Storeys from the past

In a young country like the UAE where the skyline changes
in the blink of an eye, preserving what is old is a challenge. Shiva Kumar Thekkepat meets a team that is taking on the challenge with unbridled enthusiasm.

At first sight, it looks like a motley group of tourists being led by an elderly Iraqi gentleman and a middle-aged Emirati on a Saturday morning outing in Sharjah.

It is when the group trails behind an elderly person in a brown felt hat that one realises that Peter Jackson, along with Dr Abdul Sattar Azzawi, an archaeologist specialising in Islamic buildings and Dr Mohammad Khamis, Assistant Director of Heritage in the Directorate of Heritage and Culture, Sharjah, is in fact leading this band of history lovers across the cultural landscape.

The chairman of the English-speaking Chapter of the UAE Architectural Heritage Society is not just guiding this group through the cultural heritage of Sharjah, but is pushing the emirate towards preserving its past as consultant to The Ruler's Office.

The society undertakes field trips to historical buildings or museums every month in and outside the UAE. These monthly outings are a part of popularising the effort to preserve the architectural heritage of the country as well.

The chapter takes its members on such field trips at discounted rates. This is one such trip.

This is a passion fired by the guiding light of the society, Rashad Mohammad Bukhash. Bukhash, who is also the Director of Architectural Heritage Projects at Dubai Municipality, besides officiating as the Chairman of the society, established it in 2003.

For Bukhash, it all began when at the age of 13, he met Jackson who had come to survey his house in the Bastakiya area in 1974.

Jackson, then employed with John R. Harris Architects, was assisting Dr Anne Coles, a geographer, in a study of the windtowers in Dubai, which was eventually published as Windtower Houses of the Bastakiya.

"I assisted him with small jobs, holding the tape for him, helping him with drawings and such.

This is what made me look at my house with a different eye. I lived in a historic area, with the typical courtyard and wind tower and gypsum decorations," says Bukhash.

"That instilled in me a love for architecture and after graduating, I studied architecture and engineering, and
have been with Dubai Municipality since 1987."

Bukhash was involved in many projects including the restoration of Saeed House, Dubai Museum, the interior design of Shaikh Zayed House, and the archaeological survey of the old Hatta Valley.

"Around 1991, the department started large scale restoration of historic buildings and sites." And that led to the establishment of the Architecture Heritage Department with Bukhash heading it. The UAE Architectural Heritage Society followed in 2003.

The society swung into action and a survey revealed that around 2,000 historic and archaeological sites existed in the UAE. The society also undertook seminars and exhibitions as a means of educating the public about the heritage of the country.

"Apart from that, the society also undertakes restoration of heritage buildings, and preservation of historic sites," says Bukhash.

"We are doing some restoration in Ras Al Khaimah at present. There are around 550 buildings which need to be restored and the society is very actively involved in it."

Bukhash is on a mission. As he sees it, "The importance of what we are doing cannot be underestimated. Every country gives a lot of importance to its heritage and the architectural heritage of it is part of its history, its civilisation.

The late Shaikh Zayed used to say 'He who has no past, has no present and no future'. Our aim is to preserve the history, civilisation of our land. We have to record and preserve it for our children."

To this end, the society also publishes books on history and culture. "For the students of architecture to see how in the windtowers and courtyards, coral stones were used for construction is an education in itself," says the former student of architecture who did not have that privilege.

The work of the society also ties in with commerce, as tourism is a major earner for the country. "With the emphasis now on tourism, the heritage and history of a country is what is on demand," says Bukhash. And that is what the society is working to preserve.

With the present emphasis on 'green architecture' and sustainability of buildings in the UAE, the society's work in educating the professionals through seminars and exhibitions is just what the doctor ordered, feels Bukhash.
"I believe our traditional architecture produced completely 'green' buildings, low energy consumption, etc."

"The challenge lies in building traditional buildings to suit the demands of the 21st century," says Jackson. One such challenge to overcome is the high level of humidity in the region's environment.

"We have to introduce certain elements to make structures much more usable, more liveable, particularly museums. They require very controlled conditions."

But Dubai, with Sharjah following suit, is known as the modern metropolis - all shiny new metal and glass high-rises. How does that future relate to the past that the society is trying to preserve?

"Yes, Dubai is growing very fast," agrees Bukhash. "Today, perhaps one per cent of Dubai retains the past. Our mission is to keep it as it is for the people to see how it was, to show them their real identity.

In 1820, there were only 1,000 inhabitants in Dubai. Today it's about 1.4 million. From a fishing village to a cosmopolitan city. But people have to know their roots."

The fact that the society has over 1,400 members and growing by the day stands testimony to the fact that both nationals as well as expatriates want to explore the country's past.

"It started as an Arabic-speaking society based in Dubai, with branches in each of the emirates," says Jackson.

"But as they got an increasing number of queries from expatriates as well, they saw a need to expand and so now have an English-speaking chapter.

"So in Dubai you have both, with their separate lectures and field trips. While in Sharjah, we are trying to combine both chapters. It's very new, but we've got very good programmes for this year."

The lectures are open to the public, but the field trips are restricted to members. Trips are planned outside the country too. "The last trip we made was to Oman in November last," says Jackson.

"We have plans to visit Jordan next, one of the mountain houses. Each time we try to take in something different. We have been to Liwa, Al Ain ... The trips are made mostly in winter."

But even with all this emphasis on heritage and culture, the UAE has not made the grade in terms of World Heritage Building or Sites certified by Unesco. Internationally, any building that is 100 years old or more is considered a historical building.

"Because of the kind of architecture here, buildings deteriorate much faster. So we have a law that stipulates that any building built before 1960, in traditional architecture, be considered a historical building."

"As per our survey, there are about 350 historical buildings in Dubai. About 140 have been restored. By 2015, we will have restored them all."

The old palace of Shaikh Rashid in Za'beel and Dar al Ittehad (Union House) in Jumeirah, where the Treaty
of the Union of the United Arab Emirates was signed, are some of the structures certified as historic buildings, for their historic and political significance.

The relatively new Clock Tower made the list because it is considered a historical structure and a monument of Dubai.

"Many of these buildings measure up to Unesco standards," says Bukhash. "The problem is there no law yet to protect such buildings. But we expect it soon and in a couple of months, we can start registering the buildings. We are expecting an Unesco team to visit the UAE soon."

Shindagha, the Bastakiya, Hatta village and some sites in Sharjah and Al Ain could make the list, according to Bukhash.

Apart from all this, the society is trying to revive a love for culture among the younger generation. "We conduct lectures and seminars in schools, and trips for schoolchildren to heritage sites," says Bukhash.

"The Municipality too organises visits to schools and universities by experts. We hold exhibitions in schools and shopping centres. We conduct training courses in how to work with traditional materials like gypsum and wood as also summer courses. We regularly check the awareness level of the youth, and I can tell you it is definitely increasing."

"Certainly, tourism is an important component of the country's economy and tourists definitely do like to see the ancient architecture of the region," says Bukhash.

"Consider around 1,500 persons visit our heritage sites every day, while around 2,000 people visit the museums in Dubai daily."

Jackson, as adviser to the Ruler of Sharjah, is straddling two fields; of educating the public about the architectural heritage and trying to save what is left of it and integrate it into people's lives.

He talks of a move to re-link the old souq in the Sharjah Corniche area that's restored and a part of the Heritage area with the 'new' souq that still functions as a marketplace alongside the Arts area on the Corniche.

"I suggested that we just close part of the road (that divides the Al Muraija Heritage area and the Al Shwaihaeen Arts areas) so that we can have the souq running right through again," he says.

"A planning and urban design study is required to see how to integrate the Al Muraija and Al Shwaihaeen areas, how to integrate the souqs, and also incorporate traffic and parking into what might become a predominantly pedestrian area. Actually, it's all old Sharjah, and the unification of the souq will be the stimulus for the development.

"A few of the important houses might be just reconstructed to retain the character of the area; we may find the foundations, that's where Dr Azzawi's skills will come in handy.

"But otherwise, I feel we have an interesting piece of urban infill to do which will then redefine what the character of old Sharjah is.

"There will be a mix of new and old buildings and plenty of demand for new users here. And as it is going to cater to visitors, both local and international, then small hotels would be appropriate in the area. It will also include a lot of facilities for artists.

"There is already a major arts centre on this side of the road. There will be venues for exhibitions, accommodations for artists. Again, we might have people living in the old area. That is one of the failures of the Bastakiya area, that nobody lives there any more.

"It's become a shell, just used as commercial premises. This is the next big challenge that we face and this is a huge challenge: how do we pull all this together sensitively?"

Talking of the new souq and the problems of integrating it with the Heritage area, Jackson says, "The problem is this: it's absolutely full of life and colour, especially in the evening when it's full of people enjoying an evening out.

"What you see right now happened over a period of 150 years. The question for architects and conservationists is this: how do we now restore this without losing all that colour and vibrancy? It is very easy to do, and turn it into something sterile and over-designed so it becomes like
a shopping mall. What we need to do is to keep the colour and texture to retain the shopping atmosphere."

It's obvious that the man loves what he's doing. "What we see here is probably early 20th century, it was a hospital!" he informs while the group is admiring the room on the first floor of the Bait Serkal House known as the 'bird cage'.

"The building was a hospital after the Second World War right up to the early 80s. It was the American Mission Hospital - in fact it was the only hospital in Sharjah in those days.

"Then it was restored by Dr Azzawi in the 1990s and became an arts centre and when the gallery was finished, the arts centre moved next to it. At the moment, it's being renovated for an exhibition for the Fine Arts Society."

The same dedication is evident in Bukhash when he says how the books the society publishes are helping to change the face of not only Dubai but also other countries in the Middle East, in small but significant ways.

"The Madinat Jumeirah was entirely built based on the illustrations and expertise in our book, Elements of Traditional Architecture in Dubai," he says with justified pride.

The book is now in its 4th edition. "The Al Maha resort, the Bab Al Shams, all of them. In fact, it has become a reference book for this style of architecture. People from Riyadh and Doha contact us for help."

In light of this, it may not be such an impossible task then for them to alter the skyline of the emirates where it is truly required for posterity's sake.