Intentar ORO - Gratis
The Public Knowledge Space OMA, Qatar National Library, Doha
Domus India
|Febuary 2019
Simplicity and complexity Gulf states and the public realm Enclosed urban spaces
-

The new Qatar National Library in Doha, which opened last year, was originally conceived as a library for Education City, a district that is home to nine branches of Western universities, colleges and other educational and research institutions. The Qatar Foundation for Education, Science and Community Development has been building this campus for over 20 years. Like many other buildings in Education City, such as the Convention Centre by Japanese architect Arata Isozaki, the design of the library was entrusted to a famous architectural firm: the Office for Metropolitan Architecture (OMA) led by Rem Koolhaas.OMA is also responsible for the Qatar Foundation’s headquarters in the 14-squarekilometre educational district. This multifunctional building, comprising two rectangular boxes stacked on top of each other, is a masterful interplay of simplicity and complexity. Behind the four identical, pixel-like facades with countless differently sized square openings, there is a surprising cavity that, with its bridges and cantilevered elements, is just as surreal as the delirious Carceri prints by Giovanni Battista Piranesi.
Co-founded in 1995 by its current chair, Sheikha Moza bint Nasser, the Qatar Foundation has great ambitions. More than any of the other oilrich lands – such as the United Arab Emirates where museums, hotels and offices are being rapidly erected in Dubai and Abu Dhabi – Qatar is focusing on the knowledge economy as an alternative source of prosperity for the dwindling oil and gas reserves that have made it the richest country in the world. Education City is set to become an international centre with world-class educational facilities.
Esta historia es de la edición Febuary 2019 de Domus India.
Suscríbete a Magzter GOLD para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 9000 revistas y periódicos.
¿Ya eres suscriptor? Iniciar sesión
Translate
Change font size