Role: Architect (Bernard Khoury Architects/DW5)
Location: Seef, Bahrain
Status: 2009
Developer: Private developer
Type: Architecture competition for Mixed-Use building (Shortlisted)
Size: 530,000 sf / 49,000 m2
The Seef District Mixed Use Development is located in an emerging sector of the Manama sea-front extension where a number of large-scale projects will be developed. The proposal rests on the celebration of dynamic public spaces and the synergy between all components of the project. The project is divided into podium base and tower. At ground level, there are eighteen double height retail spaces and then a podium with five levels of parking (the high water table did not allow for underground parking). The tower above holds hotel, residence, and amenities in a single system, consolidating necessary services. A new public instance is created at the new reference level which is elevated above the retail and parking podium to provide a generous panorama along its entire periphery.
The proposed tower façade is composed of a several modules with minimal protrusions, ranging from 60 to 120 cm that act as sun breakers, planters, or window frames. The density and irregularity of their distribution vividly animate the façade. This effect is further exaggerated by the selective subtraction of grouped modules to create suspended gardens that visually link the inner void to the open air.