Dubai Expo 2020 revealed the first images of its site portals. Designed by the British architecture studio Asif Khan; the three ultra-light, yet monumental site gates are ready to welcome almost 25 million visitors to the World Expo that will be held in Dubai starting from October 2020 to April 2021. The studio designed the three portals to be a landmark at the beginning and the end of the visitors’ journey in the 4.38 sq.km public realm; designed by HOK architects.
Photography by Helene Binet
Asif Khan follows the theme of Dubai Expo 2020: “Connecting Minds, Creating the Future”, to design high-tech perfectly functioning gates that express a sense of place. The designers borrowed the concept of the famous Islamic architectural element: Mashrabiya -carved wooden panels that were used to enclose windows and balconies to control shadow and airflow- and modified it in their futuristic technology; by folding, scaling, and choosing the right material. Photography by Helene Binet
“When you are given this opportunity to combine innovation and a sense of place you can suggest some kind of new regional aesthetic, which I see the portals as a means of exploring.” Said Khan. He spent three years on the design; trying to translate the experience of the transition from the past to the future; both physically and in a symbolic way. And to do this very lightly; carbon-fiber was the best material choice. It is both extremely light and very stiff, which helped ...