Burj Al Maydan

In Architecture

The Burj Al Maydan tower wrestles with the issues of how to make an iconic building within a city of icons, how to create a connective public space in a city inured to its surroundings, and how to build sustainably in a city so indifferent to the environmental crisis. But the struggle may be in vain; how can architecture and urbanism attempt to address any of these concerns in a city with no soul?

Posted: Apr 2nd, 2009 / Last Edited: Jun 21st, 2011 Print

Description

Context

In Dubai, a city propelling unprecedented urban growth and continually re-imagining its future, our project redefines the convention of the monolithic tower, and envisions a new scale of cosmopolitan public space for Dubai. Situated just west of the new Downtown Dubai development, this innovative urban environment will forge connections between the site and the city, and become an iconic expression of the optimistic vision behind the Business Bay development.

A Building that Makes Public Space

The building goes beyond the convention of the tower as an object—and instead creates the largest, most dynamic public space in Dubai. The 14,500 square meter public plaza, encircled by the built forms, provides an exterior, distinctly urban venue for leisure and cultural events, in a grand space easily accessible to the public by road, water, and foot. Our scheme develops cosmopolitan intensity and an urban core for Dubai. As such, it is the perfect complement to the nearby Burj Dubai, the tallest building in the world.

Form & Program

The form of the building morphs to accommodate the unique site and programmatic requirements. Our design carves a typically singular tower into two major elements: a slender, rectilinear, vertical bar, which appears transparent and crystalline; and a curvilinear, non-vertical building, which appears solid and metallic. The two buildings are structurally, as well as conceptually, interdependent; the curvilinear structure provides lateral stability for the tall, slender tower, while the tower supports the structural eccentricity of the curvilinear building.
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Context

In Dubai, a city propelling unprecedented urban growth and continually re-imagining its future, our project redefines the convention of the monolithic tower, and envisions a new scale of cosmopolitan public space for Dubai. Situated just west of the new Downtown Dubai development, this innovative urban environment will forge connections between the site and the city, and become an iconic expression of the optimistic vision behind the Business Bay development.

A Building that Makes Public Space

The building goes beyond the convention of the tower as an object—and instead creates the largest, most dynamic public space in Dubai. The 14,500 square meter public plaza, encircled by the built forms, provides an exterior, distinctly urban venue for leisure and cultural events, in a grand space easily accessible to the public by road, water, and foot. Our scheme develops cosmopolitan intensity and an urban core for Dubai. As such, it is the perfect complement to the nearby Burj Dubai, the tallest building in the world.

Form & Program

The form of the building morphs to accommodate the unique site and programmatic requirements. Our design carves a typically singular tower into two major elements: a slender, rectilinear, vertical bar, which appears transparent and crystalline; and a curvilinear, non-vertical building, which appears solid and metallic. The two buildings are structurally, as well as conceptually, interdependent; the curvilinear structure provides lateral stability for the tall, slender tower, while the tower supports the structural eccentricity of the curvilinear building.

This integrated scheme optimizes views and spatial quality for each element of the mixed-use program. At just two-units wide, the tower bar endows every residential and hotel unit with open panoramic views of the creek surrounding city. The tower is punctured by elevated landscapes--public sky gardens and private terraces--protected from the harsh elements by screens, plantings, and long vertical glass fins. The curvilinear building evokes a monumental arch, with a multi-layered façade clad in a contemporary abstraction of mashrabiya, a perforated metal lattice that modulates the quality of light and improves interior comfort.

Connections & Flows

At the key points of connection between the structures, where the curvilinear building’s arms meet the tower, circulation flows seamlessly. The lower arm ties the retail and office program to the street and water level, while the upper, arched arm extends to meet the residential/hotel tower at 39 stories above ground.

Our scheme refines the site plan to maximize critical connections to the waterfront and the adjacent Cultural Center plots, and orients the buildings on the site to optimize views from the city. The plan pulls the creek through the site, brings the building to the waterfront, and eliminates the ring road as a barrier to pedestrian circulation.

The circulation sequences are choreographed to intensify the experience of approach and arrival. From the water, the visitor passes through the monumental gateway of the curvilinear structure’s arch, and from the street, cars retain a direct view of the tower until descending into the underground parking. From both water and street, the visitor emerges into the center of the vast oculus-plaza, the largest urban public space in Dubai.
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