T exture is the key word in the design of this building. It's all about conveying a physical sensation visually. The building is a traditional skyscraper block surrounded by an undulating skin punctured by circular holes of several sizes. It's not the first building to be compared with a cheese grater, but it is perhaps the most deserving.
But this lacework is more than just decoration. It is a concrete shell that forms part of the building's superstructure. It also serves to shade the building's interior from the Middle Eastern sun. It's a modern interpretation of the sun fins and visors used in buildings in the 1970's and 1980's, only better. By spacing the skin three feet away from the glass of the interior structure, warm air is able to rise along the outside of the building, leaving cooler air against the windows and reducing the need for air conditioning. The pockmarked skin truly not just another hanging glass curtain wall of which there are thousands already in Dubai.
Though it appears random, the tower rising above the massive podium is actually a fairly straightforward affair. The flat sides of a rounded square have been pinched inward to create a sinuous form that begs to be touched. From the inside, the result is an irregular floor plan that provides a wider viewing angle than most buildings, and unusual windows through which to look.
But more than looking outward, the building has taken inward steps to make it a modern building. Too often in the bravado and excess that permeates Dubai, proper urban design practices are cast aside. O14 doesn't do that. It puts the parking underneath where it belongs. In other nearby buildings the podium is used for parking and mechanical functions. Here it houses restaurants, a showroom, and an outdoor public space.
Leo Pineda
Wednesday, March 25th, 2009 @ 10:56pm
Rating: Five stars. It is very unusual to see an structure like this, but more beyond is the skills and overview of the team leader that creates the concept and apply new technics. The most important is the new concepts to keep harmony betwen nature and urbanism.
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Leo Pineda
Five stars.