The middle eastern montage
An overview of projects, products and exclusive articles about the middle eastern montage
Project • By Skidmore, Owings & Merrill SOM • Offices
Al Hamra Tower
Reaching a height of 412 meters, this iconic, award-winning skyscraper is the tallest building in Kuwait. The sculptural office tower anchors a commercial complex comprising offices, a health club, and a high-end shopping mall. Al Hamra was named one of the best inventions of 2011 by TIME magazine.
A desire to maximize views of the Arabian Gulf while minimizing solar heat gain inspired the building’s asymmetrical form, which calls to mind the traditional robes worn by Kuwaitis. The purity of its form, expressed by a simple operation of removal, makes the tower a timeless, elegant marker in the heart of Kuwait City. A quarter of each floor plate is chiseled out of the south side, shifting from west to east over the height of the building.... More
Project • By HMWhite • Commercial Landscape
King Abdullah Financial District Conference Center
One of the five programmed “Attractor Parcels” within Henning Larsen’s urban plan for KAFD features the Financial District’s international conference center. HM White has assembled highly acclaimed horticultural and garden wall assembly specialists to assist in developing a structural landscape for SOM’s iconic building design. Extensive collaborative research has conceived precedent setting modular vegetated roof and wall growing systems that are embedded within the building’s framework and skin. HM White has developed a hypertufa substrate growing medium to work across the building’s varied planar interior and exterior surfaces to evoke familiar and revered regional wadi and cliff landscapes and their growing conditions. The revolutionary... More
Project • By Make Architects • Sports Centres
King Abdullah Sports City Recreation
This world-class recreation centre is one of the key venues in the 1,000 hectare King Abdullah Sports City development and will be a place where young people from Saudi Arabia can participate in a wide variety of sports and leisure activities in a fun, exciting and dynamic environment.
Designed to the highest international standards, the facilities are publicly accessible and aim to encourage engagement in active lifestyles so that the younger generation become more involved in sport and live healthier lives. In addition, the centre offers state-of-the-art facilities for event and competition scenarios, and provides an opportunity for Saudi Arabia to host major international sporting events and promote an image of sporting excellence.... More
Project • By Make Architects • Hospitals
Kurdistan Children Hospital
Make have been commissioned to build the first children’s hospital in Kurdistan, which will provide the highest standard of clinical care in Iraq and act as a state-of-the-art referral hospital for the region. The proposed scheme, located in the capital city of Erbil, aims to establish a means of health care intervention which will reduce child fatalities.
The hospital is located on the north-east edge of Erbil. The proposals make use of the undulating site by partially burying the service basement, separating out the various entrances and facilitating direct escape from the first floors. The hospital, which looks out across a rural landscape which will be enhanced with therapeutic gardens and parklands, is designed in a radial plan aro... More
Project • By Zaha Hadid Architects • Research Facilities
King Abdullah Petroleum Studie and Research Centre
Our architectural vision and design for the King Abdullah Petroleum Studies and Research Center (KAPSARC) acknowledges its technical and environmental objectives, but simultaneously endeavors to move beyond functional limitations to create a living, organic structure.
The center is inherently forward-looking; its architecture also looks to the future, embracing a formal language capable of continual expansions or transformation with no compromise in visual integrity.
The center emerges from the desert landscape as a cellular structure of crystalline forms, shifting and evolving in response to environmental conditions and functional requirements. Consistent organizational, spatial strategies drive an adaptive approach, with each componen... More
Project • By Atelier Thomas Pucher • Offices
The Garden and the Tower – The new OIC Headquarter
09、The description of the project:
The Organization of the Islamic Conference is an organization of worldwide authority, characterised by a modern understanding of the roots of the glorious Islamic culture and tradition.
The new headquarter shall be a symbol of this holistic understanding of tradition, culture and modernisation. It shall be expressed in a clear visible form that can be understood and recognized by everyone – A global sign and a symbol of light for the whole world.
The project is composed in two parts. The first is a vertical tower, which houses the office section and provides each workspace with an awe-inspiring view; the second is a landscape like garden, which houses the conference area, the entrances and huge green... More
Project • By Henning Larsen • Consulates
The Prince Naif Centre for Health Science Research
The Prince Naif Centre for Health Science Research is a new building designed for the largest university in Saudi Arabia, King Saud University, situated in the capital of Riyadh. The new Centre of 23,800 m2 comprises world-class research facilities, including facilities for research in cancer, molecular biology, genetics, infectious diseases and several other medical disciplines.
Inspired by a monolith, the building is placed on a podium, which roots the building in the urban, local context. The central Science Square is the heart of the building and features common functions such as lobby, café, library and lecture hall. Visual and physical contact connects the laboratories to the workstations on the open balconies. Thus, the design supp... More
Project • By Henning Larsen • Masterplans
King Abdullah
Henning Larsen Architects masterplan unites the Arabian urban traditions with the modern metropolis giving the Saudi capital Riyadh a public open space and a characteristic skyline with a new outstanding landmark.
Henning Larsen Architects has devised a set of guidelines for sustainability.
The heart of the district is a transformation of the Arabian wadi Hanifa transversing the area. The district will become an active and attractive urban space comprising financial institutions, residential and recreational areas, shops, restaurants, hotels, conference and sports facilities.
The district will feature something as unique as a Saudi Arabian monorail connecting the various areas of the district. All buildings and monorail stations... More
Project • By Henning Larsen • Offices
Gem Building
The Gem Building is a unique small-scale landmark surrounded by large buildings in King Abdullah Financial District. The size of the building is adapted to human scale and its crystalline form and faceted facades enhance its quality as a shining beacon.
The Gem has a mixed-use programme: three separate buildings include a residential block, an office block and a multi-purpose podium with a terrace overlooking the garden - this is linked to the green pedestrian thoroughfare of the district.
The cluster of gems creates spaces for fluid, flexible circulation around and through the buildings. As a small-scale icon, the form and intimate scale of the building provide a unique destination and meeting place; the facades enhance the express... More
Project • By Henning Larsen • Universities
Female Branch of Prince
The Female Branch of Prince Naif Centre for Health Science Research is an extension to King Saud University, the most prestigious university in Saudi-Arabia. Located in the centre of Riyadh, the Prince Naif Centre features a series of teaching laboratories, multi-functional research facilities, lecture halls and seminar spaces for students and employees.
The building is a modern interpretation of Islamic architecture and creates a dynamic, intellectural atmosphere reflecting the leading role of the Centre in medical research and education. Students and researchers from all over the world meet and exchange ideas and knowledge in an open, stimulating learning environment.
With its crystal structure and vibrant facade, the building con... More
Project • By Henning Larsen • Housing
Institute of Diplomatic Studies
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia will expand with a new building that is to house facilities for the Institute of Diplomatic Studies and Consular Affairs Department.
The new building comprises among others a large auditorium, lecture halls, library, classrooms, a large hall for visa applicants and office space. The building accommodates a number of shared facilities e.g. a cafeteria and prayer rooms.
The site is unique, oriented towards the big lush park space with the two monuments: Nasseriyah Gate and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The new building will correspond and contribute positively with its well-defined architecture to the area.
Elaborated façades will make the large building vary vividly... More
Project • By HOK • Research Facilities
King Abdullah University of Science and Technology
King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) is a new international, graduate-level research university established to drive innovation in science and technology and to support world-class research in areas such as energy and the environment.
KAUST's new campus is the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia's first LEED certified project and the world's largest LEED Platinum project.
The design team responded to a set of extraordinary challenges. In the context of an extremely hot, humid climate, they were asked to create a low-energy, highly sustainable project. The team was challenged to create a contemporary work of architecture that would resonate with the global scientific community while being firmly rooted in local Saudi cultu... More