Incubator - Flamingo Visitor Center
Al Wathba has established not only a famous resort for tourists, more importantly, is about the uniqueness of its breeder characteristic for a rich array of wildlife and threatened wetland species. Among years, numerous visitors from universities and colleges come here to study as their educational curriculum. Some of the scholars even settle down here for years for their observation and research. The place deserves better facilities and infrastructure for increasing trips from outside. That’s where this ‘incubator’ project starts.
The question is always around how we capture the uniqueness of the site and the creatures live on it. As the capital of UAE, Abu Dhabi has developed its unique characteristic, which merges desert scenery and oceanic view. Both geographical factors and modern technologies strongly influenced its architecture and turned the built environment into an oasis. Taking the Al Wathba as a miniature of Abu Dhabi, we aim to design a visitor center that will be the incubator and growing into an oasis. The design of this building will be adaptable to the local desert climate, and exploring new approaches to bring sustainable bamboo material and vernacular palm leaves into the modern built environment.
The ‘flamingos’ we are talking here is not just ‘flamingo’, but the hundreds of protected species exist altogether in this wetland. The ‘egg’ is built intending to become another landmark humbly seating beside the skyscrapers in the downtown, arouse enough attention from the global world. The egg dropped from the sky, will become a breeder nursing more creature, lead more awareness and provide better environment for researchers undertake their biological studies.
Client: Abu Dhabi Environmental Agency
Collaborate Team: Wenqi Huang, Yi Yan