Tabula Rasa in the United Arab Emirates

Big-name architects have appropriately big plans for the rapidly developing United Arab Emirates. Creating a new cultural capital is appealing to them, but not as much as the fact that getting it done will be easier than anywhere else in the world.

2 minute read

January 24, 2008, 12:00 PM PST

By Nate Berg


"The elaborate press conference, presided over by Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed al-Nahyan, the crown prince of Abu Dhabi and the architects' patron, generated predictable buzz in the art and architecture worlds and the global press. New York Times architecture critic Nicolai Ouroussoff, for instance, gave the project a wholly optimistic and humanistic spin. 'With once proud cities like Beirut and Baghdad ripped apart by political conflict bordering on civil war,' he wrote, the plan offers 'a chance to plant the seeds for a fertile new cultural model in the Middle East.'"

"But it was hardly the chance to engage the cultural history of the region that drew the four architects to Abu Dhabi. The lure, many of them said, was precisely the opposite: the pure tabula rasa potential-the rare chance to design huge, innovative buildings with virtually no budget constraints, no historic-preservation groups to contend with, and no lengthy environmental reviews to endure. Gehry himself, who can be mercifully direct, summed up the opportunity best: 'It's like a clean slate in a country full of resources,' he said of the plot of land set aside for the new Guggenheim, which is surrounded on three sides by water and on the fourth by desert."

"Never have the divisions between autocratic and democratic architecture seemed as stark as they do now. The former comprises the most innovative designs now on the boards or under construction around the world. Along with the Abu Dhabi extravaganza, they include a stadium by the Swiss firm Herzog & de Meuron for the Beijing Olympics that will be wrapped in a tangle of concrete trusses (see "Beijing's New Flame," December 2007); a six-hundred-and-fifty-foot-high translucent tent that British architect Norman Foster is creating for Astana, the capital of Kazakhstan, so that residents can "play outdoor tennis, take boat rides, or sip coffee at the pavement cafés," as the BBC put it, even when it's twenty below zero outside; and a raft of dazzling designs for Dubai, Abu Dhabi's leading rival in the race to bring glamour and skyscrapers to the Persian Gulf."

Thursday, January 24, 2008 in Conde Nast Traveler

courses user

As someone new to the planning field, Planetizen has been the perfect host guiding me into planning and our complex modern challenges. Corey D, Transportation Planner

As someone new to the planning field, Planetizen has been the perfect host guiding me into planning and our complex modern challenges.

Corey D, Transportation Planner

Ready to give your planning career a boost?

View of dense apartment buildings on Seattle waterfront with high-rise buildings in background.

Seattle Legalizes Co-Living

A new state law requires all Washington cities to allow co-living facilities in areas zoned for multifamily housing.

December 1, 2024 - Smart Cities Dive

Times Square in New York City empty during the Covid-19 pandemic.

NYC Officials Announce Broadway Pedestrianization Project

Two blocks of the marquee street will become mostly car-free public spaces.

December 1, 2024 - StreetsBlog NYC

Broken, uneven sidewalk being damaged by large tree roots in Los Angeles, California.

The City of Broken Sidewalks

Can Los Angeles fix 4,000 miles of broken sidewalks before the city hosts the 2028 Olympic Games?

December 5, 2024 - Donald Shoup

View from back of classroom of elementary school children at desks with raised hands engaged in class.

Why Some Affordable Housing Managers Are Running Education Programs

Many housing organizations are finding that educational programs are a logical — and valuable — addition to their offerings.

December 9 - Shelterforce Magazine

Anchorage Public Transportation

Anchorage Bus Depot to Reopen

After a four-year closure, a downtown Anchorage transit center will once again provide indoor waiting areas and services for bus travelers.

December 9 - Anchorage Daily News

Tall mature green trees lining a concrete walkway next to a street with multistory apartment buildings on other side and sun filtering through the leaves.

Mapping a Greener Future: Cal Poly Tackles Urban Canopy Challenges

Cal Poly, in partnership with Cal Fire, is leading the development of California’s new Strategic Plan for Urban Forestry, combining advanced data tools and interdisciplinary collaboration to expand tree canopy cover.

December 9 - Cal Poly News