Brutalism and underground fight clubs were used as a point of reference for VSHD Design when designing this gym in Dubai.
Set within a Dubai shopping mall, the gym is the latest outpost from fitness company Warehouse Gym. It already has five branches across the city, which each seek to blend exercise and club culture by providing live DJs and nightclub-style lighting during workouts.
For the Springs Souk location of Warehouse Gym ? which is shortlisted in the 2019 Dezeen Awards ? Dubai and Montréal-based studio VSHD Design wanted to create an exercise space with an "underground feel" for "serious workouts".

The interior takes cues from brutalist architecture and features raw stamped concrete walls, beams and columns.
Existing concrete beams, columns and walls were combined with strategically placed new partitions to define distinct zones for different aspects of training.
Overhead, a coffered ceiling conceals an elaborate network of advanced lighting technology that's designed to further emphasise the gym's underground feel.
Instead of the singular, fully-lit environment of a traditional gym, the lighting system can create a variety of moods and accentuate individual spaces and activities.
Circular niches have also been carved out of the ceiling and backlit to appear as faux skylights.

The concealed network of lighting is installed on a customised grid structure with a track system that runs in all directions throughout the space.
The flexible tracks...