{"id":744653,"date":"2024-07-01T09:00:14","date_gmt":"2024-07-01T08:00:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.architectsjournal.co.uk\/?p=744653"},"modified":"2024-07-01T09:03:15","modified_gmt":"2024-07-01T08:03:15","slug":"baca-reveals-designs-for-contest-winning-saudi-red-sea-visitor-centre","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.architectsjournal.co.uk\/news\/baca-reveals-designs-for-contest-winning-saudi-red-sea-visitor-centre","title":{"rendered":"Baca reveals designs for contest-winning Saudi Red Sea visitor centre"},"content":{"rendered":"

The London practice specialises in floating and flood-resilient building typologies and was one of 2020\u2019s AJ100 Disruptors<\/a>.<\/p>\n

It was selected to work on the project by Baheej Hospitality \u2013 a collaboration between the Saudi Tourism Investment Company (Asfar), a subsidiary of the Public Investment Fund (PIF), and the alliance of AWN Enterprises and Tamimi Group, a private joint venture.<\/p>\n

The scheme, inspired by the historic nearby village of Yanbu Al Nakhl, will deliver a guest orientation exhibition featuring map rooms and local visitor information along with an observation tower with views over the Red Sea. The complex is intended as a gateway for domestic tourists visiting the region.<\/p>\n

Baca\u2019s design features a \u2018rugged profile\u2019 intended to echo the silhouette of nearby mountains with materials and colouration inspired by the ancient village of Yanbu Al Nakhl.<\/p>\n

Practice director Richard Coutts said: \u2018On our site visit to the coast, we called by Yanbu al Nakhal, which means \u201cspring of the date palms\u201d \u2013 a thousand-year-old settlement that, in its prime, would have been made up of approximately 300 thriving villages dotted with neatly planted and watered farms.<\/p>\n

\u2018Thousands of years ago, channels were built to bring water from the mountains to the valley. These wadis were lush green against a backdrop of searing heat featuring strong reds and browns of the dessert.<\/p>\n

\u2018Within this oasis, low-lying stone and earth buildings weaved across the land built on escarpments or higher ground to capture upward draft floor cooling, producing strong silhouettes on the horizon.\u2019<\/p>\n

Coutts said that following the visit to Yanbu Al Nakhl, the client body and design team \u2018reached a consensus that it should be a low building, solid in stature with a bold silhouette.<\/p>\n

\u2018I was taken aback by the alternating shadow play of proud and recessed compositions within the settlement,\u2019 he said. \u2018There is a timeless and endearing quality at this locale \u2013 echoes of which we wished to capture with the new building.\u2019<\/p>\n

\"Baca

Baca Architects has been commissioned to create a new visitor centre and viewing tower at Yanbu in Saudi Arabia<\/p>\n\t

<\/p><\/p><\/div>\n

The centre\u2019s design was developed in collaboration with project manager CRAFT, interior designer Wells International and exhibition designer kudos.nyc<\/a>.<\/p>\n

British practices accepting work in Saudi Arabia continue to provoke debate.<\/p>\n

Last month, the AJ reported<\/a> that the RIBA and Heatherwick Studio had both defended their appearance on a UK-Saudi trade panel following claims in the national media<\/a> that Saudi forces had been permitted the use of lethal force to clear land to make way for the controversial Line scheme.<\/p>\n

Baca\u2019s appointment on the Red Sea project comes three years after it won an international competition to design a \u00a317 million (AUS $30 million) Ocean Discovery Centre<\/a> near Perth, Australia.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The London practice specialises in floating and flood-resilient building typologies and was one of 2020\u2019s AJ100 Disruptors. It was selected to work on the project by Baheej Hospitality \u2013 a collaboration between the Saudi Tourism Investment Company (Asfar), a subsidiary of the Public Investment Fund (PIF), and the alliance of AWN Enterprises and Tamimi Group, …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2350,"featured_media":744654,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_oasis_is_in_workflow":0,"_oasis_original":0,"ep_exclude_from_search":false},"categories":[681],"tags":[3290,2121,3812],"yoast_head":"\nBaca reveals designs for contest-winning Saudi Red Sea visitor centre<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Baca Architects has won an invited tender to create a new visitor centre and viewing tower at Yanbu in Saudi Arabia\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" 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