Students from American University of Sharjah’s (AUS) College of Architecture, Art and Design (CAAD) combined virtual reality with architectural renderings to create an immersive experience.
2040: d3 Architecture Exhibition at Dubai Design Week
As part of the 2040: d3 Architecture Exhibition at Dubai Design Week, recent AUS graduates Ali Sader, Arian Saghafifar and Mohamed Fakhry presented their work entitled Monolithic Inhabitation, which was developed during their final year of studies at CAAD. Dedicated to architecture, the 2040: d3 Architecture Exhibition, aimed at gathering Dubai Design District (d3), and regionally based architecture firms, studios and visionary architects, around a central theme by making d3 the launchpad of their proposals and ideas.
Potential for virtual reality in design
Working under the guidance of Professor of Architecture Michael Hughes, students from AUS designed an affordable housing unit set on their campus that can temporarily accommodate visiting professors. The proposed design integrates sustainable practices, such as using local materials, environmental building systems, passive ventilation strategies and indirect sunlight to reduce heat and create a cave-like atmosphere within the interior spaces.
“As architects, we often do a whole lot of imagining. We observe renders and drawings and imagine, imagine and imagine how a space could look and feel. Yet, when it comes to Virtual Reality (VR) that is when the imagination stops and those projects become a reality,” said Sader – one of the graduates who is part of the initiative.
Key participants
The exhibition also featured works by students of AUS architecture professors Patrick Rhodes and Gregory Spaw, shown alongside the works of major architectural firms such as Dabbagh Architects, MEAN* Middle East Architecture Network, RMJM Dubai, Beyrac Architects and Tariq Khayyal Design Partners. International award-winning firm X-Architects founded by AUS alumni Ahmed Al Ali and Farid Esmaeil exhibited their work as well. All designs were submitted with the goals of ‘The Dubai 2040 Urban Master Plan’ for sustainable urban development in mind.
Dubai 2040 Urban Master Plan
Dubai is set to completely transform within the next 20 years, following the unveiling of the Dubai 2040 Urban Master Plan in March 2021.
Introduced by HH Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, the plan will focus on boosting the quality of living in Dubai by improving infrastructure and development.
According to HH, the new 2040 vision is a continuation of Sheikh Rashid bin Saeed Al Maktoum’s vision in the 1960s to turn the emirate into a city “that promotes the greatest human values.”
Underpinned by a strengthened focus on sustainability, it is the seventh such plan developed for Dubai since the ’60s. It seeks to improve urban areas by developing vibrant, healthy, and inclusive communities and by doubling green and leisure areas.
Five urban centres
The masterplan focuses on five key districts of Dubai: Deira and Bur Dubai, Downtown and Business Bay, Expo 2020 Centre, Dubai Silicon Oasis Centre and Dubai Marina and JBR, the latter being described as the city’s tourism centres.
Growth rooted in sustainability
On the topic of hospitality, the plan will increase the land area used for hotels and tourist activities by 134 percent.
The statement revealed: “Under the plan, green and recreational spaces and areas dedicated to public parks will double in size to serve the growing number of number of residents and visitors. Nature reserves and rural natural areas will constitute 60 percent of the emirate’s total area. Several green corridors will be established to link the service areas, residential areas and workplaces, facilitate the movement of pedestrians, bicycles, and sustainable mobility means across the city, in coordination with developers and government departments.”