Al Manakh 1 - excerpts (1/3) Gulf Survey

jevo

MONT. New York

13h ALB.

Sofia

7h

路Izmir

Athens

Tbilisi ARMENIA AZ

Ankara

Bursa

GREECE

GEORGIA

London

BULGARIA 6h 路Istanbul Skopje

MACEDONIA

Tirana

cily

Black Sea

Frankfurt

Yerevan

TURKEY Konya

Adana

T.)

Nicosia

etta

diterranean Sea - Banghazi

Crete (GR.)

CYPRUS

Mosul Kirkuk

Aleppo Beirut LEB.

Beirut3h

SYRIA Damascus

IRAQ

Baghdad

Tel Aviv-Yafo ISRAEL Alexandria Jerusalem Amman

Al B

Gulf Atlas

JORDAN

Cairo

Gulf Survey IBYA Al Jizah

Edited by AMO

SAUDI

EGYPT

Casablanca

8.5h

Riy

Aswan Red Sea

Jiddah Mecca

A

Port Sudan

Omdurman

2006 UN Political Map

CHAD N'Djamena

ERITREA

Khartoum

Asmara A

SUDAN

DJI

D

68

Addis Ababa

Lagos

8h

CENTRAL 02_volume12_amo_part1_CORR_june468 68

ETHIOPIA 6/5/07 3:45:01 PM

Moscow Caspian 5h Sea

IA AZERBAIJAN

Baku

Bi KYR

9h

Tashkent

TURKMENISTAN

Shanghai

9h

Dushanbe TAJI

Ashgabat

¯ Tabriz ul k

Osaka

UZBEKISTAN

Tehran

Tehran

3h

Mashhad

Kabul

AQ

AFGHANISTAN Islam

Esfahan ¯ ¸

ad

IRAN

Al Basrah

Hong Kong

Kandahar ¯

8h La

Quetta

Persian BAHRAIN Gulf

Manama Doha Riyadh QATAR

ARABIA

Gulf Survey

KUWAIT

Kuwait

DI

1 Line o

Shiraz ¯

PAKISTAN OMAN

Abu Dhabi

UNITED ARAB EMIRATES

¯ Karachi

Muscat AMO

OMAN Mumbai

2h

Mu (Bom

YEMEN

Sanaa

a

Aden DJIBOUTI

Gulf of Aden

Djibouti

Socotra

(YEMEN)

Arabian Sea

8.5h

02_volume12_amo_part1_CORR_june469 69

(INDIA)

69

Johannesburg

7.5h

LAKSHADW

Berbera

PIA

Singapore

Sydney

15h 6/5/07 3:45:15 PM

Regional Statistics GDP per Capita

>25,000 25,000-15,000 15,000-5000 5000-1500 <1500

World Bank Statistics, 2004

In $US thousands

FDI flows to the GCC in $US millions

no data < 500 500 - 2000 2000 - 3000 3000 - 4600

UNCTAD FDi Magazine www.compiler.fi www.gasandoil.com

Gulf Atlas

Foreign Direct Investment

Transparency

<1 1-3 3-5 5-7 7-9

70 02_volume12_amo_part1_CORR_june470 70

Transparency International, 2005

Perceptions of the degree of corruption as seen by business people and country analysts

6/5/07 3:45:20 PM

Youth

> 35 31-35 26-30 21-25 < 20

CIA World Factbook, 2006

Average Age

Gulf Survey

Illiteracy

AMO

0% < 10 % 10-30 % 30-50 % > 50

CIA World Factbook, 2006

% of the population that is illiterate

Ecological Footprint per Capita

<1 1-5 5 - 10 10 - 15 > 15

71

02_volume12_amo_part1_CORR_june471 71

World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF)

Hectares per person

6/5/07 3:45:23 PM

Sizing the Gulf Venice could fit in a quarter of The World development in Dubai. Development on a seemingly scaleless landscape begs global comparisons when trying to grasp its size. When looking at the major urban projects from Kuwait to Ras Al Khaimah, a selection of world-recognized urban landmarks reveal the magnitude of this urban project. (Numbers refer to descriptions in the Development Atlas at the end of Gulf Survey.)

K5-Bubiyan Island

Gulf Atlas

K6-Failaka Island

K11-Madinat Al Hareer

K9-Subiya Causeway K17-Green Island

K15-Heritage Village

K13-Madinat Al Fahaheel K14-Khabary City K26-Kheiran Pearl City

K22-Kuwait Intâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;l Airport expansion K23-Kuwait Universityâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s new campus

KUWAIT

5 km

25 km

72

Venice, Italy

02_volume12_amo_part1_CORR_june472 72

100 km

Beijing, China

Cairo, Egypt

6/5/07 3:45:27 PM

B40-Two Seas B12-Amwaj Islands

B7-Bahrain Bay

Gulf Survey

B11-Lulu Island

Q4-Lusail Development Q17-Al Khor Resort

B41-Marina West B29-Riffa Views

Q9-The Pearl-Qatar

QATAR

BAHRAIN B32-Bahrain Mega Equestrian Resort

Q20-New Doha Intâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;l Airport

B1-Al Areen Desert Spa B10-Durrat and Resort Al Bahrain Island

Mumbai, India

73

02_volume12_amo_part1_CORR_june473 73

Paris, France

MDA Federal Inc.

AMO

Hong Kong, China

6/5/07 3:45:52 PM

Sizing the Gulf

D12-Dubai Waterfront A16-Reem Island

Gulf Atlas

A3-Central Market A6-Saadiyat Island

D7-Palm Jebel Ali

D9-The World

D1-Palm Jumeirah

A2-Al Gurm Resort

D63-Dubai Marina D66-The Lakes D15-Jumeirah Islands D11-Discovery Garden D16-Jumeirah Village D14-Jumeirah Golf Estates

Abu Dhabi Dubai

A1-Al Raha Beach Resort A14-Al Reef Villas

D75-Dubai Investments Park D73-Dubai World Central

D9 D35-Dubai

D13-Arabian Canal

UNITED ARAB EMIRATES

5 km

25 km

74

Manhattan, New York

02_volume12_amo_part1_CORR_june474 74

100 km

Moscow, Russia

D6 D5

Las Vegas, NV

6/5/07 3:46:02 PM

R2-Al Marjan Islands R1-Mina Al Arab

nds age es

Gulf Survey

D8-Palm Deira

R8-Saraya Islands

R15-Al Noor City

D71-Dubai Festival City D62-Downtown Burj Dubai D60-The Lagoons D56-Business Bay

Sharjah

R4-Ras Al Khaimah Gateway

R14-Mangrove Island

R5-Jebel Al Jais

Ras Al Khaimah

D18-International City D95-Dubai Silicon Oasis D35-Dubailand

London, UK

75

02_volume12_amo_part1_CORR_june475 75

Barcelona, Spain

MDA Federal Inc.

AMO

Istanbul, Turkey

6/5/07 3:46:20 PM

Argument

A Region in Brief The current architectural substance of the Gulf consists of four major components, produced in three distinct waves: 1. In the seventies and eighties – as part of the first surge of oil wealth and therefore as a matter of course – big architectural names were involved in the Gulf… Jørn Utzon (Kuwait National Assembly), Kenzo Tange (Kuwait International Airport and Arab Gulf University plan), the Smithsons (unrealized Kuwait City plan), Kiyonori Kikutake (unrealized hotel), William Pereira (Sheraton Hotel), The Architects Collaborative (Abu Dhabi Cultural Center).

The Gulf became a field of architectural experimentation, where vernacular elements, particularly indigenous cooling and natural ventilation techniques, were used to renew and redefine contemporary architecture…

2. In the second wave in the nineties, firms typically with an engineering background, but soon equipped with master planning and even architectural sections, whose convenient presence on the ground gives them an almost monopolistic claim to most planning and architectural efforts – Halcrow, Atkins, more recently HOK – developed among them an intricate, quasi-organic resort urbanism, driven by coastline multiplication, both on land and on sea…

It is this wave that has given Dubai its unique ‘look.’

3. Superimposed on this context, will be the imminent contributions of international starchitects like Zaha Hadid, Jean Nouvel, Norman Foster and others; the dilemmas faced by the third wave are obvious: relatively inexperienced clients, the ‘experience economy’ as the sole and pervasive discourse, a well-established quasi-Islamic-modernist language, expectations of ‘signature’ which will make deviation and surprise, let alone reinvention, difficult.

4. Independent of these phases, we can also observe since the seventies an ongoing production of ‘undesigned’, modest – but dominant in places like Sharjah – presence of a generic, modernist ‘architecture without architects’ – a cheap, seemingly spontaneous, mostly concrete, always utilitarian architecture that comes closest to traditionally ‘urban’ conditions: closely packed streets, alleys, galleries, parks and plazas and residential neighborhoods based on mini-compounds. These have an appeal, especially compared to globalization’s past and future fireworks. – RK

80 02_volume12_amo_part1_CORR_june480 80

6/5/07 3:46:46 PM

Gulf Survey AMO

02_volume12_amo_part1_CORR_june481 81

81

Expectations of â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;signatureâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; will make deviation and surprise, let alone reinvention, difficult

6/5/07 3:46:48 PM

Abu Dhabi Abu Dhabi has nothing to prove. Its anchored indispensability in global markets – as a result of its immense oil reserves – ensures that its regional and global position remains undisputed.

With its global political weight ensured, Abu Dhabi has developed a confident and careful approach to its urban development. Whereas cities worldwide have converted their municipal departments into marketing machines for attracting outside investment, Abu Dhabi sells privilege, not pitches.

It was a slow start, with oil monies not quickly reinvested in urban development until the ascension of Sheikh Zayed.

In the past year, media requests have been granted to a press eager to know the Emirate’s plans. Abu Dhabi is now responding to the competitive sphere in the Gulf with a clear agenda, backed up by a new tool for the Gulf – culture master planning.

Gulf Histories 116 02_volume12_amo_part1_CORR_june4116 116

6/5/07 3:52:14 PM

Gulf Survey 117

MDA Federal Inc.

AMO

02_volume12_amo_part1_CORR_june4117 117

6/5/07 3:52:28 PM

Snapshots

Gulf Histories 118

Al Ittihad Square

02_volume12_amo_part1_CORR_june4118 118

6/5/07 3:52:45 PM

Refl exive passive ventilation, when air conditioning is on too high

Corniche apartments

Parking before mosque

Port Zayed

Khalifa Street

Gulf Survey

In-between cities on road to Dubai

AMO

02_volume12_amo_part1_CORR_june4119 119

119

Modern day dhows

6/5/07 3:52:49 PM

Wilfred Thesiger upon his arrival in Abu Dhabi, from Arabian Sands, 1950

Slade Baker Collection, Middle East Centre, St. Antony’s College

A large castle dominated the small dilapidated town which stretched along the shore. There were a few palms, and near them was a well where we watered our camels while some Arabs eyed us curiously, wondering who we were. Then we went over to the castle and sat outside the walls, waiting for the Sheikhs to wake from their afternoon slumbers.

120

Sheikh Zayed: architect of a nation. Global Agenda, January 2006

Al-Zayed UAE Crown Prince Yearbook

Gulf Histories Upon the urging of the British Political Agent, John Harris visits Sheikh Shakhbut – two days’ air travel to Dubai and a full day of jeep travel over sand, water and sand again to arrive in Abu Dhabi about 150 km away

When Sheikh Zayed was young there was not a single school in the desperately poor Trucial States...

The Hobbyist Sheikh Zayed replaces his brother in 1966 as ruler of Abu Dhabi, resulting in a shift in the Emirate’s approach to investment and development. Beyond the obvious need for roads and infrastructure, the Sheikh extends a clear vision of urbanity, comparable to Western monarchs from centuries before who made architecture and urbanism their hobbies. Eager British engineers and European architects help the Sheikh realize some of the best examples of stadiums, airports, and hotels in the region, generating a stately field of commemorative structures and verdant landscaping.

1958. Abu Dhabi Fort

02_volume12_amo_part1_CORR_june4120 120

6/5/07 3:52:55 PM

www.sheikh-zayed.info

1961. Abu Dhabi airport terminal

Abu Dhabi â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Gateway to the Gulf It is no longer of special interest when land blossoms where there was formerly a vast expanse of white sand; when a sleeping fi shing village is transformed almost overnight into a large sprawling city with modern buildings rising on the debris of old palm leaf huts; or when concrete roads probe into a desert as silent and as ancient as time.

Gulf Survey

www.adnoc.co.ae/adnoc/english/images/new_community_uae.jpg

1960s. Abu Dhabi stamp

Advertisement that appeared in The Washington Post, December 16, 1970

1960s. Sheikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al-Nahyan with Sheikh Tahnoun planning Abu Dhabi National Oil Company buildings

AMO

02_volume12_amo_part1_CORR_june4121 121

121

Discussions over the new road network

6/5/07 3:52:58 PM

Gulf Histories

Peter Hellyer / The Hutchinson Library

www.sheikh-zayed.info

Opulence in Landscape Corniche – where seafront meets skyline – sculpts the city’s façade. The urban device is borrowed from Monaco, via Beirut and Kuwait, and generates housing prices that compete with towers facing New York City’s Central Park. The Corniche’s at once current and dated feel, represents Abu Dhabi’s developing history of opulence and confident ease.

The Corniche also exemplifies Abu Dhabi’s obsession with green. Over 130 million planted trees garnish landscaped highways, waterfront resorts, residential yards, and oasis-style parklands – all notable despite the conspicuous lack of rainfall (only 43 mm per year in the city). Even the Emirate’s much fought-for inland oasis is now almost dry, now requiring desalinated water from the coast.

1970s. Abu Dhabi Corniche

122

1980s. Abu Dhabi Corniche

02_volume12_amo_part1_CORR_june4122 122

UAE Yearbook 2006

Abu Dhabi: Garden City of the Gulf. UAE: Motivate Publishing, 1988

1950s. Abu Dhabi seafront

2006. Corniche redevelopment

6/5/07 3:53:00 PM

Gulf Survey

1980. Zayed Sports City Stadium. Seating capacity: 70,000

They used to say, agriculture has no future, but with God’s blessing and our determination, we have suceeded in transforming the desert into a green land.

Sheikh Zayed Salloum, H. ‘How the Sheikh Turned the Desert Green’, The Christian Science Monitor May 27, 1997

AMO

In the Emirate of Abu Dhabi alone, some 130 million trees have been planted. The UAE’s 22 million, mostly newly planted palm trees now represent 20 percent of all the palms on the planet.

Salloum, H. ‘How the Sheikh Turned the Desert Green’, The Christian Science Monitor 1997.

02_volume12_amo_part1_CORR_june4123 123

The UAE is the largest water consuming country after the US and Canada

123

A fl eet of bulldozers dig into desert sand during the construction of canals and lakes in Abu Dhabi

6/5/07 3:53:02 PM

archnet.org

CORBIS / Christine Osborne

Single Vision Reinforcing the original fort within a new cultural compound, erecting sculptural stadiums for Olympic aspirations and transforming an obsolete airport into strolling gardens â&#x20AC;&#x201C; the 1980s saw the realization of Sheikh Zayedâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s vision. Shopping centers, offices and residential towers pepper the vanishing desert, but all within the strict land use controls of the Sheikh.

Gulf Histories 1977. American Ambassador Residence John Harris archnet.org

1970. Colonnade at School

124

1988. Fish, Fruit and Vegetable Souks Abbad Al Radi and Nazar Ahmad

02_volume12_amo_part1_CORR_june4124 124

6/5/07 3:53:05 PM

Abu Dhabi: Garden City of the Gulf. UAE Motivate Publishing

archnet.org

Abu Dhabi: Garden City of the Gulf. UAE Motivate Publishing

1988. Abu Dhabi National Oil Company www.shiekh-zayed.info

Brian J. McMorrow

1977. The Mastaba of Abu Dhabi proposed by Christo

Gulf Survey AMO

Old souk in Abu Dhabi, with 196 shops

02_volume12_amo_part1_CORR_june4125 125

The new mosque will accommodate 30,000 worshippers at one time John Harris

www.unu.edu/unupress/unupbooks/80143e/80143E0D.GIF

Fares el-Dahdah from ‘Letter from Abu Dhabi’ No. 13, 1996

Sheikh Zayed reviews model for the ‘Zayed Mosque’

Instinctive habits are, mercifully, much more powerful than bad architecture; and the residents of the souk were simply ignoring all the architect’s design on them. They had set up stalls in the walkways and constructed their own labyrinth in spaces which had been meant as routes of access.

Jonathan Raban, Arabia, 1979

1962. Development plan with the Ruler’s palace and Governmental buildings

125

The city has thus developed a calligraphic skyline...buildings are erected at the rhythm of the monarch’s consent.

1985. Abu Dhabi Library and Cultural Center, The Architects Collaborative 1988. Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank

6/5/07 3:53:06 PM

Gulf Histories

Estimates of ADIA’s [Abu Dhabi Investment Authority] size range from $200 billion to ‘way north of $500 billion’, according to one foreign investment banker. In other words, it may be the world’s biggest investment fund.

Foreman, Colin.’Abu Dhabi gets ready to step out of the shadow cast by Dubai.’

ITP Construction, June 25, 2005 www.itp.net/business/features/details.php?id=2832&category=construction

While we recognise and applaud Dubai’s success, we do not view Abu Dhabi’s development in terms of ‘catching up.’ I would like to emphasise that plans currently under development or in the pipeline are focused on the top end of the market.

Ali Ahmed Hosani Director of Marketing Abu Dhabi Tourism Authority ‘Abu Dhabi Comes of Age.’ ITP Hospitality, August 4, 2006

The Middle East November 2005

‘The Gate,’ Saadiyat Island, Arquitectonica

126

2006. Yas Island development in Abu Dhabi showcased at Dubai Cityscape

02_volume12_amo_part1_CORR_june4126 126

1980s. Chamber Tower and Clock Tower

Collectively, Persian Gulf-based carriers are set to increase their passenger capacity 140% by 2011.

The Washington Post November 4, 1974

After a decade of living in Dubai’s shadow, Abu Dhabi – the UAE’s largest emirate – is now developing its own projects that look set to challenge its smaller neighbor to the north. Last week a free hold property sold out in 45 minutes.

Abu Dhabi: Garden City of the Gulf. United Arab Emirates: Motivate Publishing, 1988

More Fortunes Than Degrees A local pastime is betting how much taller Abu Dhabi’s clock tower will be than Dubai’s most impressive local landmark, which is, of course a clock tower.

Reed, S. Mideast Airlines Soar onto Global Stage. Business Week April 19, 2006

An Awakened Giant In 2005 Sheikh Khalifa, Zayed’s son, single-handedly transforms Abu Dhabi with new laws opening emirate real estate to the free market. Overnight, Abu Dhabi experiences the avarice of investors wanting a piece of an unfailing success story.

Huge developments would sell out in less than an hour. Made even stronger by the fact that its impressive development plans are not founded in desperation, Abu Dhabi brings stiffer competition to the region.

Evolution of the tourist industry: from sun/sand, to shopping and now to culture.

Even compared to bold efforts to extend coastlines along the Gulf, this next stage could very well test the financial endurance of the Gulf. Money has to fill the gap. Not only investing in an extravagant building project, Abu Dhabi will also foot the bill for its own collection imprinted with Guggenheim endorsement.

6/5/07 3:53:12 PM

The Economist

1999 Ë 2006 Change of Plan Culture = Money

The Persian Gulf emirate of Abu Dhabi said it will invest $730 million in ... developing a Gulf island into an international ‘capital and commodities center.’ The action... heats up a competition to be the region’s fi nancial hub.

Wall Street Journal July 20, 1999

Abu Dhabi ... unveiled a new public joint stock company charged with developing ... its fl agship Saadiyat Island project ... into a strategic international tourism destination. www.saadiyat.ae

You should expect that all figures in paintings will be clothed.

www.saadiyat.ae

www.emiratespalace.com March 30, 2007

AP / Kamran Jebreili

AP / Kamran Jebreili

July 8, 2006. Thomas Krens, Guggenheim Director, and Sheikh Suroor bin Mohammed Al Nahyan www.skyscrapercity.com

Abu Dhabi ready to spend US$100b. UAE Internact News, August 4, 2006 www.uaeinteract.com/news

The Guggenheim Effect Bilbao’s Investment 1997: 80m euro Abu Dhabi Investment 2006: 155m euro

July, 8 2006. Frank Gehry at Emirates Palace Hotel, Abu Dhabi

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Autopolis car center to be built in Abu Dhabi

127

About 100 new hotels over the next 10 years will be built in Abu Dhabi at the rate of 10 a year.

Transformation of Saadiyat Island. Plans include a franchised Louvre Museum

AMO

Collectively, Persian Gulf-based carriers are set to increase their passenger capacity 140% by 2011.

Emirates Palace literally glows with luxury. The hotel, owned by the government of Abu Dhabi, took more than three years and reportedly more than $3 billion to build, which would make it the most expensive hotel in the world

Gulf Survey

Reed, S. Mideast Airlines Soar onto Global Stage. Business Week April 19, 2006

Thomas Krens, Director of the Guggenheim Foundation.

6/5/07 3:53:19 PM