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LIWA DESERT HOTEL 

year: 2008 | typologie: commercial| status: concept

The basic intention of the design of this project lies in the feeling and experience of experiencing the desert. The basis is an existing hotel in the United Arab Emirates near the Liwa oasis. This oasis is located in one of the largest sandy deserts on earth, which is almost deserted and covers the southern third of the Arabian Peninsula. The facility is located on a hill in the immediate vicinity of the oasis, but with a strong reference to the endless expanse of the sand sea. For this project, the desert is perceived as a place of longing and not “hidden”, as in the conception of the existing structure, but rather should be perceived as part of the place. The existing structure is opened up and encased by a curtain wall that creates a flowing transition from the interior to the desert. The free-form terraces that arise in the roof landscape of the space between the hotel and the curtain open up a view of the desert and play with space and space, creating private and semi-public zones.

The entire area including the existing staff building is framed by an elliptical ring of new suites. The ring defines the architectural space and the boundaries of the facility. This effect is accentuated by protruding parts of the ring, under which the desert runs into the oasis. The relationship and atmospheric exchange with the desert are intensified.

The green heart of the facility is located between the existing hotel, which is also thermally optimized by the new shell, and the staff buildings, which are also being given a new look. Sunken and protected from evaporation in the area, it offers a counterpoint to the barren, surrounding desert landscape.

Liwa Hotel (Abu Dhabi) - top view of the adpatopn plans ny lechner lechner schallhammer architects
Liwa Hotel (Abu Dhabi) - top view of the adpatopn plans ny lechner lechner schallhammer architects
Liwa Hotel (Abu Dhabi) - top view of the adpatopn plans ny lechner lechner schallhammer architects
Liwa Hotel (Abu Dhabi) - top view of the adpatopn plans ny lechner lechner schallhammer architects

The heart is the public space of encounter, the center of the facility and paradise on earth. From this most intimate interior of the complex, small green tongues and areas of water lead out to the “desert apartments”. The units in this ring are entered via spatial depressions that are formulated as three-dimensional atria. In these inner courtyards there is a water surface designed for cooling. As you feel your way into the apartments, the room boundaries disappear due to the transparent architecture, so that nothing remains in the appearance except the deserted desert.

Liwa Hotel (Abu Dhabi) - top view of the adpatopn plans ny lechner lechner schallhammer architects

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