Dubai: A city of rotating towers, the world's tallest building, a property resembling a national flag and not one but three of the biggest man-made islands ever built. Welcome to the UAE the land that put a ski slope in the desert.
Whether it is architectural brilliance or mere showmanship, people around the world are sitting up and taking notice of the unusual projects UAE developers are unveiling.
The country's determination to spend big on turning the unusual into reality even had people believing an advertising gimic last year that local developers would build a bubble city floating 200 metres above ground.
When complete, Emaar's Dh3.67 billion Burj Dubai tower will rise approximately 200 floors high, while nearby Dubai Mall will cover 12 million square feet almost enough room for two Malls of the Emirates. The Palm Jebel Ali, a Nakheel project, will feature 70 kilometres of coastline more than Dubai's mainland coast.
Other planned projects include a Formula One motor-racing circuit in the DubaiLand master development and a commercial space station in Ras Al Khaimah worth close to Dh1 billion.
The UAE is also attracting some of the biggest names in world architecture. Iraqi-born Zaha Hadid, the first woman to receive the distinguished Pritzker Architecture Prize in 2004, was chosen to design the Dancing Towers in Business Bay, which was unveiled at New York's prestigious Guggenheim Museum.
"The towers will not only create a distinctive landmark at Business Bay, but also symbolise a new phase in Dubai's architectural standards," said Hasham Al Dabal, CEO of Business Bay developers Dubai Properties.
Dubai-based High Rise Real Estate turned heads earlier this year when it launched the Dh175 million Rotating Tower in Jum-eirah Village South. Five of the 25 storeys will make a full rotation at speeds selected by residents.
Plans to build a city of rotating towers in Dubailand were recently changed. High Rise Real Estate is in negotiations with the Abu Dhabi government for 15 million square feet of land to build the Dh7 billion Rotating City.
Seemingly intent on causing a stir in the world of design, the company also launched Emirates Flag Towers, a cluster of 21 commercial buildings worth Dh7 billion that will bear the UAE flag on the roofs.
It remains to be seen, however, whether the UAE will become an icon for international architecture.
Your comments
I feel Dubai should give more priority to solving traffic problems rather than building impossible designs.
Ali
Al Ain,UAE
Wow!!! Amazing but really unbelievable and risky... Good going Mr. Zaha!!!
Mita
Abu Dhabi,UAE
The Dancing Towers ... fantastic idea!
Ahmed
Dubai,UAE
The Dancing Towers look structurally impossible!!!
IV
Abu Dhabi,UAE
Dubai is an unusual city and could change dreams to reality, but to build any design because it looks nice is a risk.
Eman
Dubai,UAE
Dubai is an unusual city and could change dreams to reality, but to build any design because it looks nice is a risk.
E.E.A
Dubai,U.A.E
In stark comparison of the superlatives that Dubai has achieved in the last decade, the great traffic problem still seems to remain, which I believe is pretty much related to all these developments.
Vinod
Sharjah,UAE
