Project I Cultural Canyon.
Location I Baghdad, Iraq.
Type I Cultural Buildings.
Year I 2019.
Team Member I Islam Mashtooly, Mohamed Yasser, Abdelrahman Magdy, Ahmed Salah.
Renders I Mohamed Yasser, Karim Mousa.
- AWARDED THE 1ST PRIZE AT WORLD ARCHITECTURAL FESTIVAL (WAF 2019)
- HONORABLE MENTION AT RIFAT CHADIRJI PRIZE BY TAMAYOUZ AWARDS 2019.
At our core, we as humans desire both be held and be free. We naturally want to be able to see the sky, the garden, the people while feeling at the same time that we are contained within a safe space in an ever-threatening world. In our scheme the buildings take the form of a cultural canyon – a place where both the sky and enclosure are present. A place where people inhabit the space in a way that renders them both held and free. The design of the Baghdad design center and its landscape are based upon a sensitive and sympathetic approach to the cultural landscape of Baghdad. The elemental nature of the forms encourages people to flow within a new cultural core that is linked to the rest of the city through the port promenade and the pedestrian footbridge to the memorial walkway.
This flexible access not only invites the visitors but also serves as a key cultural space for the community. The skyline is composed by independent volumes highlighted by landmark tower. These geologically inspired fragments contain art exhibition spaces and allow strong integration with outdoor display and event spaces. The vertical sky galleries offer a new perspective over the city of Baghdad by bringing people up to a level where they can see the entire landscape of the city. The new Baghdad Design Centre is an opportunity to create a link between the City and the buildings using the transitional space of the void. This project is not limited to the restoration of historical buildings but also creates a new outdoor space to enrich the cultural landscape of Baghdad.
