Multi-purpose Arena by 3XN

Danish architect’s design of a powerful whirlwind is aimed to achieve LEED platinum

3xn_arena_03a

All images and information courtesy of 3XN; © by 3XN
3XN design a multipurpose arena that blends functionality, flexibility and sustainability in one iconic structure

The centrifugal power of the whirlwind is interpreted into this dynamic and vibrant Arena design, reflecting the energy and growth of the Middle East region. The metaphoric Arena generates a strong architectural and visionary icon defined by the idea of the whirlwind. The ‘jet streams’ from the whirlwind form integrated shaded corridors, which meet and extend the lines of the area and thereby create a close connecting between the building and its surroundings.

→click here for more

Beirut Terraces designed by Herzog & de Meuron

A vertically layered building that enables flexible living between in- and outside

347

All images and information courtesy of Herzog & de Meuron; © by Herzog & de Meuron
Layers of vegetation, utilization of thermal mass and natural light enhance the quality of living while lending to the building’s sustainability.

Basel-based Architects Herzog & de Meuron sent us some information on their latest project in the Middle East, the Beirut Terraces - a residential tower in the Lebanese capital. We share it whith you here on desMena:

Beirut Terraces

The city of Beirut finds itself at the heart of the developing Middle East. As a cosmopolitan city throughout its existence, it always figured as a cultural hub of the region and - culturally as well as geographically - functioned as a link between Europe and the Middle East. By consequence Beirut’s urban history could hardly be more diverse; remains of Phoenician, Roman, Arab, Mamluk, Ottoman and colonial rule have shaped the city and its buildings, just as its past and eventful present have left their marks.

→click here for more

Gemayze Residential by Paul Kaloustian

Residential building designed by Beirut based Architect Paul Kaloustian

paul_kaloustian_gemayze_50a

All images and information by Paul Kaloustian Architects, Beirut; © by Paul Kaloustian

Paul Kaloustian Architects have provided us with some information about their latest Beirut project, which creates shaded private “ïn-between” spaces for future residents using fabric skin that allows muted transparency and a continuously changing appearence of the building. We share it with you here on desMena:

→click here for more

Marina + Beach Towers by OAD

Elegance derived from simplicity designed by Oppenheim Architecture + Design

oad_marina_beach_06a

All images and information courtesy of Oppenheim Architecture + Design; © by  Oppenheim Architecture + Design
OAD’s design for a sustainable mixed-use tower project in the U.A.E.

Miami based Architects OAD have designed the Marina + Beach Towers, a mixed use waterfront development that utilizes green building technology to create a livable elegant destination.

→click here for more

Densité by Driss Ouadahi

Hosfelt Gallery New York  to show paintings by Algerian artist Driss Ouadahi this autumn

driss_ouadahi_01

Red On White, 2010, oil on linen, 75 x 94.5 inches
All images and information courtesy of Hosfelt Gallery, New York and San Francisco © by Hosfelt Gallery
The Hosfelt Gallery N.Y. will show the work of Driss Ouadahi an Algerian artist and architect whose paintings adress Modern Architecure’s failed promiss to improve the human condition.

Before immigrating to Europe and studying at the Kunstakademie in Düsseldorf, Algerian Driss Ouadahi studied architecture. His paintings of the ubiquitous high-rise, the legacy of Modern Architecture’s failed promise to improve the human condition, are renderings of impenetrable boundaries of steel, glass and concrete.

→click here for more

Torre Alger XXI by Saraiva+Associados

Office tower concept by Portuguese architects Saraiva+Associados

saraiva_associados_alger-xxi_01

All images and information courtesy of Saraiva+Associados ; images © by 3D Helps + Saraiva+Associados

Portuguese architects Saraiva+Associados design the Torre Alger XXI - an office tower in Algiers

Saraiva + Associados have sent us images of their design of an iconic office tower in Algiers that creates a “positive rupture” with its differentiated and striking image. →click here for more

Museum of Islamic Art, Doha by I. M. Pei

The Museum of Islamic Art, a new cultural icon for the Gulf region

pei_mia_02

Angular structural supports of the Museum of Islamic Art complement the faceted dome above
© by Museum of Islamic Art, Doha
All images and information provided by Ruder Finn - Images courtesy of Museum of Islamic Art ; Plans courtesy of Pei Partnership Architects

Pei Partnership Architects and Ruder Finn Communications have provided us with images and plans of Doha’s iconic MIA - we share it with you on desMena.

MIA - Qatar’s iconic landmark building designed by NY Architects Pei Partnership

Designed by Pritzker Prize-winning architect I.M. Pei, the 376,740-square-foot Museum of Islamic Art in Doha Bay houses a collection of international masterpieces in galleries encircling a soaring, five-storey-high domed atrium. The Museum, an architectural icon 60m (195ft) off Doha’s Corniche, rises from the sea and is connected to shore by two pedestrian bridges and a vehicular bridge. A C-shaped peninsula and park area on the shoreline behind the Museum offer shelter and a picturesque backdrop.
The Museum is composed of a five-storey Main Building and a two-storey Education Wing, which are connected across a central courtyard. The Main Building’s angular volumes step back progressively as they rise around a 50-m-high (164ft) central domed atrium. The dome is concealed from outside view by the walls of a central tower. A sheet of glass rises to a height of 45m (148ft) on the north side of the Museum offering views of the Gulf and West Bay area of Doha from all five floors of the atrium. Ceilings are constructed of intricate cast-in place architectural concrete coffered domes, finished with individual molds. At the top of the atrium is the circular oculus of a stainless steel dome, which captures facets of patterned light. The form of the dome changes as the structure descends, so its perimeter becomes an octagon and then a square, which in turn is transformed into four triangular column supports.
→click here for more

H Chalet in Faqra, Lebanon by Nabil Gholam Architects

Lebanese architects Nabil Gholam blend a terrace house into the stunning landscape at Faqra

nabil_gholam_h_chalet_05

All information and images courtesy of Nabil Gholam Architects; images by Nabil Gholam Architects and ateliers U and V-Pictures; © by Nabil Gholam Architects

Nabil Gholam Architects designed the H Chalet - a mountain retreat in Faqra. Read how the landscape and ancient sites of Faqra inspired their design here on desMena:

→click here for more

The 7th of October University at Bani Walid, Libya designed by RMJM

A planning theme inspired by traditional local architecture leading to a compact sustainable design driven by issues of sustainability.

bani_walid_00.jpg

All images and information courtesy of RMJM; © by RMJM

In 2008, RMJM’s Global Education Studio in Princeton became the first U.S. architecture firm to receive a commission in Libya since the United States normalized relations with the North African nation in 2006. The firm has designed two award-winning university campuses in Libya - in Bani Walid and in Zliten.

Designed by the firm’s Global Education studio in Princeton, the 7th of October University will serve more than 3,000 students. Construction of the 50-hectacre campus containing 110,000 square meters is expected to begin in December 2009 and be completed in December 2011.

Located about three hours south of the capital of Tripoli, the new university campus will accommodate 3,250 students from surrounding communities and provide academic programs in language, business, education and medical technology.
In addition to academic facilities, the campus will include a student center, library, mosque, athletic facilities and housing for faculty.

→click here for more

Issam Fares Institute, Beirut by Office dA

A building for the School of Public Policy and International Affairs designed by the Boston architects

officeda_issam_fares_00

images and information courtesy of office dA; © by office dA
Towards an integrated philosophy

For an Institution whose mission is to inform and enrich debates on public policy, international affairs, public health, agriculture, urban planning, and energy policy (among other more traditional fields), it is appropriate to conceive of a building whose performance, identity, and ethos emerges from the very philosophy for which it will serve as home. Our proposal is designed as an integrated building, bringing together its various features into an organic synthesis, much in the same way a policy on energy may be at once linked to planning, the environment, as well as public health. The techniques employed in the Issam Fares Institute offer new and inventive ways of integrating architecture into the educational environment of the American University of Beirut, using its own platform and philosophy as the basis for contributing to the physical well-being of the campus.

→click here for more