A year ago Bernardo Fort-Brescia, a renowned architect and founder of the firm Arquitectonica, was getting exasperated. No matter what his team came up with, many of his clients in the Gulf wanted something bigger and brasher.
"We have a reputation for being a very avant-garde, creative firm," he says. "But they would tell us 'that's not enough, we want more'. Everyone wanted to stand out in the market and budget was never an issue."
If artists' renderings were to be a guide to the future of the world's fastest growing cities, the residents of places such as Dubai in the year 2020 would work in ultra-modern towers so high it would be hard to see the ground. They would live in all-glass buildings with amorphous shapes that seem physically impossible and spend their leisure time travelling between themed master developments the size of small cities.
A bridge might also have a hotel suspended over it. But in the aftermath of the global financial crisis, the philosophy of architectural fantasy has changed sharply.
Mr Fort-Brescia, whose firm designed the Sun and Sky towers on Reem Island and the Al Manhal project for downtown Abu Dhabi, says he now finds "a certain resistance to extravagance" from his customers, even those with deep pockets.
"The era of shock architecture is over," he says. "The propositions today have to be responsible. There is a consciousness of people not wanting to do something that is not sustainable and economically responsible."
The state of the economy has impact on everything, from the life of a construction labourer to fashion and who is elected to political office. But few things have such an enduring physical presence as the buildings we erect on the skyline.
In New York, the era of skyscrapers in the early to mid-20th century came alongside an economic boom and speculative frenzy. The race came to a halt with the Great Depression, but not without leaving three of the city's tallest buildings as memento: 40 Wall Tower in 1929, the Chrysler Building in 1930 and the Empire State Building in 1931.
Likewise, the Burj Dubai will be seen as the reflection of an era of exuberance in the Gulf, architects say. Whatever its final height, it is one of the most imposing and grand structures in the world today. Plans for half a dozen tall buildings in the Middle East, including Nakheel's 1.4km skyscraper and the 600m Meraas Tower, have been put on the back burner.
In the years ahead, architects and planners will move away from the idea of a city as "an enormous megastructure place that overwhelms its citizens", says George Katodrytis, an architect and professor at the American University of Sharjah, referring to futuristic films such as Metropolis and Blade Runner that evoke dystopian, machine-like worlds. "The whole notion of architectural fantasy and the city of the future is now being reconsidered," he says. "There will be more looking inward to the spaces around buildings and the street participation. The bigness is going to give way to closeness and density and some kind of social cohesion. The task now is to fill the gaps that the first wave of development has left behind."
Massive infrastructure projects such as the Dubai Metro will emerge into the spotlight as the most meaningful initiatives - the Metro because it connects the city neighbourhoods and adds another dimension to daily life, he says. There will be more focus on parks and "greening" empty areas, as well as affordable housing, which will allow more low and middle-income people to make their homes in Dubai.
"It's going to be a new kind of urbanism here," Mr Katodrytis says. "Dubai has to become a normal city in a way. The new projects will be of a smaller scale and with much more careful planning. We'll see them not popping out of the desert to create another skyline or oasis. It's more about intensifying what is already there, adding more activities and spaces other than shopping malls."
Architects have begun shifting their focus towards public buildings such as schools, train stations and hospitals. In down times, governments tend to increase their spending to bolster the economy. Dubai and Abu Dhabi have committed to spend tens, if not hundreds, of billions of dirhams over the next decades to develop the UAE into a world-class place to live, do business and visit.
"We are focusing on social architecture," says David Ross, the design director at Keppie Design in Scotland. "If you look back through history at times of recession, any investment is in the realm of infrastructure." Keppie is among a small group of architecture companies bidding for a contract to design schools for the Abu Dhabi Education Council. In Libya, the company is designing eight university campuses as "part of a long-term programme of regeneration" in that country.
The commercially driven projects are likely to suffer more from the effects of the downturn than any other type of property development, he says. "With a hospital or a school, costs don't matter as much because there is a perceived standard that needs to be reached."
Architecture firms, like construction contractors and other companies that rely on developers for business, are also spreading out in the region to guarantee a more steady stream of income.
FXFowle, a firm based in New York, recently secured some large contracts to build middle-income housing in Riyadh, says Steven Miller, the managing director of the Dubai office.
"Now that property values are getting to where they should be, middle-income
housing is a great business model," he says, adding that many of his old clients have "gone to sleep". "We've spent most of our time looking for fresh market places," Mr Miller says. But the most important thing, Mr Fort-Brescia says, is to get rid of the "ego aspect of architecture" in proposals.
"There were really illogical things being proposed out there, with a lot of ego and intent to impress," he says. "But when you look at the landscape of the region today, those are the ones that haven't been built. It's the simpler, cleaner, logical buildings that are actually going to make it."
bhope@thenational.ae
Game Changer
Director: Shankar
Stars: Ram Charan, Kiara Advani, Anjali, S J Suryah, Jayaram
Rating: 2/5
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Living in...
This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.
Dubai Bling season three
Cast: Loujain Adada, Zeina Khoury, Farhana Bodi, Ebraheem Al Samadi, Mona Kattan, and couples Safa & Fahad Siddiqui and DJ Bliss & Danya Mohammed
Rating: 1/5
SPEC%20SHEET%3A%20SAMSUNG%20GALAXY%20Z%20FLIP%204
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The specs: 2018 Nissan 370Z Nismo
The specs: 2018 Nissan 370Z Nismo
Price, base / as tested: Dh182,178
Engine: 3.7-litre V6
Power: 350hp @ 7,400rpm
Torque: 374Nm @ 5,200rpm
Transmission: Seven-speed automatic
Fuel consumption, combined: 10.5L / 100km
Qosty Byogaani
Starring: Hani Razmzi, Maya Nasir and Hassan Hosny
Four stars
Brief scoreline:
Liverpool 2
Mane 51', Salah 53'
Chelsea 0
Man of the Match: Mohamed Salah (Liverpool)
Suggested picnic spots
Abu Dhabi
Umm Al Emarat Park
Yas Gateway Park
Delma Park
Al Bateen beach
Saadiyaat beach
The Corniche
Zayed Sports City
Dubai
Kite Beach
Zabeel Park
Al Nahda Pond Park
Mushrif Park
Safa Park
Al Mamzar Beach Park
Al Qudrah Lakes
How to protect yourself when air quality drops
Install an air filter in your home.
Close your windows and turn on the AC.
Shower or bath after being outside.
Wear a face mask.
Stay indoors when conditions are particularly poor.
If driving, turn your engine off when stationary.
Sholto Byrnes on Myanmar politics
Titanium Escrow profile
Started: December 2016
Founder: Ibrahim Kamalmaz
Based: UAE
Sector: Finance / legal
Size: 3 employees, pre-revenue
Stage: Early stage
Investors: Founder's friends and Family
Recent winners
2002 Giselle Khoury (Colombia)
2004 Nathalie Nasralla (France)
2005 Catherine Abboud (Oceania)
2007 Grace Bijjani (Mexico)
2008 Carina El-Keddissi (Brazil)
2009 Sara Mansour (Brazil)
2010 Daniella Rahme (Australia)
2011 Maria Farah (Canada)
2012 Cynthia Moukarzel (Kuwait)
2013 Layla Yarak (Australia)
2014 Lia Saad (UAE)
2015 Cynthia Farah (Australia)
2016 Yosmely Massaad (Venezuela)
2017 Dima Safi (Ivory Coast)
2018 Rachel Younan (Australia)
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The years Ramadan fell in May
The biog:
From: Wimbledon, London, UK
Education: Medical doctor
Hobbies: Travelling, meeting new people and cultures
Favourite animals: All of them
THREE
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Emergency
Director: Kangana Ranaut
Stars: Kangana Ranaut, Anupam Kher, Shreyas Talpade, Milind Soman, Mahima Chaudhry
Rating: 2/5
The specs
AT4 Ultimate, as tested
Engine: 6.2-litre V8
Power: 420hp
Torque: 623Nm
Transmission: 10-speed automatic
Price: From Dh330,800 (Elevation: Dh236,400; AT4: Dh286,800; Denali: Dh345,800)
On sale: Now
The specs: Macan Turbo
Engine: Dual synchronous electric motors
Power: 639hp
Torque: 1,130Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Touring range: 591km
Price: From Dh412,500
On sale: Deliveries start in October
The specs
Engine: Four electric motors, one at each wheel
Power: 579hp
Torque: 859Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Price: From Dh825,900
On sale: Now
THE BIO: Martin Van Almsick
Hometown: Cologne, Germany
Family: Wife Hanan Ahmed and their three children, Marrah (23), Tibijan (19), Amon (13)
Favourite dessert: Umm Ali with dark camel milk chocolate flakes
Favourite hobby: Football
Breakfast routine: a tall glass of camel milk
COMPANY PROFILE
Founders: Alhaan Ahmed, Alyina Ahmed and Maximo Tettamanzi
Total funding: Self funded
Living in...
This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.
The specs
Engine: Direct injection 4-cylinder 1.4-litre
Power: 150hp
Torque: 250Nm
Price: From Dh139,000
On sale: Now
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
How to avoid crypto fraud
- Use unique usernames and passwords while enabling multi-factor authentication.
- Use an offline private key, a physical device that requires manual activation, whenever you access your wallet.
- Avoid suspicious social media ads promoting fraudulent schemes.
- Only invest in crypto projects that you fully understand.
- Critically assess whether a project’s promises or returns seem too good to be true.
- Only use reputable platforms that have a track record of strong regulatory compliance.
- Store funds in hardware wallets as opposed to online exchanges.
Another way to earn air miles
In addition to the Emirates and Etihad programmes, there is the Air Miles Middle East card, which offers members the ability to choose any airline, has no black-out dates and no restrictions on seat availability. Air Miles is linked up to HSBC credit cards and can also be earned through retail partners such as Spinneys, Sharaf DG and The Toy Store.
An Emirates Dubai-London round-trip ticket costs 180,000 miles on the Air Miles website. But customers earn these ‘miles’ at a much faster rate than airline miles. Adidas offers two air miles per Dh1 spent. Air Miles has partnerships with websites as well, so booking.com and agoda.com offer three miles per Dh1 spent.
“If you use your HSBC credit card when shopping at our partners, you are able to earn Air Miles twice which will mean you can get that flight reward faster and for less spend,” says Paul Lacey, the managing director for Europe, Middle East and India for Aimia, which owns and operates Air Miles Middle East.
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Gran Gala del Calcio 2019 winners
Best Player: Cristiano Ronaldo (Juventus)
Best Coach: Gian Piero Gasperini (Atalanta)
Best Referee: Gianluca Rocchi
Best Goal: Fabio Quagliarella (Sampdoria vs Napoli)
Best Team: Atalanta
Best XI: Samir Handanovic (Inter); Aleksandar Kolarov (Roma), Giorgio Chiellini (Juventus), Kalidou Koulibaly (Napoli), Joao Cancelo (Juventus*); Miralem Pjanic (Juventus), Josip Ilicic (Atalanta), Nicolo Barella (Cagliari*); Fabio Quagliarella (Sampdoria), Cristiano Ronaldo (Juventus), Duvan Zapata (Atalanta)
Serie B Best Young Player: Sandro Tonali (Brescia)
Best Women’s Goal: Thaisa (Milan vs Juventus)
Best Women’s Player: Manuela Giugliano (Milan)
Best Women’s XI: Laura Giuliani (Milan); Alia Guagni (Fiorentina), Sara Gama (Juventus), Cecilia Salvai (Juventus), Elisa Bartoli (Roma); Aurora Galli (Juventus), Manuela Giugliano (Roma), Valentina Cernoia (Juventus); Valentina Giacinti (Milan), Ilaria Mauro (Fiorentina), Barbara Bonansea (Juventus)
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Almnssa
Started: August 2020
Founder: Areej Selmi
Based: Gaza
Sectors: Internet, e-commerce
Investments: Grants/private funding
