GODWIN AUSTEN JOHNSON
EDUCATION
01
WHO WE ARE GAJ is one of the largest and longest-established UK architectural and design practices in the UAE. Throughout our 25 year history we have created some of Dubai’s most iconic buildings and have helped define the emirate as we know it today.
In 1991 Principal and Managing Partner Brian Johnson opened the GAJ headquarters in Dubai. He had been practising in the emirate since 1975 and saw exciting opportunities to contribute to the development of a new world city.
Arguably, it was GAJ who set in motion a countrywide trend in the UAE to incorporate traditional Islamic themes into modern architecture. Bab Al Shams and the Arabian Courtyard, Residence and Spa at The One&Only Royal Mirage Hotel remain a testament to this.
An award-winning and multi-disciplinary architecture practice, we have specific expertise in hotel and hospitality, residential and commercial, education, sport and leisure design.
With nearly 40 years of regional experience to his name Brian’s influence on modern Middle Eastern architecture has been pervasive. GAJ’s body of work comprises some of Dubai’s most recognisable and prized buildings.
GAJ originally started in the UK in 1989 as Godwin Austen Johnson. However our lineage of partnerships harks back to 1847 with a corporate archive of landmark British architecture throughout the industrial and modern ages.
The Dubai Creek Golf Clubhouse was the first building in Dubai whose physical status is matched by its status as a local emblem - so much so it features on the 20 dirham note.
Brian’s approach to design is still embraced by the team at GAJ today and continues to attract new business opportunities from across the region. It stems from a fundamental belief that architecture should not only be contextually relevant but also rooted firmly in principles of sustainability.
GAJ is committed to the belief that the quality of the built environment is an essential part of the economic and cultural fabric of society in which the very best architecture plays a central and intrinsic role. As a fully integrated design practice we provide expertise in the associated disciplines of architecture, interior design, specialist lighting, and MEP.
WHAT WE DO H O S P I TA L I T Y
E D U C AT I O N
RESIDENTIAL
COMMERCIAL
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MASTERPLANNING
OUR CLIENTS
S H A R J A H A R T F O U N D AT I O N
EDUCATION
LADYBIRD
Early Learning Centre Dubai, UAE Client: Type: Year:
From the outset both the design team and client agreed that the major inspiration for the design of the Ladybird Early Learning Centre should inspire young minds through the creative use of natural light, views, internal and external spatial sequences. In keeping with this, and the LEED Gold aspiration, the team created a simple contemporary structure that responds to the site and environment in a holistic and low tech approach. All classrooms facing onto the courtyard have large glazed screens that open onto shaded play decks that further blurs the distinction between inside and out. This interior landscape was designed to enable pupils to learn by discovery and exploration. Internal streets with road markings and roundabouts, and even a duck pond, are punctuated with houses between each open classrooms to represent an exterior landscape. The houses double as bathrooms, storage and washing facilities for both children and adults. Each of the age groups is represented by a different colour of ladybird to delineate departments.
Arcadia Education 2015 - 2016 (Built)
THE ARCADIA
Preparatory School Dubai, UAE Client: Type: Year:
Arcadia Education 2015 - 2016 (Built)
THE ARCADIA Secondary School Dubai, UAE Client: Type: Year:
Arcadia Education Under construction
Designed as an educational facility for secondary grade students, The Arcadia Secondary School is a new purpose-built school adjacent to The Arcadia Preparatory School. The building, which will comfortably accommodate up to 800 students, is designed with the majority of ground floor classrooms opening onto open protected spaces to the rear providing children with safe access to play areas from their classrooms. Internally, classrooms are bright with ample daylight and with large corridors providing social spaces for children. Recreational play areas include a soccer pitch and sports courts, multipurpose hall and swimming pool are provided on different levels of the building. The school is designed in line with sustainable building practices to provide an optimally safe, healthy, comfortable, and productive learning environment for students and a pleasant working environment for faculty and staff.
CRANLEIGH SCHOOL Abu Dhabi, UAE Client: Type: Year:
TDIC Education 2011 - 2014
Built over seven hectares of land, Cranleigh Abu Dhabi stands as the largest school campus in Abu Dhabi, with open green spaces and extensive landscaping at the gateway to the cultural heart of Saadiyat Island.
The campus is focused around a village green, reflecting the structure of the existing school in the UK. The buildings are all strategically positioned around the green to allow the best views towards the coastline and to optimise the prevailing wind direction onto the site. The school comprises of a senior school, junior school, sports complex, specialist arts centre and technology centre along with accommodation for staff and students.
The buildings are all strategically positioned around the green to allow the best views towards the coastline and to optimise the prevailing wind direction onto the site.
GEMS INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL Dubai, UAE
Client: Type: Year:
GEMS Education Education 2011 - 2014
The design focused on ensuring that all areas were seen as engaging and inspirational, providing “positive spaces� both internally and externally, to foster teaching and learning opportunities. Emphasis was also placed on integration, energy efficiency and durability to reduce high operating and maintenance costs. The two L-shaped buildings provide shelter to the large central courtyard that connects the junior and senior schools, while
- Designed as an IB curriculum school for approx 2,500 students from KG - G12 - Layout utilises two L-shaped blocks divided by the main multipurpose hall creates differing courtyards for the kindergarten and junior school - Particular emphasis was given to the design of the KG environment to achieve a protected and nurturing series of spaces that responds to the ergonomics and scale of the youngest pupils - Main entrance and administration block is located between both the junior and senior school for efficiency and legibility - Palate is mainly light neutral backgrounds with natural wood and colour highlights for improved way finding and orientation
to this all classrooms have exposure to internal courtyards to maximise natural daylight. Central common areas open up along the main student corridor, offering circulation relief and stairwells are widened to support student interaction. The minimalism of the internal architecture allows the space to be adapted for different teaching uses or collaborative environments.
classroom spaces surround the centre of the school to provide optimum proximity to the shared learning spaces between year groups. Most classrooms are laid out on a north & east orientation to minimise solar heat gains and provide a diffused light. In addition
GEMS METROPOLE Dubai, UAE Client: Type: Capacity: Area: Year:
GEMS Education Education 4,200 Pupils 23,000m2 2011 - 2014
A simple palette of external materials were selected to help accentuate the playfull massing which has been carefully modelled to reduce the bulk of the overall development.
Location: Type: Status: Project Value
Dubai, UAE Interior Design 2011 -2014 AED 100m
- Designed as a British curriculum school for approx 4,000 students from KG - G13 - Layout utilises a series of simple and playful efficient forms to define the kindergarten, primary and secondary schools - Particular emphasis was given to the design of the KG environment to achieve a protected and nurturing series of spaces that responds to the ergonomics and scale of the youngest pupils - Main entrance foyer is clearly defined as a triple height atrium that connects the junior and senior school. It also doubles as the parents waiting area and pre function space for school events. - Palate is mainly light neutral backgrounds with natural wood and colour highlights for improved way finding and orientation
LITTLE GEMS INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL Dubai, UAE
- Designed as two simple rectangular blocks linked by a curvilinear play enclosure in an established urban area - Massing is simple and playful with random window openings relating to the ergonomics and scale of the young pupils - Entrance and administration block are located on the main faced for greater legibility and security - Palate is mainly light neutral backgrounds with natural wood and colour highlights for improved way finding and orientation
Client: Type: Year:
GEMS Education Education 2011 - 2014
This will be the first project in a new wave of specifically designed kindergartens for the GEMS education group. Each design will seek to maximise the potential of the site to achieve a balance of internal and external spaces but also enrich the learning experience of its young pupils. The simple ‘T’ shaped plan splits the accommodation and massing into the staff and support wing and a teaching wing. Large glazed screens at the ground floor ensure the classrooms have the maximum amount of light and view onto the landscaped gardens, whilst the floating box of upper classrooms have windows strategically placed at a lower height for the children to be able to use.
Interior Design by AK Design
EMIRATES INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL Dubai, UAE Client: Type: Capacity: BUA: Year:
Emirates International School Education 800 students 12,000 sqm 2015 - 2016
Located on Al Thanya Street the school is well established and is outgrowing its current series of original single storey buildings. The plot is well positioned to serve the surrounding communities and has a good elongated frontage which allows separate access and drop off for the key components of the EYS, primary and secondary blocks. In order to accommodate the new school, the existing single storey buildings located on the northern quarter of the site will be demolished and the site cleared. Partial demolition of the existing plant areas will also be included and the additional space allocated to the EYS build. Great care has been taken to design an engaging and fun environment whilst offering the teaching staff the flexibility to deliver a progressive educational curriculum. Where possible the individual blocks have been orientated to create self-shading courtyards which become the focal point of the external play spaces and help overcome the site restrictions of the plant area and proximity to the two storey primary school. A simple material palette of EIFS external render, aluminium composite cladding and quality glazing units is proposed to comply with the Green Building Code whilst remaining economical.
GEMS AL WAHA SCHOOL Dubai, UAE Client: Type: Capacity: BUA: Year:
GEMS Education Education 4,260 students 26,500 sqm 2015 - 2017
Located near Qudra Road next to Sustainable City, Arabian Ranches 2 and the Layan developments, the plot is well positioned to serve these existing communities and in the future the Akoya plot which is currently under construction. It will accommodate approximately 4,260 students over three storeys and within an approximate total BUA of 26,500sqm. The proposed site has a good elongated frontage which allows separate access and drop off for the key components of the foundation stage building, primary and secondary blocks. Where possible the individual blocks have been orientated to create self shading courtyards which become the focal point of the external play spaces. In line with the existing Metropole school, a simple material palette of EIFS external render, aluminium composite cladding and quality glazing units is proposed to meet the target construction budget.
BRADENTON ACADEMY Dubai, UAE One of the first co-education schools approved by KHDA, Bradenton Academy provides a rigorous and comprehensive American university preparatory curriculum from prekindergarten to grade 12. Combining the best practices of a progressive education with a classical foundation, students are engaged as individuals and inspired to invest in the process of their own education.
Client: Type: Year: Project Value:
Dubai Sports City Education 2009 AED 146m
DUBAI COLLEGE NEW ADMIN BUILDING Dubai, UAE
DUBAI COLLEGE SPORTS HALL Dubai, UAE
DUBAI COLLEGE AUDITORIUM Dubai, UAE
Godwin Austen Johnson have been involved with the continuing growth and development of the college since its inauguration in 1979. GAJ has been responsible for the complete design of this Secondary School, comprising classrooms, specialist laboratories, swimming pool, lecture theatre, multipurpose hall, design technology centre, and associated external works. The latest phase of development completed in 2009 is a state-of-the-art 900 seat auditorium, staff accommodation building and sixth form extensions to the existing college.
ARCADIA AL FURJAN SCHOOL Dubai, UAE
Option 1 Client: Type: Year:
Arcadia Education 2014 - Ongoing
ARCADIA AL FURJAN SCHOOL Dubai, UAE
Option 2
GEMS AMERICAN ACADEMY Waqeer, Qatar
Based on an evolution of the standard mid market design, the brief for this project was to provide an innovative, economical and efficient through school, whilst providing the best possible educational spaces for 4,200 students over 23,000sqm. Our approach ensures a high quality of both internal and external environment that reflects and enhances the user experience for each of the different academic age programmes.
Client: Type: BUA: Capacity: Year:
Fortes School Education 21,000 sqm 800 students 2014 - 2016
SUNMARKE SCHOOL Dubai, UAE
SHARJAH ENGLISH SCHOOL Sharjah, UAE
A new building to provide for a new FS1 and FS2 facility aswell as a Key Stage 1 (Years 1 and 2) cluster of classrooms and facilities. A new primary multi-purpose hall and primary library would also be part of the new building. The current primary building would then house Key Stage 2 (Years 3 to 6) and would have ample space for the classrooms and facilities required.
GAJ evolved the idea of the use of large bowspring arched concrete structure which provided the headroom needed above the central areas of the indoor pitch and reflected the likely trajectory of the balls at the edges, thus providing a building that was both attractive and exciting architecturally. The indoor cricket nets also benefited from the same design logic
DUBAI SPORTS CITY ACADEMIES Dubai, UAE Client: Type: Year: Project Value:
Dubai Sports City Sports & Leisure 2006 - 2010 AED 412m
Godwin Austen Johnson were appointed by Dubai Sports City to design the flagship academy buildings to house the Manchester United Football Training Centre, the ICC Cricket Global Academy, FIH Hockey Academy and Bradenton Preparatory Academy, but also housing additional training and club facilities for various other sports .
which is then used to accommodate all of the supporting changing room areas, Olympic size indoor swimming pool, gymnasium and cafĂŠ areas. The design had to take into account the need for large clear span spaces, especially for the full size indoor football pitch, without resulting in a large and ugly shed structure.
OTHER EDUCATION PROJECTS
REPTON SCHOOL
CHOUEIFAT SCHOOL
GEMS Our Own English School
GEMS Winchester
GEMS GPWS City
Abu Dhabi, UAE
Abu Dhabi, UAE
Dubai, UAE
Dubai, UAE
Dubai, UAE
AUS SCHOOL OF BUSINESS MANAGEMENT
AUS PAVILION
JUMEIRAH PRIMARY KS2
DUBAI BRITISH SCHOOL AUDITORIUM
SHARJAH INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY
Sharjah, UAE
Sharjah, UAE
Dubai, UAE
Dubai, UAE
Sharjah, UAE
SHARJAH ARTS ACADEMY
AUS WOMEN’S DORMITORY
DUBAI COLLEGE
AUS PAVILION
Sharjah, UAE
Sharjah, UAE
Dubai, UAE
Abu Dhabi [since 2009]
Dubai HQ [since 1991]
Sharjah [since 2008]
United Kingdom [since 1847]
GAJ
Qatar Saudi Arabia Oman [since 2013] [since 2013] [since 2013]
ARCHITECTURE INTERIOR DESIGN MEP SPECIALIST LIGHTING
GAJ HEADQUARTERS
GAJ ABU DHABI
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