Aidia Studio's low-rise fortress wins Barjeel Museum For Modern Arab Art design competition
Aidia Studio has won the Rifat Chadirji Prize 2019, which sought design proposals for a new Barjeel Museum For Modern Arab Art in Sharjah, UAE.
Established in 2017, the Rifat Chadirji Prize is one competition run by the Tamayouz Excellence Award and seeks ideas that respond to local challenges, as well as to celebrate architecture in the Near East and North Africa.
Aidia's proposal for a building to house Barjeel's collection of art from across the Middle East takes the form of a low-rise monolithic structure resembling a fortress.
Designers Rolando Rodriguez Leal and Natalia Wrzask shied away from a design that was too architecturally extravagant.
Instead, they opted for one in which visitors could immerse themselves, with courtyards, alleys and passages intertwining with gallery spaces.
Galleries inside the building are organized as a circuit around internal courtyards and are sunk below ground level to keep them cool and control the amount of natural light coming in.
Five reinterpreted "barjeels", or wind towers, are integrated into the building in a circular formation and draw air down into its volume from the roof for natural ventilation.
The towers appear as sculptures in their own right from inside and create circular undulations in the geometric pattern of the wooden roof.
This patternation filters light as it enters the public spaces of the museum to create similarly patterned areas of light and shade.
Speaking about the design, the judges said: "This project features elegant graphics and a beautifully thought-through analysis. It very cleverly interprets regional architectural, social and vernacular expressions.
"The roof, made of wood and based on a traditional Emirati weaving structure, generates a contemporary motif that naturally filters daylight and creates surprisingly high – and beautiful – semi-public spaces and landscapes, such as the sculpture route and walkway.
"The woven quality of the roof further allows the walls to be dynamic, as shade patterns created by the sun's changing position during the day dances across them. The walls, therefore, become a festive skin."
Aidia will receive the Rifat Chadirji Prize Statuette and US$5,000 (€4,500, £3,900) for winning the competition. They and the other finalists will be celebrated during Tamayouz Excellence Award’s annual ceremony in December.
Aidia Studio UAE museum competition









Therme appoints UK CEO as £250m Therme Manchester gets planning approval

Construction work to begin on Universal Resort Beijing's second phase 'by 2025'

Sparcstudio gives Center Parcs' Aqua Sana concept an extensive forest-inspired makeover

Studio Apostoli plans wellness oasis in Mongolian national park

Soho House to expand with new properties in UK, North America and Latin America

Art Processors win Fast Co Design Award for Sydney Opera House 50th anniversary synchronised show

September reopening for Britain's oldest lido following £9m transformation

Rixos to open Turkish-inspired beachfront spa resort in Dubai Islands

Rosewood’s second Austrian Asaya spa to open in restored 15th-century castle

1 Hotel Mayfair launches with Bamford Wellness Spa and biophilic design by GA Group

Otherworld Philadelphia is a place where 'anything is possible'

Mandarin Oriental opens first retreat in Greece and announces upcoming Sardinian property and spa

Third Space joins Six Senses at luxury development The Whiteley

GymNation – owned by JD Gyms – opens latest club in Dubai and plans Middle East expansion

Entertainment resort and waterpark planned for Tashkent, Uzbekistan

Plans revealed for US$2bn Oklahoma theme park

Nike gets into the health club market with the launch of group exercise studios

Canyon Ranch receives additional US$150m investment from VICI Properties to fund expansion

Communal bathhouses and self-care inspire LA's upcoming wellness club, Hume

Foster + Partners slated to design Equinox Resort Amaala

Feilden Clegg Bradley Studios' Eden Project Dundee will celebrate myth-makers and alchemists

Noa* creates elemental spa for alpine eco-resort in Austria

Meow Wolf opens The Real Unreal psychedelic experience in Grapvine, Texas

Boutique Greek island retreat unveils new spa with waterfall treatment rooms

PLP Architecture's Mandarin Oriental Bankside will be part of UK's first operationally fossil fuel-free mixed-use development

Fletcher Priest creates new design for Therme Manchester

Buro Happold hosts active transport event at World Congress of Architecture in Copenhagen

Aardman Animation and design studio, Katapult, launch new attraction concept

Anotherform and Fluxprojects create immersive fitness concept for Blok in London
