June 11, 2013
Over the last two decades, the vast skyscrapers of Dubai emerged from the deserts of the UAE, transforming the city from a sleepy town to a booming metropolis virtually overnight. With an influx of money from oil profits, the city doubled its population and witnessed an exponential spike in new construction, becoming an architectural playground for some of the world’s most high profile architects. While Dubai was hit exceptionally hard by the 2007-2008 world financial crisis, construction in the city continues to boom, even with reports of high vacancies in exorbitantly expensive and tall towers like the Burj Khalifa.
With his camera in hand, Berlin-based photographer Matthias Heiderich took to the streets of Dubai to capture the eerie emptiness that currently plagues the ample new real estate sites in the city. Heiderich’s photographs are saturated in rich pastel colors, while simultaneously appearing somewhat faded, as though weathered from the city’s harsh desert environment. Looking past Heiderich’s entrancing aesthetic, one thing stands out about each of these photos: There are no people in any of them. The energy and movement that breathes life into a bustling city are totally absent in these scenes. The opulence of the new towers stands in stark contrast to the vacant streets below, creating an unnerving tension that speaks of the extensive contradictions in how Dubai is portrayed to the rest of the world. Click through to see them all!
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April 3, 2013
Attention book lovers: Here’s your chance to win O-14: Projection and Reception, a must-have for your coffee table (or reading chair). The hardcover from Architectural Association chronicles the history and significance of Dubai’s new 22-story office building, and A+ Awards Finalist, O-14 Tower, by Reiser + Umermoto. O-14: Projection and Reception contains thorough explanations from architects Jesse Reiser and Nanako Umemoto about the project’s design, intentions, and inspirations accompanied by awesome illustration, photos, and essays by editor Brett Steele. Keep reading to see how to win!
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March 26, 2013
Cloud City does exist. Or sort of. These new photos of Dubai, by German photographer Sebastian Opitz, depict the “golden” city swathed in clouds, just at the moment mist — and not a sandstorm — envelops the infamous and ever-growing skyline. Opitz, who has lived in Dubai for the past four years, took the images from the 85th floor of the Princess Tower, a 101-tall residential tower anchored along the city’s marina. That’s where you’d find him on the 4 to 6 days a year when the mist passes through the city. In that time, the spectacle starts early in morning, sometime round 4 AM, and fully recedes by 9 AM. Click through for more photos!
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March 21, 2013
A couple months back, we showed you what exactly a “Cruise-eye view” was. In case you missed it—in which case go to that post now—it’s the view from the top of the Burj Khalifa, the world’s largest tower. Why the “Cruise-eye view”? Because Tom Cruise was seen dangling from it in the blockbuster (and surprisingly entertaining) film Mission Impossible 4: Ghost protocol. Well, seems like the view might need a new moniker. Earlier this week, fearless photographer Joe McNally uploaded this image on his Instragram feed. The picture, which we can only assume was taken with shaky, shaky hands (that’s 2,722 feet up!), shows McNally’s worn pair of shoes hovering over the edge of the Burj and Dubai. Wrote the shoe-gazing McNally, “My old battered shoes climbed the world’s tallest building today. What an amazing structure! Tweeting from 820 meters straight up!”
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March 19, 2013
There are two types of hotels. First, there are the ones that merely provide a place to rest your head in between sight-seeing bouts—the hostels or chain hotels that dot popular tourist spots such as New York or Paris. And then there are ones that are so magnificent you’ll never want to leave—luxurious resorts in middle-of-nowhere Utah, rooms in romantic caves in rural Italy, or a modern spaceship in Dubai. These lodgings, with their picturesque settings, crazy amenities, and (of course) amazing design, aren’t just a place to sleep: they are vacation destinations in and of themselves. We’ve rounded up some of our favorites—from the drop-dead gorgeous to the head-scratchingly insane—from around the globe. Click through to see our picks!
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February 15, 2013
In case you haven’t heard, Public Voting for the Architizer A+ Awards Public Choice Winners is live! Today we’re spotlighting the amazing finalists in the residential categories — which encompass everything from super-sleek skyscrapers to rectangular ski lodges, from urban housing to remote hideaways. We’ve also included some pretty rad interiors, including a cozy mountain villa (with spectacular views) and a NYC penthouse that residents can fly through via harnesses attached to the ceiling. Click through to see them all!
Spot a favorite? Make sure to vote for it over at the A+ Public Voting site!
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January 28, 2013
Photo: HIPA/Gerald Donovan
It’s being called “the greatest image on earth.” Whether or not you agree, you can’t help but awe at this panoramic image—the first of its kind—captured from atop the Burj Khalifa, some 2,722 feet in the air. It’s the “Cruise-Eye View,” so-called because it was made famous by Tom Cruise in Mission Impossible 4: Ghost Protocol. In the film, Tom sits perched at the edge of the Burj’s peak, exactly where photographer Gerald Donovan positioned his high-tech mechanized panoramic tripod that helped him capture the stunning shot. The shot, of course, is actually composed of 70 different high resolution (80 megapixels) photographs strung together to form the interactive 360 degree panorama. Click through for more.
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January 23, 2013
“Grand Mosque in Abu Dhabi”
If you follow
Architizer on Instagram (which you totally should) then you’ll have noticed I’ve been in Abu Dhabi and documenting all the architectural gems I came across there. I was in the Emirate for a week because the
Sheikha Salama bint Hamdan Al Nahyan arranged to transport and install
Wendy,
HWKN‘s winning entry for the 2012 Young Architects Program at MoMA PS1.
When weren’t on the corniche with
Wendy 2.0, we were out and about admiring the fantastic contemporary architecture that the UAE has to offer. Between Dubai and Abu Dhabi, it’s like an architectural petting zoo of mammoth proportions. Let me know what you think – and if I missed anything!
Click through to see the images from my travels.more
December 11, 2012
Fashion designer Pierre Cardin’s proposed Palais Lumière, a residential, hospitality, and shopping emporium planned for Venice (left) and a tiered skirt from Cardin’s collection. Right photo: Associated Press
In his 75-plus years in the fashion industry, the 90-year-old couturier Pierre Cardin has molded silhouettes, cinched panstuits, and stretched and shortened hemlines. More recently he has sent his sights on shaping the Venice skyline. His proposed Palais Lumière—a dizzying 60-story pirouette of glass and steel—represents either economic salvation for a faded corner of Venice or a grandiose fetish worthy of Dubai, depending on whom you ask. Continue.
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November 28, 2012
The planned Water Discus Hotel, designed by Deep Ocean Technology for Dubai, is an initiative of the Dubai construction company Drydocks World and Switzerland’s BIG InvestConsult. Image courtesy of Deep Ocean Technology.
Back in 2001, submersible expert Bruce Jones hatched the idea for the Poseidon Undersea Resort, the world’s first underwater hotel. Featuring 24 modular suites with panoramic views of coral reefs and tropical fish, Jones’s luxury human fishbowl was originally slated to open in 2009, then delayed until 2010. With the design and engineering for the hotel completed, Jones’s company, U.S. Submarine Structures, still must raise enough capital for construction to start. And once ground (um, ocean!) is broken, guest-adventurers willing to shell out $15,000 to $30,000 per week for their own little Plexiglas Atlantis will have to wait another two years for the grand opening. Read more!
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