Defining the Past - Abu Dhabi's Living Memorial

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DEFINING THE PAST

Gary Dicken explains how Qasr Al Hosn has been restored as a living memorial to Abu Dhabi’s history

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(Top right) Qasr Al Hosn in its original desert setting. (Left) The Inner Fort and Outer Palace offer a quiet, hallowed refuge in the centre of the bustling city.

Over the centuries Qasr Al Hosn has been home to the ruling family, the seat of government, the national consultative council and a national archive; it now stands as the nation’s living memorial and the narrator of Abu Dhabi’s history.

Qasr Al Hosn comprises three major national icons: the Inner Fort, Outer Palace and a National Council Chamber. Following a concept design strategy established by our client, our brief was to faithfully conserve and adapt these structures in a manner that clearly identified their chronological evolution. Each building presented unique challenges which

demanded a fundamentally different design philosophy and architectural approach.

The Inner Fort was originally built around a coastal watchtower and became the seat of power for the ruling Bani Yas tribe from 1795. By the time of its reconstruction in 1980 only the historic watchtower survived. Pavilions and towers are, therefore, honestly expressed as buildings of the modern era. Walls are completed with a pure white self-finished render, with new interventions expressed minimally and detailed with precision. The pavilions and tower house exhibitions that narrate the evolution of Qasr Al

Hosn, Abu Dhabi and its people with displays of artefacts dating from 6000CE. Each exhibition space is connected with a simple, carefully crafted glass structure, creating calm contemplative spaces for the visitor to pause and experience the tranquility of the inner courtyard.

By contrast the Outer Palace, constructed by members of the local community between 1939 and 1945, had remained largely intact. It is a national monument, epitomising the development of Abu Dhabi, from a settlement reliant on fishing and pearling in the 18th century, to a modern global metropolis. During

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Today the building sits at the heart of downtown Abu Dhabi

the 1980s it had been adapted to accommodate the National Archive, a conversion that required significant intrusive structural intervention and modern services. Our brief was to sensitively and authentically restore the building, as far as possible, back to its original condition.

The palace is approximately 10,000sqm, built around the footprint of the original fort. Accommodation is arranged on two levels along the southern and eastern perimeter walls. Built of local materials including mangrove, date palm, coral and sea stone, its design and construction cleverly responds to the harsh desert

climate by absorbing the heat of the sun and channeling natural breezes to provide a relatively cool habitable environment.

The spaces within the Inner Fort and Outer Palace have a unique character and serene calm – a quiet, hallowed refuge from the surrounding urban environment. The grounds are sensitively landscaped with date palms which practically provided shading and food and whose aroma stimulates the memory of the fort as a family space, the heart of the home which only privileged guests could access.

The final building in the Qasr Al Hosn ensemble is the National Council

Chamber. Originally constructed as a Majlis in 1968, it was modified following the unification as the main meeting chamber for representatives of the newly formed Federation. Apart from the incorporation of a first floor viewing gallery both interior and exterior have been authentically restored.

Qasr Al Hosn sits at the northwest corner of a site opposite the iconic Cultural Foundation Building. This downtown city block containing two of the nation’s most significant buildings expresses the enduring legacy of Emirati heritage and identity for all to enjoy.