Mecanoo completes rock-like Natural History Museum Abu Dhabi
Pixelated white-concrete forms resembling rock formations define this sprawling museum by Dutch studio Mecanoo, located in the cultural district on Saadiyat Island in Abu Dhabi.
Encompassing 35,000 square metres, the vast Natural History Museum Abu Dhabi was created to encapsulate 13.8 billion years of natural history, with a special emphasis on the UAE.
It is distinguished by its blocky white-concrete exterior, which is dotted with planting and was designed by Mecanoo to resemble rock formations and cellular structures, paying homage to the museum's content.
This geometric look is continued to the building's landscaping, which incorporates public walkways along the island's waterfront and a central courtyard around which the building is organised.
"From the beginning, our intention was that the architecture would not merely house the story of natural history, but actively tell it," Mecanoo partner Nuno Fontarra told Dezeen.
"This building is far more than a container," he continued. "It is a storyteller in its own right."
According to the studio, the scale of the Natural History Museum Abu Dhabi was dictated by the programme, with one gallery even built around the skeleton of a blue whale.
The main structure is formed of concrete, while its exterior is wrapped in ridged panels of ultra-high performance concrete (UHPC) chosen to ensure "durability in the desert climate".
Natural History Museum Abu Dhabi is accessed by a walkway that cuts through the fragmented exterior of the building and opens into a dramatic ground-floor atrium and events space.
This area is illuminated by deep skylights and filled with a collection of fossils of long-necked sauropod dinosaurs.
"The atrium was designed to create a sense of surprise for visitors," said Fontarra. "While it relates to the modular geometry of the exterior, it offers a completely different perspective on those modules: they are cut and arranged almost like an urban cave."
"The atrium has a strong architectural character, making it not only a central hub for circulation and orientation but also an iconic space in Abu Dhabi that visitors will remember in its own right."
From the lobby, escalators lead down into the four immersive galleries that take visitors chronologically through time, depicting different landscapes and epochs.
Some of them feature mezzanine levels, while others have glass floors, both allowing close-up looks at some of the exhibits.
Highlights of the galleries include two Tyrannosaurus rex fossils displayed together – a world first – and a fragment of the Murchison Meteorite that predates Earth by billions of years.
Alongside its permanent galleries, the Natural History Museum Abu Dhabi also includes research and teaching facilities, a theatre and temporary exhibition space.
These lower-level galleries are organised around a courtyard with a pond, which creates a connecting loop and helps visitors to orient themselves. As the building is largely windowless to minimise heat gain and control lighting in the galleries, the courtyard also draws light into the building.
The landscape surrounding the museum is modelled on a desert wadi and scattered with plants and animal sculptures.
"The terrain, water features, and carefully selected local vegetation guide visitors, provide shade in the harsh climate, and create moments of discovery," said Fontarra.
"The plants themselves become part of the museum experience, functioning as an educational garden that teaches about the region's ecology," he explained.
"In this way, the building and landscape work together to create a space where architecture, nature, and learning merge, making the museum not just a landmark but a living part of Saadiyat Island."
The Natural History Museum Abu Dhabi is the latest addition to the cultural district of Saadiyat Island, which is home to Jean Nouvel's Louvre Abu Dhabi, the upcoming Zayed National Museum by Foster + Partners and Guggenheim Abu Dhabi by Frank Gehry.
It was designed by Mecanoo for Abu Dhabi's Department of Culture and Tourism, and developed in collaboration with entertainment company Miral.
Mecanoo is a Dutch architecture studio founded in the Netherlands in 1984 by Dutch architect Francine Houben.
Other cultural projects by the studio include the world's largest performing arts centre in Taiwan and The Longgang Cultural Centre in Shenzhen, China, which occupies a row of four angular red buildings designed by Mecanoo.
The photography is by the Natural History Museum Abu Dhabi unless stated otherwise.
The post Mecanoo completes rock-like Natural History Museum Abu Dhabi appeared first on Dezeen.
