immediate Action
–Departure from the home country
–Malnutrition –Foreign debt –Pandemic diseases –Corruption –Absolutism and exploitation –No anticipation of a future –Lack of work –Illegal immigration mafias –Continuous plundering of natural resources
–The eradication of hunger and malnutrition –Democratisation –Abolition of the foreign debt –The opening of EU unemployment offices –The building of decent housing –The guarantee of education, public health, work –Investment in infrastructures –The granting of micro-credits
–The construction of infrastructure: education, health, trade, agriculture, fishing, stock raising, manufacturing, etc. –Ownership of minimum housing
2
–Journey on open sea
–Hypothermia –Lack of water and food –Currents, tides and storms –Not knowing how to swim –Unstable boats –Lack of safety precautions
–Eradication of organized crime –Information campaigns –Safer craft –Provisioning –Navigation assistance –Learning how to swim –FRONTEX, European Border Agency –SIVE, Security Centers
–Provisions kit –Thermal clothing –Life jackets –Lifeboats –Satellite watch
Archis
Points on the Circuit 1
Global Agenda
Security | Fortress
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410
More than 35,000 African immigrants reached the Canary Islands clandestinely in 2006. In parallel and in the same space, more than 10 million tourists a year spend their holidays on these same islands. This paradoxical situation, in which tourism and immigration converge in one place, that is to say, the beach, is a characteristic and at the same time an ambivalence of overmodernity.1 In the holiday areas of the Canaries, tourists, immigrants who have arrived in precarious craft, native workers and already legalized immigrants coexist. Their beaches are incessant public spaces, if we accept that ‘public spaces are places where strangers coincide’, as defined by Zygmunt Bauman.2 Under these circumstances solidarity with the immigrant becomes evident. Yet tourism entrepreneurs, politicians, some tourists and, lastly, the citizens of the Canaries see the arrival of these immigrants on ‘their’ beaches as worrying. Last October 29th at least 2,000 people – the organizers spoke of 20,000 – staged a demonstration in Santa Cruz de Tenerife against the arrival of immigrants. Control of the population, a residency law, measures to eradicate the trade in human beings and the defense of ‘the identity of our homeland’ were some of the demonstrators’ demands. Regrettably, a disturbing increase of racism and xenophobia has taken place in the Canary Islands, although not there alone. On one hand, it is easy to forget that only 15 years ago this was still a land of emigrants. On the other hand, we do not acknowledge that we need ‘others’ to determine who or what we are. ‘We need to identify’ the clandestine immigrant who arrives from Africa ‘as the Evil so that the Good becomes apparent. Some do it in order to exploit them, others to sate their racist anger, others to display Christian or parachristian philanthropy, others to delight in and unite a multi-ethnic, multiracial, multicultural world, and others to turn them into an attractive field of academic research. We all need to identify them,’ as the anthropologist Fernando Estévez shrewdly points out.3 Immigration is the primary concern of most Spanish citizens, leading unemployment and terrorism, and the Spanish government is putting forward socio-labour solutions, taking into account the needs of the labor market and the existence and coming arrival of vast numbers of immigrants ‘without papers’.4 That the Spanish economy – and that of the Canaries in particular – needs these immigrants to continue developing was as much as admitted by Adán Martín, President of the Regional Government of the Canary Islands5, when he warned that ‘we cannot omit legally channeling immigration that, on the other hand, is necessary for the first world. It’s a different story now. We must turn around what is today the fear of an intense wave of illegal immigration into Europe through the Canaries and turn it into an opportunity for the Canaries.’ Security is seen mainly in terms of repression. More specifically, the architectural and urban development response prompted by security in developed countries is usually directed towards resolving ‘insecurity’, the dangers and the risks, preventing access by strangers. It is the architecture of fear and intimidation that is being offered as a solution. This has led to a barrier to protect us from the ‘others’.
This year alone the Ministerio del Interior Español (Spanish Interior Ministry) has sent back more than 8,000 irregular immigrants on 130 flights. These repatriations are meant to show the immigrant that his or her journey can finish where it started. Other fates which he or she might face along the journey are: death, disappearance, imprisonment, abandonment, marginalisation or, at the very best, hope for a future. The conditions of immigrants’ vulnerability6, as individuals with human and labour rights, are what are really in question. Solutions must be sought which ensure their safety and their rights along each point of their exodus, finding both concrete, immediate solutions and measures of a general nature for the long term. Concrete, immediate solutions are already being implemented, but everyone should more intensively utilize the wide-ranging experience in ephemeral, low cost, portable structures offered by military architecture and technology. Clandestine immigrants have urgent needs: a roof over their heads, basic infrastructure (health, school, social), rescue facilities, and mobility apparatus. Furthermore, towns must take on the responsibility of serving as refuge areas for those who need short-term shelter. Long-term solutions involve eradicating hunger, canceling the foreign debt of underdeveloped countries and securing democratization. We should recognize and fight against ‘the relationship of cause and effect between debt and hunger, these weapons of mass destruction deployed against the most weak’.7 However, no solution is both total and definitive; the problem of immigration is complex and global. As Le Corbusier would advise: the architecture and town planning of spaces destined for ‘vulnerable immigration groups’ should not accentuate how they differ from us, identifying them as being different; neither should they be based on a design of exclusion, but rather they should integrate these differences without eradicating them.
Points on the Circuit
Dangers
General Solutions
Immediate Action
3
–A rrival in the Canaries
–D isembarkation and flight from the law –Diseases from point of origin –Language –Lack of papers –Race and colour –Physical and psychological problems
–ARGOS, EU programme –Protection of internal borders –Internment in reception centers for refugees –Psychological and health assistance –Identification –Registration in the census –Social and labour integration
–Immediate emergency response equipment –Internment centers –Refugee camps –Temporary housing
4
–Transfer to the mainland (overflow due to limited capacity in the Canary Islands)
–Precarious employment situation –Marginalisation and segregation –Racialism –Cultural exclusion –Vulnerability of their human and labour rights –Hostility –Uprooting
–Sheltered rental housing –Access to public services: education, health, etc. –Work integration –Residence permit –A pplication of current legislation –Access to bank micro-credits
–Internment centers –Temporary housing –Infrastructures
5
–Repatriation to the country of origin
–A bandonment in no-man’sland –Reprisals and punishment –Stigmatisation
–Repatriation agreements –Return journey assistance
–Refugee camps –Minimum housing –Vehicles
Concrete Solutions
With regard to immediate action that could be undertaken to improve the safety of clandestine immigrants, we should utilize varied solutions to construct temporary, low-cost areas to be used at any point along their journey, conceptualised as follows: A. Minimum Housing
B. Infrastructure: Health, Police, Shelter, Workshop, School or Social
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– Immediate Emergency Response Equipment for the arrival of immigrants on Canarian coasts to consist of three vehicles: an ambulance, one transport vehicle with a field hospital and another with assistance equipment. The inflatable field hospital covers 50 square meters when open, but less than one cubic meter when deflated; two people can transport it and it is operational in 10 minutes. It consists of four props inflated by an electric motor and holds 20 stretchers plus a first-aid kit. – Internment centers for immigrants in the Canaries – capacity for 250 detainees guarded by 32 policemen. The outer protection wall of prefabricated concrete is 4 meters in height. Two meters away another 6-meter high metal fence is placed with sensors every meter. – Recovery of industrial warehouses, factories, obsolete infrastructures or containers.
Global Agenda
Security | Fortress
– Technically refined version of the primitive tent, associated with nomadism. The union of textile companies and pneumatic structures, supported by constant air pressure, would permit temporary, easily transported structures. – Cardboard tube structures like those used by Shigeru Ban for the Rwanda refugee camp in 1999 for UNHCR. Previously aluminum posts and plastic had been used, but refugees ended up selling them. Nearby tree trunks were then used, but deforestation was a very serious concern. At that point a low-cost alternative was sought: cardboard tubes that could be constructed cheaply with simple machinery, reducing transport costs. – The use of interwoven recycled material would permit the use of any type of plastic, plant fibers, old cloth, dry branches, metal, etcetera, generated by first world recycling operations or extant locally. – The recycling of shipping containers which can be turned into housing with minimum investment.
– Given their light construction, flexibility, transient nature and protection greenhouses, familiar across the Canaries for the mass cultivation of bananas, could be utilized as temporary reception centers, low-cost housing – as the French architects Lacaton & Vassal have already done – or as sanitary installations.
CLANDESTINE IMMIGRATION IN THE CANARY ISLANDS CANARY ISLANDS La Palma La Gomera El Hierro
C. Survival and provisioning equipment
Lanzarote
– – – –
Tenerife Fuerteventura
920 Km
Gran Canaria
Tarfaya
MOROCCO
130 Km
D. Mobility apparatus
El Aaiun
SAHARA
Portugal
– First world recycled vehicles: bicycles, motorcycles, cars, buses, motorboats, etc. – Alternative prototypes to the use of fuel, by means of solar and other energy
Spain
4
From Cape Verde
Balearic Islands
35000
Ceuta Melilla
30000 25000 20000 15000 10000 5000 0
1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006
Number of illegal immigrants come to Canaries last years.
Morocco
Canary Islands
5
3
2
1. ‘Overmodernity would be the combined effect of the acceleration of history, the shrinking of spaces and the individualization of journeys or destinations’. Marc Augé, ‘On the Subject of Tourism’, BASA nº 28. Las Palmas de Gran Canaria (Colegio de Arquitectos de Canarias) 2005. 2. Zygmunt Bauman, Vida Líquida. Barcelona (Paidós Ibérica) 2006. English translation: Liquid Life, Cambridge (Polity Press) 2005. 3. Fernando Estévez, ‘Inmigrantes o la identificación del Mal’, Disenso nº 38. November 2002. 4. ‘The Madrid attacks of 11 March by Islamic fundamentalism, the belligerent use that the previous conservative government made of immigration, the increase in the demands of
immigrants and (…) the tension close on a ‘cold’ war with Morocco led the new government of José Luís Zapatero to quickly react (…)’. Sami Naïr, Y Vendrán… Las migraciones en tiempos hostiles, Barcelona (Planeta) 2006. 5. Felicitación del Día de Canarias (Canary Islands Day Address), 30 May, 2006. 6. Jorge A. Bustamante, ‘Construcción social de la vulnerabilidad de los migrantes’. In: VVAA. ‘La inmigración irregular. Aproximación multidisciplinar’. Cabildo Insular de Tenerife, 2003. 7. Jean Zieler, El imperio de la vergüenza, Madrid (Taurus) 2006.
Algeria
Creative Design Agenda
1
No 5
Mauritania Mali Senegal Guinea Bissau Guinea Sierra Leone
Costa de Marfil
Ghana
Nigeria
T emporary internment centres for immigrants in Canary Islands
• Invent Program • Empower • Provide Choice • Focus on Trust • Engage… Stop thinking that all security design is keeping people out. It may be possible to draft a system of rescue, rehabilitation and integration that will ultimately be beneficial to society.
Global Agenda
Security | Fortress
Spain, in in collaboration collaboration withwith otherother member of Spain, EUcountries members, the European Union, will confront a situation on borconfronts a border situation that will continue to be ders that will continue to be critical because of the vast critical of the vast number of people from numberbecause of candidates for entrance from Sub-Saharan Sub-Saharan seeking entry. After intervention Africa. After theAfrica mission coordinated by FRONTEX, bythethe EU’s border control agency border control agency of the EU, in the FRONTEX Canary Islands - which of and 2 planes and 4 boats the consisting of 2consists planes 4 boats, the- number of immigrants in the month October has ofnumber immigrants in October fell inof comparison to now fallen inHowever comparison‘creating’ with September. Howeverfortress September. a maritime a maritime fortress off the extensive African off“creating” the extensive African coast – immigrants make Cape Verde coastline - the voyages in cayucos, the boats used by these voyages 1,000 kilometers or more in immigrants, now of cover distances of 1,000 kilometres cayucos – only slightlyofdiverts access and certainly - only causes a diversion the access routes and stimulates the search fortoalternatives: Ceuta, Melilla, sharpens the inventiveness search for alternatives: Ceuta,and Melilla, the Italian More coastlines. Malta the Malta Italianand coastline. willMore be needed willthese be needed to control tomeans control borders butborders; abovebut, all above it will be all, it will betonecessary change the perception necessary changetothe perception that that these the waves of immigrants are prejudicial to the recipient waves of immigrants are detrimental to the recipient countries. countries.
Rucksacks with a basic survival and provisions kit like those used by the military. Self-inflating rescue craft like those on planes or boats. Thermal, waterproof clothing. Lifejackets.
Chamber of alertness Lighs Prefabricated plates of concrete. Height of 4 m.
Requests of regularization 63.170 Favorable resolutions 32.229
Fences with sensors of movement in every meter. Height of 6 m.
Rampart walk
Detail of the exterior wall
415
414
Colombia Ecuador Brasil Argentina Nigeria Senegal Mauritania Argelia Morocco Pakistan China Bulgaria Romania Ucrania Poland
Number of immigrants come to Spain in 2005 for countries
Archis
80000 70000 60000 50000 40000 30000 20000 10000 0
Looking at
Sustainability Almost every discussion of design today focuses on what it means, what it sells or what it entails. But, first and foremost, there is the question of what design does. To understand and intervene in the performativity of design is to understand the challenges to design, the legitimacy of design, the intelligence of design, and to do something with them. For instance: provide sustainability The process has taken many years, but finally it seems the discourse on the Inconvenient Truth of pollution, waste and climate change has matured. Even the ‘powers that be’ have adopted a rhetoric of immediate action to prevent disaster. What is still lacking is action. Can this be a mission for design today? Canada
15.61
Global Agenda
Sustainability
1,1
Asia-Pacific
1,3 2,0
Latin America
Middle East and Central Asia
EU
4,8
Rest of Europe
9,4
2,2
3,8
417
416
World Total Energy Consumption by Region in 2010
Archis
North America
OECD Factbook 2006
Africa
Reservoir (concrete rundown) 2005, lamda print 125 cm x 155 cm
Domino 2003, lamda print 100 cm x 125 cm
Global Agenda
Sustainability
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Bas Princen
Valley (Sicilia) 2001, lamda print 125 cm x 155 cm
Blvrd. (Wilshire) 2005, lamda print 100 cm x 125 cm
Global Agenda
Sustainability
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Nader Ardalan
Re-conceived Gulf Architecture The issue of energy has been on the political agenda for decades. Geopolitics has been defined by it. New technologies have been invented to overcome the predicament of dependence on oil. The ultimate challenge, however, is to find ways to incorporate the long-term and holistic view as part of our daily practice. How does one design a new mentality? The Gulf Region seriously needs an applied research program to develop new prototypes of urban design and architecture. The region also needs thorough research to produce documentation guidelines and innovations in environmentally and culturally more sustainable designs than provided by the planning, design, construction and real estate practices and models currently being used, which for the most part demonstrate serious shortcomings due to high resource consumption, urban pollution, loss of quality and urban cohesion. They also lack an indigenous sense of cultural identity. In almost every field of urban life Middle Eastern countries are at a critical threshold, particularly the oil rich countries surrounding the Gulf region. The Downside of Development
Sustainable?
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On a regional scale, the Gulf waters pose an ecological concern due to extensive offshore oil and gas drilling, not to mention the massive oil tanker and merchant shipping traffic, which constitute the economic life of the region. As prosperity propels population growth along its shores and recreational tourism increases, the ecological well-being of the inter-tidal zones and their sea life need to be safeguarded. Global warming and the predicted rise in water levels will also impact coastal developments. There is therefore an urgent need for an integrated land/sea strategy of sustainable growth along regional/global dimensions. Interestingly enough, the region is not alone in this dilemma as the American Institute of Architects (AIA) recently took a bold step in releasing the following policy statements: ‘The AIA recognizes a growing body of evidence that demonstrates current planning, design, construction and real estate practice contribute to patterns of
Undefined Identity
Coincident with these ‘hardware’ short comings will be the ‘software’ social disadvantages of congested urban settlements that lack a sense of urban cohesion, human scale and cultural identity. Of specific concern to some of the eastern Arabian peninsular states, such as the UAE, Qatar and Kuwait, with small indigenous populations compared to their large expatriate communities, will be the sociopolitical concerns related to ‘whose country is this, anyway?’. With the recent growth of democratic institutions and consciousness in the region, expatriates and their offspring born in these countries already outnumber the native populations. They will in time naturally demand their fair representation in these societies’ decisionmaking structures and seek to express their respective world views and cultural identities. The economic, social and cultural institutions and symbolic signs of this region needed to accommodate these demographic trends within the larger parameters of national goals will have to be boldly, yet sensitively and intelligently addressed. Such demographic considerations have been slow to come about or are nonexistent in current development plans. They may foster, if left unheeded, social problems that could impact these countries’ future stability. As the majority of the world’s fossil fuel resources are found in this region, the stability of the Gulf is of global and national importance. For some of the above stated reasons, there are compelling justifications to undertake research to develop potentially new Design Prototypes that can generate more sustainable human settlements and urban systems in this region. It might also be demonstrated that such sustainable approaches are also smart business investments, offering long-term profits and documenting a new set of iconic images of greater relevance and substance.
Global Agenda
Sustainability | Post Oil
Spurred by great windfall wealth and generally stimulated by current political events, the countries of the Arabian Peninsula along the Gulf are deep in the grip of vast developments that could be greatly improved to better service the environment and cultures of this highest radiant energy gain region of the world. Although, significant advancement in technology and visual design thinking can be seen in currently proposed or recently built designs and there is good will on the part of all concerned, the troubling problem is that the development and building models being used are based mainly upon obsolete and irrelevant prototypes of Urban Design and Architecture that compromise their cost effectiveness, longevity and historical value. Furthermore, they will burden their governments with long-term urban infrastructure energy waste, high operation and maintenance costs and generate significant urban pollution.
resource consumption that seriously jeopardize the future of the Earth’s population … We must alter our professions actions and encourage our clients and the entire design and construction industry to join with us to change the course of the planet’s future’. The AIA’s Board of Directors set a goal of slashing the fossil fuel consumption of buildings by 50% in four years and expressed strong support for consensus-based standards for sustainable design. Yet the Gulf region buildings currently under design imitate much of these same obsolete ‘jeopardizing patterns’ of resource consumption.
Creative Design Agenda
No 6
• • • • • •
Invent Program Empower Provide Choice Focus on Trust Engage Design an Attitude…
Stop thinking that all design is ultimately about transforming resources into form. You can conceive of a design which is not an intervention, but becomes a manifestation of a larger ecology, possibly ultimately generating new resources as well.
Abu Dhabi’s evolving landscape from 1968 to the present
Global Agenda
Sustainability | Post Oil
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Sharjah Biennial Obesity is a threat to one’s health and shortens life expectations. Unrestricted energy consumption is a threat to the future of the world. Informing people and raising awareness about sustainability is a huge task, changing people’s behavior a serious challenge. Even then, sustainability can only be achieved when aims are the same across the board.
Rirkrit Tiravanija
Global Agenda
Sustainability | Awareness
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Global Warming and Other Matters Everyone studying the fate of the globe has reason to worry: global warming, desertification, decimation of fish populations, lack of fresh water, etcetera. Yet whatever disaster is looming, there are always people who, by virtue of the power of their boundless fantasy, come up with proposals to solve global problems with a stroke of genius. Rain Man
Fix It
In response to the Kyoto climate protocol which specifies serious CO2 transmission reduction, Rini Reynhout, one of the researchers at Shell Global Solutions in Amsterdam, had a brainstorm: a revolutionary new type of building material called ‘carbon concrete’ or C-Fix. The C-Fix team supplied the creativity needed to get the project up and running. They created interest in C-Fix throughout the top ranks of Shell by planting a ‘C-Fix tree’ on Shell’s Amsterdam site and laying a C-Fix stone floor on the 22nd floor of Shell’s London office during a meeting of the top management. The material is made from an oil residue. What is left after crude oil has been refined is a very hard, heavy and carbon-rich fraction. Normally this material is used as fuel for power stations and big ocean vessels, for example. The burning of such fractions results in considerable CO2 emissions. C-Fix uses the adhesive qualities of this fraction and not only fixates much of the carbon thereby preventing the emission of vast quantities of CO2, but the energy consumption during manufacture is low and the material is 100% recyclable. The applications for C-Fix are innumerable: road surfaces, bricks, embankment sections, roofing tiles, baffle-boards, etcetera. 1. See www.trec-uk.org.uk/. TREC is an initiative of The Club of Rome, the Hamburg Climate Protection Foundation and the National Energy Research Center of Jordan (NERC). The aim of TREC is to establish energy, water and climate
security for Europe, the Middle East and North Africa (EU-MENA) and cooperate on the development of renewable energies.
Global Agenda
Sustainability | Planet
One of the major problems facing our environment is the lack of water in many parts of the world. Man has tried to tackle this problem with dams and canals, artificial lakes and a diversity of irrigation systems. Magnetic Technologies L.L.C. is confident that they can solve it by making it rain. The company was founded in 1995 in the United Arab Emirates, an area where the desert runs right up to the sea. The technology they propose is based on the natural formation of negatively charged water drops. By magnetizing water this process is intensified several fold. The negatively charged mini drops (mist) are pushed up because of the repulsion from the surface of the earth, which is also negatively charged. The drops attract more water molecules and form a cloud. An additional positive effect is that the magnetized water drops supposedly attract air pollution thereby contributing to a healthier climate. Other efforts to create artificial rain are mainly done by shooting small rockets with silver iodine into the sky, as China’s technicians at the Beijing Weather Modification Office frequently do when the country suffers form exceptional drought. Apart from doubts about its effectiveness, this method is criticized because of the health danger it probably poses. The Magnetization system is not commonly accepted yet, but Magnetic Technologies LLC has installed Magnetic systems to cover a total area of 8,100 km2, one-tenth of the entire United Arab Emirates. That the method is still dependent on many geographical, climatological and spiritual factors was made clear by the inventor, Prof. Yuri Tkachenko: ‘These would be man-made clouds and rain, created by knowledge, human activities and Allah’s will. We’ll see further, that our success and intentions would very much depend on the strength and direction of the winds, the place and area of distributing of ascending and descending air flows, and also on the temperature in the lower atmosphere layers and its changes. But should it be Allah’s will and should He send us still and quiet weather down, then we’ll gain success.’
times the entire current energy consumption of the world. The cost of collecting solar thermal energy equivalent to one barrel of oil is about US $50 right now (already less than the current world price) and is likely to come down to around US $20 in the future.’ 1 Electricity from the concentrating solar power plants may be transmitted to where it is needed using high-voltage transmission and some of these are already in place in populated parts of the world. The Trans-Mediterranean Renewable Energy Cooperation (TREC) argues that CSP plants – and wind farms – in North Africa and the Middle East can provide electrical power to those areas and to Europe with less than a 15% transmission loss. That compares extremely favourably with the 50% to 70% losses that have been accepted for many years from conventional coal-fired power stations where the fuel is far from free.
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Our rapid exhaustion of energy sources is one of the major concerns of the coming decades. Whoever still doubts the potential of the sun to solve this problem will be convinced by the advocates of CSP, Concentrating Solar Power. The idea is to have plants in areas with an abundance of sunlight, like deserts in North Africa and the Middle East. Large fields of parabolic mirrors ‘catch’ the heat of the sun and convert it into electrical energy by various methods. For example, it can be stored in melted salt permitting energy production to continue at night. The amount of energy provided by the sun should cover our needs: ‘Every year, each square kilometer of hot desert receives solar energy equivalent to 1.5 million barrels of oil. Multiplying by the area of deserts world-wide, this is nearly a thousand
Creative Design Agenda
No 7
• Invent Program • Empower • Provide Choice • Focus on Trust • Engage • Design an Attitude • Dare to be an Amateur… Stop thinking that innovation design means speaking the language of ‘the new’. A history of avant-garde may have become the domain of creative professionals, but there has always been the culture of naive explorers who, by sheer perseverance or utter serendipity, might suddenly become mankind’s saviors.
Break water at IJmuiden, The Netherlands
Global Agenda
Sustainability | Planet
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CSP Plans at Kramer Junction, California
Looking at
Fairness Almost every discussion of design today focuses on what it means, what it sells or what it entails. But, first and foremost, there is the question of what design does. To understand and intervene in the performativity of design is to understand the challenges to design, the legitimacy of design, the intelligence of design, and to do something with them. For instance: provide fairness In the wake of globalization and other contemporary manifestations of capitalism, it is hard to deny the growing gap between rich and poor, between people with or without opportunities, between education and child labor. The abyss must be addressed. Can this be a mission for design today?
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Yesterday Kareem (the only local on the project) had dinner with the chairman. The chairman wants a New York grid, but radial... He loves the idea of the square, but would like it to be less square... In close proximity to the tallest tower there should be a large number of other tall buildings... The tallest tower should have a view to all sides... Furthermore the chairman likes geometrical forms that are organic and basically wants lots of water everywhere... Hausmannian patterns emerge on the flip-over, accompanied by numbers that are the outcome of incomprehensible formulas. Apparently we (they) are all going to get rich. We are keen to participate, but are not entirely sure which recommendations to follow. – RdG
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Emiliano Gandolfi
Empowerment The materialization of meaning, design’s most common characteristic, is very often considered the implementation of the status quo. Its apparent inertness cannot but solidify the way things are. Nevertheless, there is a practice of design which is not about solidifying, but about reformatting the organization of life with hope and curiosity.
Global Agenda
Fairness | Hope
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There are some questions that get under the skin of things and stay there, too substantial to emerge into the open except during extreme upheavals. Today we are living through one of those periods and, perhaps in the whirligig of history, we now find ourselves in a position in which we must question ourselves and the role of architecture in our society. Presently architecture is commonly understood as the profession responsible for designing buildings with a concern for their aesthetic effect. We can identify a critical moment: the 1997 opening of the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao. Frank Gehry’s museum was, at least in media terms, the high point of form as the vehicle of ‘value’ in architecture and conversely it was also the moment when an alternative began to develop with progressive momentum.1 A generation of designers, largely European, began to advance other priorities for architecture: urban integration, social factors and political context all became keys points in their work. As an alternative to architecture as formal design, the mantra is the need to be ‘involved.’ The architect must get out of his office and investigate first hand the issues of the city, listen to and get involved with the local population, and try to grasp all possible interpretations. Aldo Van Eyck’s words resound like a distant echo: ‘Can architects meet society’s plural demand? […] In what are people to participate in fashioning their own immediate surroundings within a conceived overall framework? You see, when one says, ‘city’ one implies the ‘people’ in it, not just ‘population’. This is the first problem confronting the architect-urbanist today.’2 But those same questions are being given different answers today. Collectives like the Italian Stalker group and the Greek Maria Papadimitriou are beginning to question their context and the people who inhabit it in order to understand the priorities they need to concentrate on. These investigations are embodied in projects in terms of construction and immaterial action, events aimed at affecting people’s sensibility and taking a first step towards change. They are engaged in projects in which they consider involvement with the local community a resource in defining new connections and creating bridges. They create a variety of opinions thanks to the involvement of people who represent other disciplines. And projects may even take the form of simple educational programs capable of stimulating a new sensibility to and understanding of the urban dynamics (a good example is the CUP’s work in New York). Among these groups, the work of Jeanne van Heeswijk is most interesting, an example of the how to define a methodological alternative to the present order of things. Van Heeswijk is a singular case. She is an artist who collaborates with architects and deals mainly with ‘architecture’ and the evolutionary processes of urban contexts. It should not surprise us that in contrast to the crisis of architecture’s role when faced with rapid urban metamorphosis, art tends to give an immediate response to the emergencies of everyday life. Conversely, it is interesting to note that architects such as Raul Cardenas (Torolab) or Santiago Cirugeda have chosen the territory of art and the museum as platforms to express their position as activists,
part of their quest for a podium to reconsider architecture’s position in society. Van Heeswijk sees herself as a mediator, an intermediary between situations, places and the people who inhabit them. Immersion, confrontation and communication are key concepts in her method of work. Her purpose is not so much to find solutions as ‘to generate cultural models that do justice to, for instance, the complexity of the integration issue’. Every place must be approached anew. What is unchanging is the need to create an understanding of a given place and its dynamics as well as to identify certain questions capable of creating a ‘performative action’. It is because of this idealistic and committed character that Van Heeswijk’s projects are generally extremely stratified and lengthy. Her purpose is to identify a model, in many cases one that can be replicated, capable of supplying the tools with which people can develop their perceptions and initiate change. In 2002 Van Heeswijk began work on a project called Face Your World, a program which offers children a collective learning environment and was developed in collaboration with philosopher Maaike Engelen. It is designed to teach children where they can learn how to investigate and alter their living environment. ‘Face Your World also provides a practical model for an urban planning process stemming from the profound involvement of local residents, and it strives to invest urban renewal tasks, usually realized on the basis of economic principles, with existing social and cultural capital.’3 The project, developed at first in Columbus, Ohio (USA), stimulated children to engineer their surroundings, combining and re-using existing components in order to devise new and innovative visions of their city. A city bus was transformed into a fully equipped digital lab and made available to children. Participants could download images they made of their districts and alter them using software called Interactor developed in partnership with the V2_Lab in Rotterdam. This program enabled the children to perceive their city as a shared space in which they all live together, but also as an intricate network of different visions they must negotiate. A second phase of Face Your World was subsequently developed in Slotervaart (Amsterdam) and a third in Rotterdam’s Museumpark; both operations are still underway. In these two phases Van Heeswijk began to work actively with an architect, Dennis Kaspori, who was already interested in developing theoretical open-source models for architecture4 and is currently a front-line activist seeking to test his theories. Recurrent features of these projects are that they encourage adolescents to develop critical opinions of their own environment and show them that their opinion is relevant. At the same time they also seek to stimulate young people to influence and participate in a process of urban renewal open to all citizens. Theirs is not an antagonistic model, but endeavors to apply a ‘shared creative practice’ in which existing reality is questioned through different interpretations of it and a model of ‘Creative Urbanism’ is established. This is a step beyond the examples of participatory architecture (much in vogue in the sixties and seventies), in which architects asked citizens for their ideas, or a form of participation practiced by local authorities, who developed three alternative versions of a project based on surveys. Face Your World is understood as a collective project in which architect, urban planner, artist, psycho-geographer and designer are simply people in a position to supply certain instruments and mediate the relations between participants. Slotervaart is a suburb of Amsterdam largely inhabited by immigrants from Morocco and Turkey and their Dutch-born children. The idea is to develop a project for a park covering some 13,500 m2 with the participation of students from two local schools and the residents of the Staalmanplein (a square in Slotervaart). A high school adjacent to the area was transformed into an operations center and designated the ‘StedelijkLab Slotervaart’ (Slotervaart Urban Lab). The design stage was divided into three phases covering 27 weeks: Exploring (getting to know the
No 8
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Invent Program Empower Provide Choice Focus on Trust Engage Design an Attitude Dare to be an Amateur Never Give up Hope
Stop thinking that all design that is ultimately convincing can only be based on a profound understanding of the human condition. Although it is true that very little of the creative destruction occurring in the last century was not influenced by superposition of the Nietzschean worldview, a tradition of grassroots initiative may now be emerging as the treasure chest of hope.
3 Dennis Kaspori, Face Your World, in: www.skor.nl/article2640-en.html 4. Dennis Kaspori, ‘A Communism of Ideas. Towards an open source architectural practice’, in: Archis no 3, 2003, pp. 13-17, also on www.archis.org.
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1. See Markus Miessen, ‘Spatial Practices in the Margin of Opportunity’, in: Markus Miessen and Shumon Bazar (eds.), Did Someone Say Participate? Frankfurt am Main (Revolver) 2006, p. 273. 2. A ldo van Eyck in Alison Smithson (ed.), ‘Team 10 Primer 1953-62’, Architectural Design (Dec. 1962), p. 564.
Creative Design Agenda
Global Agenda
Fairness | Hope
neighborhood and its users), Sketching (devising ideas and ideas for change) and Consulting (discussions with others to create a collective understanding of place). In addition to personal contact with specialists, various instruments were developed to enable everyone to express their intuitions spatially. As in Ohio, Interactor was used to enable youngsters to rebuild their world with their imagination, creativity and arguments and compare their various ideas. Other, more direct, methods were also used including drawing the surface of the park on the floor on a 1:5 scale and using a 30-centimeter ruler to represent the size of the children. On March 1st, 2006 the District Council approved the plan developed by Face Your World Slotervaart and scheduled completion for mid-2009. The project is an interesting fusion of a multitude of different spaces and functions. The first level is landscape, divided into three sectors by a running track: the first sector is a playground zone adjacent to a school, the second sector is the rest zone, a quiet section with ornamental greenery, benches and a fountain, and the third sector is the activity zone. To these are added a series of ‘urban objects’, multifunctional elements capable of satisfying the children’s different needs (Multi-Podium, Climbing Wall, Chilling Area, a Supervisor Post to ensure safety, To-Do Trees, and many other items). The final project is an intriguing garden of wonders in which everyone can find space, but above all it is a park of inventions, where each wish is fulfilled by being fused with the wishes of others. The project is proceeding as part of the Stedelijke Werkplaats Slotervaart (Slotervaart Urban Workshop). The final phase will follow the construction and maintenance of the park, but is above all devised as a prototype based on education and work to stimulate cultural self-awareness. Basically, the process is endless; each time begins again with a new ‘immersion, followed by sketching, discussing, merging’, in a sort of loop. Van Heeswijk defines this model an ‘entropic field of action’ which seeks to stimulate the imagination in relation to the real world in contrast with fantasy. But she promptly adds: ‘The field can be perfectly concrete, it can even be a football field!’ In this case the architect’s function is like that of an enzyme – a protein that catalyzes (i.e., accelerates) chemical reactions – stimulates a process, or as Van Heeswijk would say, ‘challenges the process’. We might compare the complexity of our society to biological processes. Almost every process in a biological cell need enzymes in order to occur at significant rates. Since enzymes are extremely selective and speed up only a few of many possible reactions, the set of enzymes made in a cell determines which metabolic pathways are selected in that cell. Yet society is more than an enzyme, for it installs a form of reciprocity, an exchange of knowledge, collectivization and cohabitation of process. The result depends on trusting people, respecting their interpretations, and considering them active players as well as stimulating them and giving them the right role. Ultimately, there is an important lesson to be learned from the work of those engaged in redefining the role of architecture such as Jeanne and Dennis: architecture is an instrument for legitimizing people’s role in society. Like an enzyme inside the human body, the architect must identify the processes which need to be stimulated in order to correct its general functioning. Architecture is no longer just form.
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Feminist Sustainability Building is an act of power, the glorious moment of creation, the manifestation of one’s existence here and now. Building has been a boy’s toy through the ages, the male chauvinist thing. Maybe it is time to allow the feminine side of culture express itself. A new strategy to lead the future. Is a matriarchic architecture conceivable; is it possible? For some time there has been an incessant process of self-definition within architectural production as if this would guarantee learning more about ourselves. The social practice of architecture as it is established keeps asking the architect how s/he defines him/herself. How do you dress? With whom do you hang out? Instead of asking ‘what you are compromised of,’ or, ‘what would you like to change’, or, ‘what are you against’, architecture must also have a chance to talk to the ‘other’. Without this, we would end up being little more than rebels incapable of real action. We would be, in the words of Albert Camus, ‘some handsome insurrectionaries who end up as cops or ‘accomplices’’. This possibility, the necessity of locating ‘architecture outside architecture’ is the vehicle that will end up tracing the routes interdisciplinary architectural travel will take towards the humanities. And if we desire to go further, much, much further, architecture must define; it is obliged to define, to frame a new way of living. Given the deficiencies and vices of their own architecture, this definition implies a domain in which performance enables the possibility of transformation. Discovering a system that allows for continuous representation of the experience means finding a procedure to redefine reality. 1. Theory, or the Performance of Thinking
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Given the decision to move within this transition, it cannot be performed without the support and collaboration of the whole community and as impetus towards
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Global Agenda
Fairness | Emancipate toekomstige nieuwbouw
There is no doubt that all feminist theory would be THEORY-LIGHT. In the same way, developing a strong political program in favor of gender equality is not necessary to know the feminist subject (feminism can be harmed if it insists that justice and egalitarian policies are based on an ontology of the feminine). Neither is it necessary to develop a strong political program in favor of a new way of living on and using the planet from its possible instrumentals, among them architecture. Architecture must centralize the discussion by defining the conditions, the times and the negotiation agenda for the dialogue with the ‘other’ or the ‘other’ of architecture. A good example is the urgent need to redefine sustainability, for it is not a precise concept. Sustainability itself appears in a way such that we cannot distinguish the future’s subject. This demand would be a technocratic position, ‘useless’ because of the ambiguity of its own content and one which appropriates its own capital as it defines its own political investment. Only those political and architectural practices that parody and represent the conflict in their own radical way can generate useful, critical data about transition and the future. Feminist theory is theory-light because of its radicalism; it approaches the key of human transformation. It obliges, in practice and theory, a redefinition of the word (language) and freedom. This pushing and pulling is simultaneously position and combat.
a continuous restructuring of power and knowledge relationships. THE OTHER may be this: if architecture is in fact a coding system that cannot enter the system of philosophical considerations that define the new habitability, its patterns must be invented until it has been duplicated, until it is susceptible to being understood as something that parodies the established positions while simultaneously proposing radical performing systems of the other… The performance of architecture does not go along with the suitability of old stereotypes to prototypes, does not go through advanced recognition of what is not up-dateable. It is a matter of undoing, of decoding those conditions and regulations that undermine a long life. The fight to remake norms via this new way of living is experimental and crucial. 3. Fantasy, or how to redefine reality
Fantasy is part of the articulation of the possible: it takes us from what it is merely current or present towards the kingdom of possibilities: what is not yet updated or up-gradable. The fight for survival cannot be separated from cultural life or fantasy. The end of fantasy by censorship, degradation or otherwise is a strategy which can only result in social death. Fantasy is not the opposite of reality. It is what reality does not allow us and, as a result, it is what defines reality, its exterior consistency. The crucial promise of fantasy, where and when it exists, is to challenge the limits of the contingent, of what will and will not be designated as reality. Fantasy is what allows us to imagine ourselves and others in different ways; it is what makes the possible exceed the real. In these new urban policies the city’s primary role would be not only one of questioning what is and what ‘must’ be real, but also to show by action how the norms that rule contemporary notions of reality could be questioned and how these new models of reality are constituted. Creative Design Agenda
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Invent Program Empower Provide Choice Focus on Trust Engage Design an Attitude Dare to be an Amateur Never Give up Hope Emancipate
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Stop thinking that all design is either the vehicle of honesty and understandable interest, or, on the contrary, the manifestation of the abuse of power. We can design a tactic that starts from greed and finishes in new means of human emancipation.
Global Agenda
Fairness | Emancipate
Ilka & Andreas Ruby
The Stockholm Syndrome There used to be a discourse about architecture as an act of comprehensive designing, taking into account as many programmatic parameters as possible and trying to accommodate function in all its layers. Yet discourse about the design of grand gestures, solidifying and expressing certain brands or clear messages, and reducing design to the provision of a single, unique shape subject to the client’s interests is much more popular. So, perhaps our discourse should now shift to the position of those clients. Which play is fair anyway?
Global Agenda
Fairness | Icon Architecture
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Architecture today is obsessed with icons. To be iconic or not to be seems the question for more and more architects, or even more pressingly so for their clients. This quest for iconicity reveals a subtle power shift from the city to architecture. At least in the western cultural context, icons were less incorporated by individual buildings as by the city. Think of New York (the grid with Central Park as a kind of a green super-plaza), Barcelona (the grid with chopped-off corners turning each street-crossing into a square), Paris (Haussmannian boulevards forming one continuous network), or L.A. (the highway system filled with low-density housing fabric) – each of these cities entails a structural iconicity that instantly conjures up a mental image merely when its name is mentioned. It’s an image that does not need any individual pieces of architecture to be iconic, the city itself is the icon. This urban iconicity is emblematic of an understanding of social space in which the city itself is seen and celebrated as a representation of the community. Public space is invested as a public good to affirm the superiority of shared collective values over the randomness of individual interests. With globalization taking command of our world in recent decades, this relationship between public and private domains has visibly changed. By means of the privatization of national corporations and deregulation of economic relationships, the nation-state has by and by surrendered its historic privilege of power to an intangible alliance of trans-national corporations. With a GDP equaling at times that of whole countries, some of these large corporations have become undercover agents in a political power play that is only symbolically led by democratic national governments. What would appear to be the political will of a national government is often nothing but the cleverly disguised action plan of private corporations who infuse their interests with powerful lobby-networks into the political decision-making process. Since global corporations are primarily responsible to the economic community of their shareholders however, they exceed the reach of national politics anyway. Hence their sphere of influence is no longer bound by the historically defined territory of the nation-state, but constitutes a new global territory. This territory has to be branded with landmarks of power and as one can tell from the current boom of corporate cathedrals designed by a select league of brand architects, star architecture has become the crucial medium of this architectural iconization of power. Star architects are obviously well suited for this task, having been trained in this capacity during the boom in museum architecture during the 1980s and 1990s. Cities then called upon famous architects to forge a clearly recognizable urban profile to score high in the growing national and international competition of cities spurred by new leisure-dominated urban life-styles. The city of Frankfurt is a clear case-study of this image-relaunch; in founding half a dozen museums between 1980 and 1990
(using prominent architects such as O. M. Ungers, Hans Hollein, Richard Meier etc.) it upgraded its identity from a mere banking city to a genuine capital of culture. Starting in the mid-eighties, Vitra-CEO Rolf Fehlbaum utilized the same image building strategy by hiring architects of international acclaim such as Frank Gehry, Zaha Hadid, Tadao Ando, Alvaro Siza and Nicholas Grimshaw to put his furniture brand on the global map of design awareness. And yet a little later, in the mid-nineties, the Guggenheim foundation, merging the sides of commerce and culture, applied the same model to a global scale by proliferating itself through franchised museum dependencies sprouting like mushrooms in different cities across the world. The crucial prerequisite for the success of that strategy was clearly the shock-and-awe efficiency of the Guggenheim Bilbao, also known as the Bilbao Effect. The Guggenheim Bilbao showed how a highly spectacular piece of architecture is able to turn an entire city into the mere background of the isolated figure of that building. Furthermore, it revealed how previously separate identities such as client, location, and architect can be made to converge by a highly calculated architectural branding strategy – since stating the name of any part of this alliance inevitably evokes the other identities as well; Gehry is now synonymous with the Guggenheim, Bilbao or both. Guggenheims convergence of city, architecture and brand has become, in the course of the last decade, a blueprint for a whole series architectural projects of cities which equally wanted nothing but to put themselves on the map of global recognition with the help of a piece of signature architecture. Seeing the results of the invited architecture competition for the new Gazprom headquarter in St. Petersburg in November 2006, it seems that the former Soviet gas company (now a stock-listed but still state-controlled corporation) has taken Guggenheim’s very model of usurping an entire city as material support for its own brand to yet a higher level. Bilbao was a city of regional importance when Guggenheim decided to situate its museum there; as a consequence annexing the city’s identity to the Guggenheim’s global profile was relatively easy. St. Petersburg by contrast is the incorporation of an iconic city, with its European urban plan imported by Peter the Great and the memorable low skyline of its golden cupolas. Yet Gazprom could not care less and simply wanted to exceed this urban iconicity of St. Petersburg with a building even more iconic. Hence it really needed architects like Daniel Libeskind, Jean Nouvel, Rem Koolhaas, Herzog & de Meuron, and Massimiliano Fuksas who are all proven icon makers. And sure enough all passed the plate (as if they needed it). Narcissistically in love with their success, they have no idea how to transform it into influence. The unique asset of real stars was once their ability to use their prominence to divert or surpass the otherwise unquestionable authority of power. Utterly lacking this kind of ambition and courage, the star architects of Gazprom star as public relation actors in an effervescent propaganda campaign that sends out a clear political message: it is possible to be a corporation that acts as the extended arm of the Russian government, a corporation that abuses its gas monopoly to punish disobedient neighbor states like Georgia by raising energy prices to impudent levels, or taking over competing companies whose leaders dared to support oppositional political movements and still get the iconic absolution of the avant-garde (or what is left of it). The fact that the first prize was awarded to none of the famous stars, but to RMJM – the only non-Star, but corporate office in the competition line-up – confirms the impression that the actual mission of Koolhaas, Nouvel & Co. in this farce of a competition was nothing else than conjuring up a shining image of beauty that will help Gazprom polish up its contested reputation. You really can’t say they did not do their job beautifully.
Two of the Designs for the Gazprom city competition
Global Agenda
Fairness | Icon Architecture
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OMA, Partner in charge: Rem Koolhaas Associate: Fernando Donis
Dear Mr. Koolhaas,
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Invent Program Empower Provide Choice Focus on Trust Engage Design an Attitude Dare to be an Amateur Never Give up Hope Emancipate Resist the Icon…
Stop thinking that all design is just about highlighting brilliance. It might be a smokescreen for a power play that needs your creativity as an alibi. Never stop analyzing your client’s tricks.
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Sincerely, Ilka & Andreas Ruby
corporations (the nation-states having disappeared in the last war), which manipulate the population to best serve the interests of the corporate world. To keep the masses obedient, ‘Rollerball’ was installed, a cruel and deadly game ‘whose social purpose is to show the futility of any individual effort’.
Gulf
Fairness | Icon Architecture
Why did you participate in the Gazprom competition? We have grown accustomed in recent years to see reputable architects ready to trade their values for others if the commission calls for it. Hence it seems coherent to see a number of world-class architects lining up to design the new Gazprom Headquarter in St. Petersburg. We are not too surprised that most of them seem to have no second thoughts about the imperial gesture of placing a 300 m corporate high-rise against the low-rise fabric of St. Petersburg, nor about the dubious attempt of a ruthless energy monopolist to cleanse its stained reputation by capitalizing on the acquired cultural capital of the city. It’s not too much unlike them, but it’s quite unlike you. Or are you tricking the world this time for real? Were we all too naïve to give your famous mind game of ‘suspending judgment’ credit as a means to help us confront those aspects of reality that otherwise would have been wiped out of our conscience by the censorship of judgment, and was it indeed a disguised means to suspend morality, as some have said? For the longest time your work seemed to harbor an irreducible residue of morality: a belief in the responsibility of the architect to commit to the unfinished project of modernity despite or precisely because of its birth-faults; to react to the social transformations and counteract some of their dramatic developments such as the disappearance of public space: the libraries in Paris (Jussieu) and Seattle are both touching monuments to this vanishing collective sphere of the contemporary city. To all who did not quite know how to locate CCTV in Beijing with respect to this kind of work – and Ian Buruma has said about it all there is to say1 – Gazprom must seem like another step in the consolidation of a new street-smartness of OMA with regard to power. Do you mean to say that to reject the call of power would be heroic but pointless, because architecture deprives itself of the last remaining bit of influence it may still exert? Granted. Should we read your compliance such that you have come to terms with the new political world order, an order which Heiner Müller once described as the dilemma of capitalism having no alternative to itself after to the breakdown of socialism? Does the irresistible rise of neo-liberalism then beam us into an era of neo-absolutism? And how do you see the role of the architect in a future world dominated by absolute rulers imposing their will as they please? If we take this mono-central organization of power as a possible description of our world – an uneasy reverberation of the dystopian scenarios evoked by many science-fiction movies such as ‘Rollerball’2 – then the only position left for a star architect to invest his or her stardom for a transformation of society would be the one of the court jester: the one and only figure in the medieval court allowed to contradict the king under the guise of humor, the blessed idiot kept alive to symbolically transgress the omnipotence of the ruler. One could claim that only as court jester, i.e., in a position of empowered weakness, is there a possibility for the architect to still make a critical contribution, but that this critique needs to be well-disguised in order not to kill the project before it has been born. In other words: you have to play along with the icon economy in order to be able to undermine it later. We would like to think that there was a scenario embedded in your Gazprom design, a subversive plot lurking behind what looks like a hushed allusion to Malewitch’s Tectons, dressed up just enough to make it through the beauty contest of the competition while unfolding its transformative potential only later. As you did not win, we will never know. If this speculation were correct, your resistance to an architecture of rejection that only wants to keep its hands clean would make sense. But it’s a resistance that entails an equally heroic hubris, the hubris to declare yourself to be capable to F… the System. A posture for which we would openly applaud you, as it entails the risk of the opposite turnout as well.
1. Ian Buruma, ‘Don’t be fooled – China is not squeaky clean’, The Guardian, July 30, 2002. Also on: www.guardian.co.uk/ 2. ‘Rollerball’ is a science fiction film directed by Norman Jewison and starring James Caan. Made in 1975 the film is a speculation about the world at the beginning of the 21st century, a world controlled by a handful of private
World Fairness Icon Architecture
Open Letter to Rem Koolhaas
Looking at
Dialogue Almost every discussion of design today focuses on what it means, what it sells or what it entails. But, first and foremost, there is the question of what design does. To understand and intervene in the performativity of design is to understand the challenges to design, the legitimacy of design, the intelligence of design, and to do something with them. For instance: facilitate dialogue In a ‘society of the spectacle’ or the ‘capsule civilization’, in which it is not the conversation that counts, but the airtime in which you manage to broadcast your message, the end of a lively public domain as the podium of democracy is in sight. Without a substantial exchange and the tolerance it requires, culture is becoming a monoculture of power that fails to regenerate itself by finding new forms of legitimacy. We need new modalities for human interaction. Can this be a mission for design today?
Russian Federation
276
United Kingdom
16756
Germany
12992
United States
49611
China
4
178
Japan
531
Iran
Israel
6494
United Arab Emirates
20
India
424
Uganda
4
Indonesia
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Dialogue
82
Brazil
1634
South Africa
443
Archis 457
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WiFi locations in the world
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www.jiwire.com
Argentina
Global Agenda
Dialogue Israel, Hebron, Al Aroub, March 3 rd, 2006
Archis
Poland, Warsaw, April 29 th, 2004
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Roger Cremers
Global Agenda
Dialogue
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Poland, Warsaw, 30 April 2004
Global Agenda
Dialogue
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Poland, Warsaw, October 23 rd 2003
Markus Miessen
Conflict as Practice We have become used to architecture telling us something by way of form. The architect’s choice of this or that geometry, style, specific signs or colors, is the key to understanding what he or she intended to say with the design. But in an age in which the architect is becoming more and more a strategist rather than a formalist, and in which he is more a contributor to meaning than the author of meaning, the message of architecture might be interpreted as the subtle organization of the program in a process in which we all participate. The disappearance of class identities and the end of the bipolar system of confrontation have rendered conventional politics obsolete. Consensus finally reigns with respect to the basic institutions of society, and the lack of any legitimate alternative means that this consensus will not be challenged. Chantal Mouffe1 In contrast to cooperation, collaboration is driven by complex realities rather than romantic notions of a common ground or commonality. It is an ambivalent process constituted by a set of paradoxical relationships between co-producers who affect each other. Florian Schneider2
Conflict for Creativity
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From the beginning of Sex and the City, Charlotte York is portrayed as the most innocent of the four protagonists. Throughout the series, she is the only one who follows ‘dating rules’ and expresses a serious desire to marry and have children. In episode 55, Charlotte decides to quit her job as a curator in a Manhattan art gallery. When she reveals her intentions to her disapproving friends, she explains why she
Collaboration Beyond Consensus
Conflict refers to a condition of antagonism or state of opposition between two or more groups of people. It can also be described as a clash of interests, aims, or targets. When we look at conflict as opposed to innocent forms of participation, conflict is not to be understood as a form of protest or contrary provocation, but rather as a micropolitical practice through which the participant become an active agent insisting on being an actor in the forcefield they are facing. Thus, participation becomes a form of critical engagement. When participation becomes conflict, conflict becomes space. Re-inserting friction and differences into both the scale of the institution and the city bears the potential of micro-political forces that render conflict as practice. In this context, participation becomes a form of non-physical, productive violence. Micro-political action can be as effective as traditional state political action. In July 2006, Rem Koolhaas and Hans Ulrich Obrist interviewed more than 50 people over the course of 24 hours. Their so-called ‘Interview Marathon’ at the
Global Agenda
Dialogue | Conflict
When humans assemble, spatial conflicts arise. Spatial planning is often considered the management of spatial conflicts. To deal with conflicts, critical decision-making must evolve. The city – and, indeed, the progressive institution – exist as social and spatial conflict zones, re-negotiating their limits through constant transformation. Participation is war. Any form of participation is already a form of conflict. In war, enemy and adversary usually hold territory, which they can gain or lose, while each has a spokesman or authority that governs, submits or collapses. In order to participate in any environment or given situation, one needs to understand the forces of conflict that act upon that environment. In physics, a spatial vector is a concept described by scale and direction: in a field of forces, it is the individual vectors that participate in its becoming. However, if one wants to participate in any given field of forces, it is crucial to identify the conflicting forces at play. Participation is often understood as a means of becoming part of something through pro-active contribution and the occupation of a particular role. However, it seems that this role is rarely understood as a critical platform of engagement, but rather based on romantic conceptions of harmony and solidarity. In this context, I would like to promote an understanding of conflictual participation, one that acts as an uninvited irritant, a forced entry into fields of knowledge that could arguably benefit from spatial thinking.
wants to stay home. In order to not feel ‘bad’ about her real motives (wanting to be pregnant and redecorating the house), she justifies her decision by stating that she want to ‘volunteer at Trey’s hospital and raise money for the pediatric wing’. In Charlotte’s case, doing volunteering work for an important social cause is portrayed as her voluntary participation in a good cause that prevents her from being judged for quitting her job. Isn’t this kind of practice precisely the modus operandi that we can find in so many ‘socially relevant’ practices today? There is an interesting similarity between the way of arguing and the way in which particular practices have hijacked the notion of participation as a positive, unquestionable means of engagement, which forms their economy. In such a context, there seems to exist an urgent need to ask how it might be possible to ‘participate’ in a given environment or situation without having to compromise one’s role as a critical and operative initiator is interrogating conventional expertise while attempting to inform critical spatial practices by means of conflictual scenarios rather than fostering consensual models of philanthropy or what is known as ‘best practice’. Becoming a vector in the matrix of conflicts raises the question of how one participates without catering for pre-established needs or tasks, or – from the point of view of the traditional architect – how is it possible to participate in, for example, urban micro-politics by consciously inserting friction and asking questions rather than falling into well-established registers of local community work through legally-binding agreement or planning obligations? In architecture there are frequent examples of critical engagement conflicting with the realities of business interests. In 2006, London-based architect Richard Rogers was sent to New York by a number of clients, who had read that he let his office be used by a group of architects connected to Architects and Planners for Justice in Palestine. Lord Rogers was called to the offices of the Empire State Development Corporation (who are overseeing the re-design of New York’s 1.7 billion dollar Jacob K. Javits Convention Center of which Rogers is in charge) to explain his connection to the group, who were holding a meeting at Roger’s London office on February 2, 2006. As a result, several New York officials urged that Rogers be removed from the publicly funded project. Architects are often used by power structures, yet from the perspective of the power structure itself the architect is not welcome as a participating vector or enabler in this forcefield, but understood as a service-provider who delivers a product. As Rem Koolhaas argued in a conversation recently: ‘I would say that particularly in America political obliviousness is considered part of the role of the architect.’3 It is this chasm I attempt to tackle.
Global Agenda
Dialogue | Conflict
Archis
These images introduce the project’s strategic framework design for an alternative health structure as a result of an architect’s participation in the socio-political environment
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Serpentine Gallery London was set up as a model to deliver a cross-section of practitioners that, in one way or another, define what London is today. Although the event was interesting and successful in many ways, one could also sense a certain frustration amongst the more critically oriented audience. Surely, one would think, if one sets out to trace some kind of cross-section, one would include a multitude of dissimilar voices. Now, in order for this not to be misunderstood, it needs to mentioned that I am not trying to argue for a more inclusive model or one based on political correctness. On the contrary: what was missing was precisely the conflict that ‘is’ the city. The Marathon was set up as a ‘stimulating set of discussions’. However, every participant was either part of existing networks of cultural practitioners, thinkers or commentators or at least originated from the same cultural milieu. Now, I would argue that in order to include the complexity of the city, one needs to involve the conflicting forces of that city. Consensus is only achieved through established relationships of powers. One could argue that if such relationality were broken, another kind of knowledge would have been produced; one that helps us to understand the composite realities of the contemporary city and forces at play. In this context, it could be useful to re-think the concept of conflict as an enabler, a producer of a productive environment rather than an understanding of conflict as direct, physical violence. Although a more diverse set of conflicting voices could potentially inhabit risks, it allows for heterogeneous agencies and discourses that – through the re-calibration of power structures by means of critical altercations – could produce ancillary and unexpected knowledge. In order for any kind of participation to reach a political dimension, the engagement needs to be based on a distant critical voice. Through this kind of ‘conflictual participation’, the exchange of knowledge in a post-disciplinary field of forces starts to produce new forms of knowledge. As a starting point for such model of ‘conflictual participation’, one could make use of the concept of collaboration as opposed to cooperation that Florian Schneider distinguishes in ‘The Dark Site of the Multitude’4: ‘as a pejorative term, collaboration stands for willingly assisting an enemy of one’s country and especially an occupying force or malevolent power. It means working together with an agency or instrumentality with which one is not immediately connected.’5 Since such a notion of collaboration is also based on an idea of the inside and the outside (if you are inside you are part of an existing discourse which is to be agreed with and fostered), it will increasingly be the outsider who manages to add critically to pre-established power-relations of expertise. Although the outsider will be understood as someone who does not threaten the internal system due to lack of knowledge of its structure, it is precisely this condition that allows one to fully immerse in its depth in a dilettante manner. What we need today are more dilettantes who neither worry about making the wrong shift nor prevent friction between certain agents in the existing forcefield if necessary, a means to – as Claire Doherty calls it – ’circumnavigate predictability’.6 One could therefore argue that instead of breading the next generation of facilitators and mediators, we should aim for the encouragement of the ‘uninterested outsider’, the person who is unaware of pre-requisites and existing protocols, entering the arena with nothing but creative intellect. Running down the corridor with no fear of causing friction or destabilizing existing power-relations, he is opening up space for change, one that enables an arena for ‘political politics’. Given the increasing fragmentation of identities and the complexities of the contemporary city, we are now facing a situation in which it is crucial to think about a form of commonality, which allows for conflict as a form of productive engagement: a model of bohemian participation in the sense of an outsider’s point of entry, accessing existing debates and discourses untroubled by their disapproval.
1. Chantal Mouffe, ‘Introduction’, in: Chantal Mouffe (ed.), The Challenge of Carl Schmitt. London (Verso) 1999, p.3. 2. Florian Schneider, ‘The Dark Site of the Multitude’. In: theory kit (http://kit.kein.org/node/1). 3. Rem Koolhaas in conversation with Markus Miessen, interview published in Bidoun magazine (no. 8, Fall 2006).
4. Florian Schneider, ‘The Dark Site of the Multitude’. Theory kit (http://kit.kein.org/node/1). 5. Ibid. 6. Claire Doherty, ‘The New Situationists’. In: Claire Doherty, Contemporary Art – From Studio to Situation, London (Black Dog) 2004, p.11.
Creative Design Agenda
No 11
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Invent Program Empower Provide Choice Focus on Trust Engage Design an Attitude Dare to be an Amateur Never Give up Hope Emancipate Resist the Icon Collaborate…
Stop thinking that all design is the imposition of a choice of form upon a reality on the ground. Sometimes it defies such an abstraction by engaging deeply with a given program that amounts to permanent collaboration.
Global Agenda
Dialogue | Conflict
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Jiang Jun
Slogan Urbanism We all know how our language and our experiential world can be annexed by slogans, simplisms and truisms that serve power and vested interests. Sometimes we are hardly aware of the omnipresence of catchwords, soundbites, mission statements, and so on, just because of their ubiquity. Can we resist propaganda? If a slogan is something used for communication, Slogan Urbanism is the regime of communications in which slogans are no longer fragments of single requests, scattered ideas or isolated impulses, but the micro-components of a macro-structure of will. It broadcasts the text within the context. Slogan Urbanism is not ruled by the city, it rules the city. It imports slogans into the city to constantly reformat it with their messages. 1. Communism & Communicationism
2. Revolutionary & Anti-Revolutionary
– Abusage in the Difference of Will Behind the apparently fragmentized slogans is a pyramid of bureaucracy. Commands from the peak are communicated down to every tiny urban space. During its history of revolutions the CPC successfully set up a gigantic propaganda machine to disseminate instructions from on high – always in grand narrative so as to be abstract enough to meet different demands from diverse local contexts. Every government department must study and comprehend the supreme messages, then interpret them for the people by means of disciplinary slogans in public spaces. This is how tributes, quotations, instructions, and injunctions are simultaneously presented in different cities, and why they are always a little bit different despite their generic format. For example, when ‘To Build a Harmonious Society’ was advanced as ‘a principal mission of the new era’, it was instantly translated by different departments into ‘Harmonious School’, ‘Harmonious Train Station’, ‘Harmonious Community’, and ‘Harmonious Hospital’. In the meantime, further appeals are appended to the slogan in order to support interpretations such as ‘To Build a Harmonious Hospital, Serve the Patients as if they were your Relatives’ and ‘In order to Construct a Harmonious School, Supply a Qualified Education’. Sometimes a quotation is similarly misinterpreted: ‘Education should be taken hold of from the Wawa (baby)’, a quotation from Deng in his Sichuan accent, was interpreted as ‘Education of Football should be taken hold of from the Wawa’ and ‘Education of No Drugs should be taken hold of from the Wawa’. The grammar clearly indicates a principal and subordinate structure: the abstract central meaning is accompanied by detailed peri-central sub-meanings, just like the small stars around the bigger one on the national flag. Thus there is a meshwork of decipherings within the Chinese hierarchy. The meshwork has easily evolved into competition between administratively parallel departments to fully live up to the true essence of the planned Zeitgeist. The agitprop campaigns launched by rivals within the one-party system have always resulted in abuse and over-explanation, and thus the overrunning slogans.
4. In the Air & On the Façade
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– Public Space as Media For a long time in the history of Communist China, the nation was not modernized but mobilized, not urbanized but sloganized. Slogans, presented on banners,
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– Inherited Strategy in an Inversed Context Ever since Communism was interpreted by Marx-Lenin-Stalin-Mao as a doctrine promoting the belief that property belongs to everyone and advocating the overthrow of capitalism by a revolution of the proletariat, slogans have been widely used as verbal, violent propaganda to communicate belief and label believers as revolutionary or anti-revolutionary. That is how Chinese slogans evolved into a sensitive discourse, always with a definite attitude that is either good or bad. That is also how the Communist Party transformed itself from a revolutionary to a reigning party, using its propaganda to re-classify the old society and re-erect the new order as a new ruler. There was an inertia of revolution after the CPC transformed itself into a reigning party. In a series of utopia movements launched by Mao, billions of people were mobilized to revolt, first against their capitalist economic rivals and then against themselves in politics and culture. During the Great Leap Forward people were
3. Hierarchy of Commands & Meshwork of Decipherings
Global Agenda
Dialogue | Chaos
– Power as Ideological Disseminator Although Slogan Urbanism seems to be the invention of a hierarchical system to exert top-down discipline, the fact that it has only recently been widely used in China during the past half-century proves the indiscreetness of the assumption. China is a civilization characterized by central control systems: Confucianism and Communism. These two hierarchical systems are theoretically different, however. In Confucianism every individual is systematically located at a certain point in the social network, while in Communism everyone is declared equal; Confucianism invented a discrete social relationship in which the space of self-organization is made possible by clarified economic relationships, while Communism is not essentially driven by self-organization at all, but by state planning in which every individual must be driven not by his own demand, but by state command. Confucianism is about permanent knowledge imparted to society, while Communism is about capriciously revised and updated information leading to a higher social order, that is to say, a belief communicated to society. Slogan Urbanism is thus born within the network of Communism as a communicative device, one might even consider it a missionary, designed to constantly promote the essence of the latest movement, disseminate Communist ideology, and clarify identity.
forced forward by slogans characterized by excessive optimism and enthusiasm; during the Cultural Revolution people were empowered to write hate-filled slogans themselves, described as ‘verbal struggle’, which always resulted in ‘physical struggle’. Slogans represented revolution, slogan space was revolution space. Slogans were not an instrument to control chaos, but the stimulator of chaos, that is until China was convulsed by Deng’s laissez-faire revolution in the 1980s. The revolution continues, monopolized, as are its slogans. As heritage it is an inverse context in which it no longer freely belongs to the people (as was the case during the Cultural Revolution), but exists under strict supervision and censorship. The revolutionary forces which struggled against slogans such as ‘CPC – May You Live Ten Thousand Years!’ and ‘100 Years Without Change!’ are now seen as antirevolutionary. The term had been borrowed from the French Revolution, indicating mild social reform instead of radical reconstruction, or, chaos under control instead of being stimulated. While today revolution and anti-revolution are dramatically mistaken for each other in CPC discourse and slogans, slogans which still claim to be revolutionary are actually anti-revolutionary acts, for their role is to control chaos.
chalkboards, enormous posters, and TV as well as in newspapers and magazines, were projected into public space in the air, on building façades and into the workings of daily life. The ubiquity of propaganda is not at all history – it is still at work even today. However, as China has been multi-mediatized, we no longer have to read People Daily or watch CCTV if we so choose, nor do we have chance to hear the political avant-garde sound from The East is Red satellite remotely in the air. What is still at work, physically, is the façade. In Slogan Urbanism, the façade is where the superstructure of a society is mapped onto the city. Slogan Urbanism planning is actually planning by the regime. As the Party family tree unfolded into physical space, public space was automatically colonized into media space. The most important locations in Chinese cities are not occupied by Coca Cola or Nokia, but by enormous, red, glossy, bright slogans, always bearing portraits of the leaders. Although most other spaces are congested with global and local advertisements, you can always find within them Slogan Urbanism sectional messages, functioning as an indifferent, but dutiful policeman. Sometimes there are events – festivals, conferences, celebrations, ordinations – just before a monumental act takes place, these are Slogan Urbanism climaxes, as the whole city is covered in slogans beforehand. Public space is where slogans are amplified and the situation managed. 5. High & Low – Dialogue between the Formal and the Informal
Global Agenda
Dialogue | Chaos
Slogans are always formal, sublime and purified, until they are interfered with and submerged by their surroundings: high text is swallowed by low context. The low context is a literal world out of control: uncensored stories, unadopted appeals, unexpected advertisements, underground graffiti, and all those unascertained secret professions and social relationships that are underestimated, presenting a dirty but colorful biodiversity of low society. As slogans occupy the most prestigious locations in the city, they simply reoccupy these locations by means of surroundings and overlappings: hung up in trees, hand-written on the ground, stuck onto billboards, and even foisted into your hands. They are also site-oriented, linking the specific urban program precisely together with Slogan Urbanism. In a hospital ‘Treat Patients’ Heart and Soul’ hangs in the hall while ‘Will Sell My Liver Cheap’ is scrawled in the toilet; at a wrecking site ‘Thank You for your Understanding, Support and Cooperation during the Dismantling Work’ is officially posted while ‘Return my Bloody Homestead!!’ appears unofficially. These are the real rivals of Slogan Urbanism, claiming the right to speak for themselves and the grass roots that are weeded out now and revived then. They are the virus inside Slogan Urbanism, a micro-terrorism against the colonized public space, where Slogan Urbanism forces high and low to coexist, a dialogue between topdown calligraphy and bottom-up graffiti – the formal and the informal. Here is where negotiation becomes possible, despite the overwhelming odds. Here is also where Slogan Urbanism could start to revise its dictatorial planning into something more comprehensive, with room for the low where the grass roots could find space and speak for themselves, and where chaos could be managed without being damaged.
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Dialogue | Chaos
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Creative Design Agenda
No
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Invent Program Empower Provide Choice Focus on Trust Engage Design an Attitude Dare to be an Amateur Never Give up Hope Emancipate Resist the Icon Collaborate Challenge Propaganda…
Of course as a designer you think about the realization of the given. But as a citizen who professionally performs as a designer, you may have other options. You may design the language of the not yet given, or even the explicitly forbidden.
Stefano Boeri
Meta Domus, Meta Abitare As so much design today facilitates the smooth and uncontested exertion of power, much design publicity legitimizes this cultural role, trying to prevent you from thinking. Conversely, the question is whether a design publicity is conceivable that enables you to think critically, and inspires you to contribute to a design culture challenging that same power.
Global Agenda
Dialogue | Meta Domus
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We believe that today’s architecture is an instrument, both useful and necessary, for looking at the world. We think that the act of observing, describing, interpreting space and the built environment is one of architecture’s resources and helps us understand the community we inhabit. We believe that the landscape – the territories continually defined by our movements, re-invented by our desires, punctuated by our buildings – is an excellent metaphor for our society. Why? Because the local is a treasure-chest rich in details and clues that can tell us about the forces that permeate our daily lives. Forces that at times are manifest only in the space that surrounds us, perhaps just for a few instants, like footsteps in the snow. Architecture’s political dimension is not to be found in the labels we attach to our projects, nor in our magniloquent political declarations; rather it lies in the production of useful and critical knowledge about the world that surrounds us. In the coming years, the symbolic future of the world will be decided. Today, however, we see that there are only two competitors. On the one hand, there is the metaphor of a smooth and continuous world that is totally visible and whose length and breadth can be traveled by an unstoppable flow, a world which has the Net as its icon and Google Earth as its simulacrum. The other view – constructed by the media – is one of a world punctuated by a few insatiable and solitary antennae, a world where a few giants stand out in the collective imagination and check the flow of and catalyze our symbolic energy. It is up to us – those who describe, represent and design the space we inhabit – whether or not to content ourselves with the rhetoric of these two powerful strategies of representing globalization. Both are actually arrogant and oversimplified; they reduce the richness of the world by pretending to represent the whole of it. Both fail to capture the local dimension of globalization: the first by treating local space simply as a ‘portion’ of the whole; the second by taking it into consideration only when it manifests itself as an excessive, monothematic caricature of the world. Yet we know that the material flow that runs around the world – of goods and people – in fact runs inevitably in a universe of local spaces endowed with unevenness and wrinkles that register and absorb them. And the immaterial flow of images and information – or the flow of money – also inevitably passes through the eye of local space. They have physical and tangible terminals where the flow takes shape, lands, and remains entangled. Both encounter confines, borders, and barriers; they both get stuck in funnels and bottlenecks; they both propagate in clearings and openings in the physical places of the inhabited world. Local space is today an extraordinary treasure-chest for deciphering the energies that run throughout the world, energies that interweave, curl up, huddle and cling around buildings, public spaces and cities. But one shouldn’t content oneself merely with looking at
the spaces where energy presents itself in a pure and simplified form. We need to look for it in the everydayness of our spatial behavior, beyond symbolic monuments in the shared sense, beyond architecture’s star system, beyond the mythology of the media. To understand and describe globalization we must examine events from our daily news, uncover places ‘loaded with world’ and describe them, in other words we must explore geopolitics in design. That is what we’ve tried to do in the pages of Domus these last three years; that is what we’ll seek to do in the pages of Abitare in the coming months. With Domus in the recent past and Abitare in the onrushing future, we’re proposing three main approaches to ‘geo-design’. Three main ways to conceive tomorrow’s architectural challenges. Designing Objects and Spaces Communicating
An initial form, typical of the opulent society and new economy of the globalized world, sees design manifest itself today primarily as a process of communication. As a meta-language that has implications in the sphere of information, human interaction, recollection and desire. Design projects virtually. In an economic cycle that increasingly consists of services, creativity, knowledge and experience, design is the symbolic and semiotic plus value of the object to render it more desirable and more efficient. It is not by chance that this paradigm is accompanied by formidable advances in applied design (interaction design, strategic design, design of processes, etc.). Design is only a communication practice; it strengthens corporate images and visualizes marketing strategies. Designing Objects and Spaces Manufacturing
Designing Objects and Spaces Surviving
Design that grows in the poorest societies, in communities of immigrants, in niches of social and cultural marginalization in the great Western metropolises, is an activity that combines bricolage and self-organization. It produces in limited series, with cheap technology, thanks to informal and/or illegal economies, but often has a high symbolic content. Communities of users are transformed into suppliers of services or minorities in semi-artisan practices who find a way to represent and give value to their own identity by producing everyday objects. These are places and environments where design manifests itself as human capital, in the form of life’s basics: working to survive, to eat, to keep warm, to move around.
Global Agenda
Dialogue | Meta Domus
A second form is the persistence of design practice linked to manufacturing and the mass production of everyday objects. Design traditionally adds aesthetic and functional value to the production process dedicated to developing large numbers along a Fordist model. In this case design is at the source of strong production specialization, still present in the chains of small and medium-sized European manufacturers and increasingly widespread in the industrial districts that have risen up in developing countries such as China and India as a result of decentralizing processes and outsourcing. They are the territories where design is closely linked to the production process, working in symbiosis towards innovation in the narrow sense of the everyday object.
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Creative Design Agenda
No 13
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Invent Program Empower Provide Choice Focus on Trust Engage Design an Attitude Dare to be an Amateur Never Give up Hope Emancipate Resist the Icon Collaborate Challenge Propaganda Polemicize…
You can design the confirmation of success with the well-known formats of publicity and propaganda. But the moment you become aware of this power to design fame, you may start to use the same power to defame. There is an almost forgotten tradition of polemics that transfers criticism in new forms of literature and journalism.
Global Agenda
Dialogue | Meta Domus
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Further Reading
Alternative Ways of Reading the City Amin, Ash and Nigel Thrift, Cities: Reimagining the Urban (Polity Press, Cambridge 2002). Amin and Thrift give accounts of a focus on memory, imagination and the unconscious for understanding urban developments. They outline an innovative sociology of the city that scatters urban life along a series of sites and circulations, reinstating previously suppressed areas of contemporary urban life. Jong, Alex de, and Marc Schuilenburg, Mediapolis: Popular Culture and the City, (010 Publishers, Rotterdam 2006) Rethinking the reality of what used to be known as ‘the city’, the authors explore popular culture (games, music, communication) ‘that is taking an ever firmer grip on our living environment and on our lives.’ They introduce a pop philosophy where technological, political, cultural, economic and even military developments meet head-on, influencing our notion of city. Mbembe, Achille and Sarah Nutall, ‘Writing the world from an African metropolis’, in: Public Culture 16 (2004) 347-373. Mbembe and Nuttall criticize the dominant gaze at the city, which is derived from the Western metanarrative of urbanization, modernization, and crisis. They argue instead that the city always operates as a site of fantasy, desire and imagination.
Security Cauter, Lieven De, The Capsular Civilization: On the City in the Age of Fear (NAi Publishers, Rotterdam 2004). De Cauter describes a society dominated by fear, exclusion, and simulation. As such, he gives a realistic and alarming account of the new world order that is an everyday concern for the architects and planners of the contemporary city as well as for its inhabitants and users Trüby, Stephan en Gerd de Bruyn (eds.), 5 Codes – Architecture, Paranoia and Risk in Times of Terror (Birkhäuser 2006) After the Twin Towers collapsed, the US government created the Department of Homeland Security. Its primary task is to keep the terrorist threat in permanent view. To do this, it developed a five-stage warning system based on the colors green, blue, yellow, orange, and red: 5 codes. For the fifth anniversary of September 11, the book investigates the entanglements and connections between culture and fear, which determine our lives more than ever today. Throughout the world, architecture and urbanism are increasingly manipulated by this culture of fear.
Peet, Richard and Michael Watt (eds.), Liberation Ecologies: Environment, Development, Social Movements (Routledge, London/New York 1996). Peet and Watt bring together some of the most exciting theorists in the field to explore the impact of political ecology in today’s developing world. Ultimately, Liberation Ecologies questions what we understand by ‘development’, be it mainstream or alternative, and seeks to renew our sense of nature’s range of possibilities. Fairness Ruthven, O., ‘Money Mosaics: Financial Choice & Strategy in a West Delhi Squatter Settlement’ Journal of International Development 14 (2002), 249-271. The diaries provided by Ruthven give a view on how the poor, the very poor and the near-poor use financial services and devices. Ruthven looks at a small number of households over an extended period of one year, and at all the households in one village or one slum at one moment in time. Schafhausen, Nicolaus and Vanessa Joan Mueller, Walther Koenig (eds.), European Kunsthalle – Under Construction: Perspectives on Institutional Practice (Cologne 2006). The publication documents an event series of the same name produced by the European Kunsthalle in Cologne, 2006. Essays, lectures, discussions, and images focus on current issues such as the politics of urban marketing and the different ways
Murray, Noeleën and Nick Shepherd, Desire Lines. Space, Memory and Identity in the Post-apartheid City (Routledge, New York forthcoming). The articles in this collection, which adds to the literature on public culture in Africa, unravel cities as sites of memory and desire, yet also as spaces of power, privilege, identity and difference. The two editors introduce as emblematic figure of African modernity in Cape Town: the victim of forced removal. Dialogue Bevan, Robert, The Destruction of Memory. Architecture at War (Reaktion Books, London 2006). Bevan reveals the extent to which a nation weds itself to its landscape; he argues that such destruction not only shatters a nation’s culture and morale but is also a deliberate act of eradicating a culture’s memory and, ultimately, its existence. Hall, Stuart (ed.), Representation. Cultural Representation and Signifying Practices (Sage Publications & Open University 1997). Hall points out that the same discourse can be used by groups with different, even contradictory (class) interests. The impact of discursive formations can be varied, subtle and diffuse. Nevertheless, the knowledge which a discourse produces always constitutes a kind of power, exercised by those who know over those who are known. Iain Borden et al (eds.), The Unknown City: Contesting Architecture and Social Space (MIT Press, Cambridge Mass. 2002). Borden et al presents a critique of capitalism and a thought experiment about how designers and city dwellers working together can shape the cities of tomorrow. The editors explore how the inhabitant of the city perceives urban images and symbols and constructs the urban experience, relating this discussion to their interest in the triad of space, time, and the human subject.
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Boutellier, Hans, The Safety Utopia: Contemporary Discontent and Desire as to Crime and Punishment (Kluwer Academic Publishers 2004) The Safety Utopia describes the implicit hope that vitality and safety can come together. This longing is an illusion and it is not without danger – a utopia is also a power fantasy in which control and punishment play a major role. A great deal is expected from criminal law, but that can hardly bring a safety utopia any closer. The utopian desire gives an impulse to moral renewal and community forming. Safety unites, but how?
Sousa Santos, Boaventura de (ed.), Another Production is Possible: Beyond the Capitalist Canon (Reinventing Social Emancipation: Towards New Manifestoes, Volume 2) (Verso, London/New York 2006). De Sousa Santos presents alternative models to capitalist development through case studies of collective land management, cooperatives of garbage collectors and women’s agricultural cooperatives.
of financing culture, as well as contemporary art movements and their presentation in various spaces. Looking beyond the boundaries of Cologne, these questions examine possible paths of action institutions might take today.
Archis
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Shelter Oomen, T.K., Development Discourse: Issues and Concerns (Regency Park 2004). Criticizing development discourse this books show that concepts as ‘sustainability’, ‘equity’ and ‘participation’ are disputed. The analysis of the ‘counter-hegemonic movements’ has been co-opted in the dominant development discourse focused on economic growth.
Davis, Mike, Planet of Slums (Verso, London/ New York 2006). Davis argues that the exponential growth of slums is no accident but the result of a perfect storm of corrupt leadership, institutional failure, and IMFimposed Structural Adjustment Programs leading to a massive transfer of wealth from poor to rich.
Sustainability John L. Mcknight and John P. Kretzmann, The Careless Society: Community and Its Counterfeits (Basic Books 1995) According to Kretzmann and Mcknight, the key to neighborhood regeneration, then, is to locate all of the available local assets, to begin connecting them with one another in ways that multiply their power and effectiveness, and to begin harnessing those local institutions that are not yet available for local development purposes
Global Agenda
Bibliography
Sassen, Saskia (ed.), Global Networks, Linked Cities (Routledge, New York 2002). Sassen unfolds how the gap between centre and periphery is characterized by a difference in culture of language, fashion and urban design. Although the pedantic culture of power creates a façade of cultural homogenization, the underlying social landscape is characterized by a diversity of partial and conflicting cultures.
UN-HABITAT, Financing urban shelter. Global report on human settlement 2005. The report examines the challenges of financing urban shelter development, focusing on the shelter needs of the poor and within the overall context of the United Nations Millennium Development target on slums.
Biographies
Dubai Ahmed Ebrahim Al-Ali is architect-entrepreneur in U.A.E. He graduated from the American University of Sharjah with a degree in Architecture and has since established his own firm – X-Architects, a versatile and innovative design studio. He has exhibited his designs in various international venues and events. Khalid Al Malik is the CEO of Tatweer. He joined the Dubai Development and Investment Authority (DDIA) in December 2003 as Operations Director. At the end of 2004, he launched Dubai Industrial City. He holds a Masters in Business Administration (MBA), with a specialization in managing e-commerce. Elie Domit is the creative Director for Middle East Arts, a Contemporary Fine Arts Gallery in Dubai. Rodney Fitch is chairman and CEO of Fitch Design Company, UK. He is Deputy Chairman of the London Institute. He has served as a member of the Council of the Royal College of Art; and has been a Trustee of the Victoria and Albert Museum and now Chairman of V&A Enterprises, the museum’s commercial business. Atelier Hapsitus is a multi-disciplinary group founded and led by Nadim Karam. Atelier Hapsitus is a think-tank focused on the creation of an original urban vocabulary. Based in Beirut, they have created large-scale temporary and permanent project for various cities. www.hapsitus.com Nadim Karam is an architect and artist; He holds a position as principal at the Atelier Hapsitus in Lebanon. George Katodrytis is an architect (R.I.B.A.) and currently Associate Professor of Architecture at the American University of Sharjah, UAE. His current work addresses issues of contemporary architecture, urbanism and cultural theory, with a focus on experimentation and writings on contemporary design methods and the ‘city’, especially as it is evolving in the 21st century. Mark Kirchner is Facilities Director and University Architect at the American University of Sharjah. Previously, he worked as consultant for MWK Design in Honolulu. Jerry Kolo is a visiting Professor in the School of Architecture and Design at the American University of Sharjah in the UAE for the 2006-07 academic year. His teachings and research comprise urban economic and land development, sustainable community development process, and planning theory. Kevin Mitchell is associate Dean for Academic Affairs and Associate Professor American University of Sharjah. Amer A. Moustafa teaches architecture, urban design, and planning at the American University of Sharjah. He is the Director of the Institute of Urban and Regional Planning and Design and holds an MS in Architecture from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and a Ph.D from the University of Southern California.
Fatih Rif ki holds a position as Professor in Architecture and Dean at the School of Architecture and Design of the American University of Sharjah. He holds professionals degrees in architecture from the American University of Beirut and the University of Oregon and a doctorate degree from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. SMAQ is a collaborative studio for architecture, urbanism and research. It was established by Sabine Müller and Andreas Quednau in New York in 1998. www.smaq.net X-Architects is an architectural practice based in Dubai. www.x-architects.com Gulf Sheikh Majed Al Sabah launched Villa Moda in 2002 in a glittering glass box in Kuwait’s industrial port district, setting the fashion world alight with the audacity of his vision. A branch was opened in Dubai in 2003, in Qatar in 2004, and in Damascus in 2006. Al Sabah is the nephew of H.H. Sheikh Jaber Al Ahmad Al Jaber Al Sabah, the late Emir of Kuwait. Rasem Badran is an architect trained in Germany. He was involved in many projects in West Germany such as Munich Olympic Stadium Complex. Badran’s current works are based on a methodological approach in defining architecture as a continuous dialogue between contemporary needs and historical inherited cultural values. Jatin Chopra is International Business Manager at the Development Planning & Architecture department of the Halcrow Group Limited, based in London. Izzat Dajani is Chief Executive of the Investment & Development Office, Government of Ras Al Khaimah. Having led many of the major economic initiatives in the Emirate, Dr. Dajani’s role evolved to become the de facto Economic Ambassador of Ras Al Khaimah. He is also Chairman of the Board of Governors of George Mason University, RAK Campus. Jeff de Lange is Deputy Managing Director of Gulf Consult. He has worked in the Gulf for 31 of the last 33 years in both the government sector – Kuwait Municipality from 1974, Kuwait’s Ministry of Public Works from 1983, and the Bahrain Government as Senior Projects Advisor from 1990 – and the private sector, Gulf Consult, since 1994. His current projects include the master plan studies for the Bubiyan Island and the redevelopment master plan for Ahmadi. John Elliott is Senior Vice President of WATG (Wimberly Allison Tong & Goo). As a highly creative planner and architect, he has continued his work in the Middle East with a new era of hospitality projects in Jordan, Egypt, and the Gulf as well as Europe and Africa. Elliott graduated from the AA School in London and is a member of RIBA. Rory Trevor Hopkins is Associate of WATG (Wimberly Allison Tong & Goo). He was the project architect for the Emirates Palace in Abu Dhabi. His recent projects also include Palm Crescent Resort in Dubai and the Presidential Palace in Abu Dhabi. He obtained National Diploma in Architecture, WITS, Johannesburg.
Yasser Mahgoub is Assistant Professor of Architecture at the Department of Architecture, College of Engineering and Petroleum of the Kuwait University. Mahgoub studied architecture in Egypt and the USA and worked as an architect on several projects in Egypt. Since then he has held several teaching positions at the universities of UAE and Kuwait. Carlos Ott graduated in architecture and urban design at Washington University in St. Louis. In 1983, he won the international design competition for the Bastille Opera House in Paris, which inaugurated in 1989. In 1997, he won the Jiang Su Opera House competition in China. Ott is currently working on prestigious projects in Brazil, Argentina, China, UAE, Uruguay, and Canada. Babji Rao is Vice President and Senior Architect at KEO International Consultants, an international architecture, urban planning and infrastructural consultancy based in Kuwait. Mohammed Sadiyyah is Director and Head of Design in the UAE offices of Khatib & Alami, Consolidated Engineering company based in Beirut. Waleed Ishaq Muhammed Saffy is General Manager of Al Areen Holding Company. He was instrumental in the development of several significant international projects including Bahrain International Airport and Al Areen development project. Saffy served as Director of Engineering and Maintenance in Civil Aviation Affairs in Bahrain’s Ministry of Transportation. John Smith is Resident Director of the Consulting Business group of the Halcrow Group Limited, based in Dubai. Majdoleen Till is Managing Director of Fitch Design Company, Qatar. World Nader Ardalan is a fellow at the Center for Middle Eastern Studies, Harvard University. Stefano Boeri is an architect and currently editor-in-chief of Abitare, an architectural magazine based in Italy. He is also director of the Multiplicity Foundation. Roger Cremers is a free lance photo journalist based in Amsterdam. CRIT / The Collective Research Initiatives Trust is a group of architects, scholars, technicians and artists. The work together in undertaking research, pedagogy and intervention on urban spaces and contemporary cultural practices in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region. The housing team consists of Rupali Gupte, Prasad Shetty, Aditya Potluri, and Aneerudha Paul. www.crit.org.in Ricardo Devesa is an architect, and co-editor of BASA, magazine of Canary Islands Architects Association, assistant professor at ESARQ and is developing his thesis at the UPC. In 2000 found the studio MRD arquitectura with Marina Romero. www.mrdarquitectura.com Emiliano Gandolfi is an architect and currently Curator of the Netherlands Architecture Institute in Rotterdam, where he developed several exhibitions and public events such as Newer Orleans, DynamiCity, Spectacular City and A Better World. He is contributor of several magazines, such as Artforum (New York) and L’espresso (Rome).
Bart Goldhoorn is an architect, graduated at Delft University. He is editor-in-chief and publisher of amongst others Project Russia. Jiang Jun, designer and critic, has been exploring the interrelationship between design phenomena and the urban dynamic. He founded Underline Office in Guangzhou in 2003, and has been the editor-in-chief of Urban China Magazine since the end of 2004. Tea Makipaa is a London based Finnish artist with a critical view on everyday society. Jeroen Mensink is an Amsterdam-based architect, who works in cooperation with ABT Delft. With ABT Delft he designed the Imizamo Yethu Township Museum in Hout Bay (Cape Town). He is co-authoring the Vinex Atlas. Markus Miessen is a spatial consultant, cultural producer, and writer teaching at the Architectural Association in London. He is also a doctoral candidate at Goldsmiths. www.studiomiessen.com, www.didsomeonesayparticipate. com Monica Nouwens is a photographer based in Los Angeles. The constant change brought about by migration into and within Los Angeles is Nouwens’s main focus. Her work often forms a photographic series. Bas Princen is a designer and photographer of public spaces based in Rotterdam. He studied at the Design Academy Eindhoven and the Berlage Institute in Rotterdam. He contributed to the research project ‘Shrinking Cities’ and the art project Atelier HSL. Martin Roemers is a photojournalist based in Delft. He won the 2nd prize at World Press Photo 2006 in the category portrait stories. In 2005 he published The Never-Ending War at QV Publishers. Ruby: Ilka Ruby studied Architecture at RWTH Aachen. She now works as an editor, writer and graphic designer. In 2001, Andreas and Ilka Ruby set up their joint agency as a production facility for both publishing architectural books, magazines, essays, curating exhibitions and consulting architects. Ursula Schulz-Dornburg is based in Dusseldorf and curated numerous exhibitionist and publication related to the themes of architecture, landscape and art. Rirkrit Tiravanija is often said to be the ‘founder’ of an art practice that became known as the ‘relational art’ in the 80s. Works of Tiravanija vary from video and painting to parties, meals and commercial shops. Torres Nadal: Jose M. Torres Nadal is an architect and Professor at the Arquitectura Politecnica Universidad de Alicante. His office Arquitecturas is based in Murcia, Spain. Urban-Think Tank (U-TT) architecture and urban design office is aligned with designing the ‘metropolitan social space’ and incorporating environmentally sustainable architecture in the developing world city. U-TT was founded in 1993 by architect Alfredo Brillembourg and, in 1998, architect Hubert Klumpner joined as co-director. www.u-tt.com
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Samia Rab is an architect from Pakistan currently residing in the United Arab Emirates. In her practice she has focused on architectural and urban conservation of historic districts in Cairo, Lahore and Sana’a. At present, she is
developing the first post-graduate program in Heritage Management in the United Arab Emirates.
April 23, 2007
We have been informed that the tallest tower is no longer part of our project. Suddenly, as if an act of God, the tallest tower has been struck from the development. Right in the flight path of the runways of the future airport next door, the tower would have been a hazardous feature. The symbolic charge of an accident, involving a plane and a highrise building would be too much to handle – even for this ‘mad part of the world’. – RdG
The Design Advisory Board is a community of leading personalities from different design-related fields who work with Moutamarat on the creation, international positioning and strategy-making of the International Design Initiative. Members of the Board act as global ambassadors of the Initiative and as a source of legitimacy for Moutamarat’s work on design. The Design Advisory Board convened in Dubai and other locations prior to the International Design Forum, due to take place in May 2007, in order to brainstorm on issues related to both the Initiative and the Forum. Throughout the year, Board members were in regular contact with Moutamarat to discuss: • • • •
Specific areas of the program where they will hold individual responsibilities Long-term initiatives in which they would like to be involved Publications to which they would like to contribute Participation in special events
Members • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
Rasem J. Badran, Architect, Founding Partner, Dar Al Omran, Jordan. Stefano Boeri, Editor-in-Chief, Domus, Italy. Tyler Brûlé, CEO, Winkreative, UK. Joan Busquets, Architect, Spain; Professor in Practice, Graduate School of Design, Harvard University, USA. Farhan Faraidooni, Chairman of the Board of Directors, Sama Dubai, UAE. Rodney Fitch, Chairman and CEO, Fitch, UK. Zaha Hadid, Architect, UK. George Katodrytis, Assistant Professor of Architecture, American University of Sharjah, UAE. Nadim Karam, Architect; Artist; Principal Atelier Hapsitus, Lebanon. Bernard Khoury, Architect, Lebanon. Rem Koolhaas, Architect and Founder of The Office for Metropolitan Architecture, Netherlands. Khalid Al-Malik, Chief Executive Officer, Tatweer, UAE. Khalid Al-Najjar, Architect, [dxb] Lab, UAE. Karim Rashid, Designer, USA. Sheikh Majed J. Hamoud Al-Sabah, Chairman, Villa Moda, Kuwait. Peter Zec, President, International Council of Societies of Industrial Design, Canada and President, Red Dot, Germany.
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:kXW_>WhlWhZ<ekdZWj_ed\ehC[Z_YWbH[i[WhY^ The DHFMR, in support of Dubai Healthcare City and the Harvard Medical School, will create leaders in medicine and the life sciences and advance scientific knowledge. It will: Generate and award resources to fund scientific investigation Guide the development of academic programs Foster collaborations between scientists the world over
A regional gateway for world-class healthcare, DHCC will cluster
Address regional medical care needs
world-class healthcare professionals and service providers in the heart of Dubai.
DHCC will provide state-of-the-art medical care in selected )
disciplines relevant to the region.
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DHCC is comprised of the Harvard Medical School Dubai
The HMSDC will address the regional
Center (HMSDC) Institute for Postgraduate Education and
need for professional development
Medical Research, the University Teaching Hospital (UTH)
across the full spectrum of medicine
and the Dubai Harvard Foundation for Medical Research
through Continuing Medical Education.
*
(DHFMR). Courses will provide a supply of
9[dj[h\eh>[Wbj^YWh[FbWdd_d] GkWb_jo A joint initiative between Harvard Medical International and DHCC, the CPQ will enhance health systems and professional development throughout the Gulf. The CPQ’s functions within DHCC include:
updated knowledge and practices HMSDC will develop an internationally recognized academic medical center Structured postgraduate medical education will broaden regional learning opportunities The HMSDC will position Dubai as a regional medical education leader
Establishing benchmarks for quality care Support mechanisms for monitoring standards Licensing healthcare professionals Clinical master planning for DHCC
Tatweer is one of the region’s most promising enterprises,
The world’s most ambitious tourism, leisure and
comprising eight market-leading companies and managing an
entertainment destination, and home to some of the
ambitious business development plan. Launched in December
world’s premier and unique attractions, Dubailand
2005, Tatweer consolidated a group of life-improving sectors
has been designed to appeal to tourist segments
including the following: energy, healthcare, tourism, entertainment,
across genders, age groups, world regions and activity
industry and knowledge.
preferences. Dubailand will build on the phenomenal growth of Dubai’s tourism over the past decade and its &
+
Its remarkable portfolio includes:
world-class infrastructure.
,
Dubailand comprises seven experience-based attractions:
The Tiger Woods Dubai
Theme Parks
Dubai Healthcare City
Culture & Art
Dubailand
Science & Planetariums
Bawadi
Sports & Sports Academies
Mizin
Wellbeing & Health
Global Village
Shopping & Retail
Moutamarat
Resorts & Hotels
Dubai Energy Dubai Industrial City Dubai Mercantile Exchange
Tatweer will continuously strive for world-class performance, implementing leadership development to drive and sustain business excellence, quality and high performance.
The first-ever Tiger Woods designed golf course and community
Spanning a stretch of over 10km, Bawadi will be the largest
will be created on 25.3 million square feet (574 acres) of land
hospitality and leisure development in the world, with:
within Dubailand. The Tiger Woods Dubai will feature 20 palaces, 75 mansions and 190 luxury villas offering the perfect blend
More than 35 themed hotels, each with its own theatre
of exclusivity and luxurious community living in contemporary
More than 100 simultaneous plays and shows at
Mediterranean architecture.
different venues More than 1,500 restaurants
'
( Clusters of homes will include a mix of 100,000 square-foot palaces, 50,000-square-foot mansions and 30,000-square-foot and 20,000-square-foot villas to provide each homeowner with a sense of community while maintaining privacy. The Tiger Woods Dubai will also include a club house, a golf academy and a boutique hotel.
-
Bawadi will set new standards in hospitality with its culturally
.
themed experiences. Take a big bite out of the Big Apple with America Hotels and Resorts’ Broadway acts and a shopping boulevard modeled on Manhattan’s 5th Avenue. Savor European gastronomic delights at Europa Hotels and Towers’ gourmet food market. And visit Wedding Village to make your special evening even more memorable. Experience warm Arabian hospitality first-hand at Land of Arabia Hotels and Resorts, with its traditional and cultural Arabian
Residents will also have access to an extensive trail
entertainment. And wander the wide-open spaces that are the
system, incorporating more than 8 kilometers of
hallmark of Arabian architecture in the day and night souq, Spice
walking and biking trails within the confines of the
Market and Date Gardens.
lushly vegetated environment.
Bawadi will also host the world’s largest hotel – Asia-Asia, an Asianthemed hotel. With all this and more, you can experience the world at a new standard.
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Mizin is a specialized real estate developer and facility management
Dubai Energy is building a diversified global energy investment
company.
portfolio and strengthening regional and international alliances.
Mizin’s vision is to be one of the leading regional real estate
Dubai Energy is concentrating on strategic opportunities
companies, by creating different projects with unique value &%
propostions.
that broaden trade relationships and develop Dubai and the &&
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UAE’s importance in global energy.
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During a short period of time, Mizin launched three of its leading projects: Liwan, Majan and Arjan.
Global Village is a unique international destination for tourism,
Dubai Industrial City is a productive and efficient environment for
entertainment, leisure and culture. Different cultures showcase
industry and related manufacturing sectors, logistics and ware-
their architecture, products, local outfits and cuisines in country
housing. Strategically located close to Jebel Ali Airport City, the
pavilions. It is probably the only place where you can buy an
Jebel Ali Port and trans-emirate highways such as Sheikh Zayed Road and Emirates Road, Dubai Industrial City provides easy and
intricately woven pashmina shawl, a Japanese bonsai tree and
convenient access to global transportation points via road, air and
fresh Canadian maple syrup. Parents can take in enriching
sea. But it is also a complete city, with a downtown area, hotels,
folkloric plays and entertaining cultural performances, while kids &'
enjoy the Entertainment Fun Fair Area with its exciting games and adventurous rides.
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Global Village has had a rich and successful history since its
entertainment venues and residential complexes for employees.
&.
In an effort to implement and continuously improve Quality, Health,
opening back in 1996, now hosting more than 40 countries.
Safety and Environmental performance standards (QHSE), DIC has launched MAQAYEES, Dubai Centre for Industrial Standards. Dubai Quality Mark will be the industrial QHSE excellence standard that organizations will comply with.
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Managing conferences and exhibitions that bring the latest trends
Aiming to become the premier energy and commodity futures
in knowledge to the Arab world, Moutamarat is a joint venture
exchange in the Middle East, Dubai Mercantile Exchange (DME) is
between Tatweer and the Saudi Research and Publishing Company
a 50/50 joint venture between the New York Mercantile Exchange
(SRPC).
Inc. (NYMEX), and Tatweer, a member of Dubai Holding.
Moutamarat has successfully organized and expanded the reach of existing prestigious events such as the Arab
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DME will bridge the gap between trading hours in London and the Far East and will be a fully electronic exchange.
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Strategy Forum 2006 and the Annual Meeting of the Young Arab Leaders in 2005.
DME is located within the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC), a free zone designed to promote financial services within the UAE. DME will be regulated by the Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA), a world-class, independent regulator.
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Al Manakh is produced as a special issue of Volume on the occasion of the International Design Forum Dubai, May 27-29, 2007 organized by Moutamarat
VOLUME / Al Manakh is a project by ARCHIS + AMO + C-Lab + Moutamarat + …
VOLUME / Al Manakh is published by Stichting Archis, The Netherlands and printed by Spectrum Digital Print Solutions, Dubai
Editors Ole Bouman, Mitra Khoubrou, Rem Koolhaas Managing editor Arjen Oosterman Materialized by Irma Boom, Natasha Chandani, Sonja Haller
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Moutamarat with Mitra Khoubrou, Daniel Camara, Salem K. Al Qassimi – with a contribution of George Katodrytis (American University of Sharjah)
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ARCHIS with Ole Bouman, Lilet Breddels, Joos van den Dool, Christian Ernsten, Edwin Gardner, Bart Goldhoorn, Niloufar Tajeri, Thomas Daniell, Markus Miessen, Kai Vöckler
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AMO with Rem Koolhaas, Reinier de Graaf, Natalie Al Shami, Jason Atkins, Tomek Bartczak, Lily Jencks, Sara Kassa, Sara Martin, Kayoko Ota, Daniel Rabin, Todd Reisz, Guillaume Yersin C-Lab with Mark Wigley, Jeffrey Inaba, Benedict Clouette AMO would like to especially thank Aga Khan Foundation, Dr. Khaled Adham, Ameena Ahmadi, Sheikh Majed Al Sabah, John and Jill Harris, Mark Harris, Arata Isozaki, Kuwait University Department of Architecture, Jeff de Lange, Dr. Yasser Mahgoub, Jasem Nadoum, Carlos Ott, RAK National Museum, Abeer Seikaly, Anna Shefelbine, Faiysal Tabbara AMO/OMA team Hausatu Abdul-Karim, Anna Baltschun, Andrea Bertassi, Katrin Betschinger, Ezra Block, Fernando Donís, Adam Frampton, Joyce Hsiang, Beth Hughes, Ravi Kamisetti, Julie Kaufman, Daniel Klos, Jan Knikker, Barend Koolhaas, Moira Lascelles, Miho Mazereeuw, Bimal Mendis, Cristina Murphy, Banah Mustafa, Stephan Petermann, Marieke Rietbergen, Kengo Skorick
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This VOLUME has been made possible with the support of Mondrian Foundation Amsterdam and Tatweer, Dubai ISSN 1574-9401, ISBN 978-90-77966-12-9 Copyright 2007, Stichting Archis All rights related to Gulf Survey: AMO/OMA General distribution Idea Books, Nieuwe Herengracht 11, 1011 HR Amsterdam, The Netherlands, T +31 (0)20 622 6154 F +31 (0)20 620 9299,
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