Concrete Dubai, Alserkal Avenue Building, Images, Design, UAE Exhibition of Syrian Art, News

Concrete Venue Dubai Alserkal Avenue by OMA

Syrian Art Exhibition UAE: Architecture – design by OMA, Architects

17May 2020

photo © Adrian Welch

25 Apr 2019
Concrete at Alserkal Avenue Dubai, shortlisted for 2019 Aga Khan Award for Architecture

This Dubai Arts building designed by celebrated Dutch architects OMA is one of the 20 shortlisted projects for the 2019 Aga Khan Award for Architecture, competing for US$ 1 million in prize money.

Concrete at Alserkal Avenue Dubai shortlisted for 2019 Aga Khan Award for Architecture

16 Mar 2017

Concrete Alserkal Avenue

Concrete, OMA’s first completed project in UAE

Design: OMA

Concrete, OMA’s first completed project in the United Arab Emirates, opens at Alserkal Avenue

The limitless space will transform the cultural ecosystem and possibilities in the UAE.

Modulating exterior of Concrete, designed by Office for Metropolitan Architecture (OMA):

Photos: Mohamed Somji, courtesy Alserkal Avenue

Dubai, 16 March 2017: Alserkal Avenue has inaugurated Concrete, its new space in the Avenue and the first project to be completed in the United Arab Emirates by the Office for Metropolitan Architecture (OMA), founded by Pritzker Architecture Prize Laureate Rem Koolhaas.

Abdelmonem Bin Eisa Alserkal, patron and founder of Alserkal Avenue, said, “Over the last decade, Alserkal Avenue has grown and evolved organically with the arts and culture scene of the United Arab Emirates. The introduction of Concrete marks a new milestone in the cultural advancement of the region.”

At the crossroads of modular design and modern architecture, Concrete is a collection of warehouses that have been conserved and re-imagined, offering the dimensions and volume of industrial spaces for a variety of projects.

Marking the first instance of such flexible, adaptive architecture in the United Arab Emirates, Concrete is set to have a lasting impact on the cultural sector in the region.

Concrete opening press conference Vilma Jurkute, Iyad Alsaka, Rem Koolhaas, Abdelmonem Bin Eisa Alserkal:

At the press conference inaugurating Concrete, Rem Koolhaas, founder of OMA, stated, “Dubai is one of the cities that has had a deep impact on our work, and I am very happy that this particular building is our first effort here. In Concrete, we are not introducing a new shape but instead were able to infiltrate an existing building with an arts institution. This building is totally produced in Dubai; it is not a foreign ideal, and that I think is significant.”

Concrete was led by Iyad Alsaka, OMA partner, who said, “The Gulf is an important region for OMA, and we are happy to have been able to collaborate with an organisation like Alserkal Avenue, whose vision is so similar to our own.

With this project we wanted to keep the interior as neutral and flexible as possible, while transforming the existing exterior so that it would stand out from the surrounding buildings.”

Concrete will now provide a space for international arts and culture events to travel to Dubai. Alserkal Avenue’s collaboration with OMA advances the organisation’s mission to promote progress in the arts and architecture, with Concrete as a leading reference point for urban design in the region and beyond.

Confirming Alserkal Avenue’s commitment to locally based talent and expanding the architectural conversation in the region, the interior design and engineering was completed by Dubai-based companies.

Vilma Jurkute, director of Alserkal Avenue, said, “The OMA team has brought their unique aesthetic and thoughtful approach to urban architecture to the Avenue, and in doing so, they have created a space that has started a dialogue for architectural evolution in the UAE.”

Abdelmonem Bin Eisa Alserkal, Founder and Patron of Alserkal Avenue:

With multiple configurations, the 600-square-metre Concrete has double-height ceilings, movable walls and a translucent facade that can be positioned to create seamless indoor-outdoor experiences.

Concrete opening press conference on 15 March 2017 – Iyad Alsaka, Rem Koolhaas, Vilma Jurkute, Abdelmonem Bin Eisa Alserkal:

Concrete is a responsive, multi-disciplinary space that was created with the capacity to host large-scale art exhibitions, symposia, conferences, conceptual fashion presentations, film screenings and corporate events, as well as private functions.

Concrete opening press conference with Rem Koolhaas:

About Alserkal Avenue
Located in Al Quoz, Dubai, Alserkal Avenue is the region’s foremost arts and culture neighbourhood. Since it was established in 2007, Alserkal Avenue has grown to become an essential platform for the development of homegrown artistic and cultural initiatives, supporting a vibrant community of contemporary art galleries and alternative art spaces, together with design, media and industrial studios.

In 2015, in addition to its commitment to the community, Alserkal Avenue affirmed its position as an arts organisation with the launch of Alserkal Avenue Programming. The programming arm produces an annual homegrown programme for local, regional, and international audiences, working primarily with artists living and working in the MENASA region.

An Artists’ Residency is scheduled to launch in March 2017, further enhancing the organisation’s breadth and scope.
www.alserkalavenue.ae

About Concrete
Conceptualised by Alserkal Avenue, and designed by the Office for Metropolitan Architecture (OMA), founded by Rem Koolhaas, Concrete is a multi-disciplinary, multi-purpose event venue located in Alserkal Avenue, Dubai.

The space was created to provide event organizers with a flexible and adaptable venue that can accommodate their creative vision. Concrete is ideal for museum-grade art exhibitions, as well as unique conceptual fashion, film and corporate events, conferences, and private functions. Covering 600 sq m, the space has multiple distinct configurations and can host up to four separate events at the same time. Concrete is the UAE’s first OMA-designed building to be completed.

About Atassi Foundation
Atassi Foundation is an independent non-profit initiative, founded by Sadek and Mouna Atassi to promote Syrian art and culture. It aims to celebrate Syrian art by exhibiting it, enhancing its global visibility, and supporting creative production of young talents.

The Foundation achieves this by: organising and curating exhibitions; fostering intercultural exchange in collaboration with international arts and culture institutions; and, by supporting research and publications on Syrian art and culture.

The Foundation’s ambition is to create a sustainable and informative platform for Syrian artistic expression and knowledge.
www.atassifoundation.com

6 Dec 2016

Concrete Venue Dubai Alserkal Avenue design by OMA

‘Syria: Into the Light’, showcases works from the Atassi Foundation’s collection

Design: OMA

Concrete has opened with Syria: Into the Light, the Atassi Foundation’s largest-ever exhibition and its first in the MENA region since its formation last year. The exhibition will be on view until 3 April 2017.

Alserkal Avenue to inaugurate UAE’s first OMA-designed space with exhibition of modern and contemporary Syrian art

The multi-purpose events venue will open with a show titled Syria: Into the Light, showcasing works from the Atassi Foundation’s collection.

An exterior rendering of Concrete, designed by Office of Metropolitan Architecture (OMA). Image courtesy Alserkal Avenue:

Alserkal Avenue announces it will collaborate with the Atassi Foundation to present an exhibition of modern and contemporary Syrian art during Dubai Art Week in March 2017, from 9 March until 3 April 2017.

The exhibition, titled Syria: Into the Light, will be curated by Mouna Atassi, co-founder of the Atassi Foundation, in collaboration with curator Rasha Salti, and exhibition designer Michel Zayat. The groundbreaking exhibition will inaugurate Alserkal Avenue’s 600-square-meter OMA-designed event venue – Concrete – showcasing the space’s full potential to present museum-quality exhibitions in Dubai.

“It is a privilege to inaugurate the very first project in the UAE to be designed by the Office of Metropolitan Architecture. The standard of design and technology that the practice has brought to this project highlights the intersections of art and architecture; it is indicative of the level of originality and inspiration that we hope Concrete will host in the months and years to come. I am especially pleased to show works from the Atassi Foundation’s collection in Alserkal Avenue. The Avenue has always been a platform for art and creativity from across the region and the world,” said Abdelmonem Bin Eisa Alserkal, founder of Alserkal Avenue.

The exhibition will be thematically curated and will be supported by a rich programme of talks, film screenings and commissions, all of which will be held in Alserkal Avenue. The exhibition is expected to feature works by Syrian masters as well as emerging artists, including Toufiq Tarek, Fateh Moudarres, Youssef Abdelke, and Omran Younes.

Concrete is designed by the Office of Metropolitan Architecture, which is a firm founded by Pritzker Award-winner Rem Koolhaas. Concrete is a multi-disciplinary event space that was created with a view to host large-scale art exhibitions, symposia and conferences, fashion, film, and corporate events, as well as private functions. With multiple configurations, the 600-square-meter space has double-height ceilings, movable walls and a translucent front facade that can be positioned to create a seamless indoor-outdoor experience.

Mouna Atassi, co-founder of Atassi Foundation, said: “It is a great honour for us to curate and present a show like Syria: Into the Light in partnership with Alserkal Avenue. We couldn’t have a more iconic and notable venue or partner for our first exhibition in the region. The ability to design the show in a space like Concrete, gives us the ability to present modern and Syrian art to the world as it deserves to be seen, with all its nuances and complexities.”

“The Atassi Foundation’s work with Syrian artists, and their commitment to Syrian art is admirable. Syria has a long history of producing some of the region’s most socially engaged artwork and an exhibition that shines a light on the country’s incredibly talented contemporary artists is long overdue,” said Vilma Jurkute, director of Alserkal Avenue.

The Atassi Foundation was founded by Sadek and Mouna Atassi to promote and celebrate Syrian art and culture by exhibiting it, enhancing its global visibility, and supporting creative production of young Syrian talent.

Syria: Into the Light is the first in a series of notable, high-calibre events and exhibitions due to take place in Concrete throughout 2017.

Concrete Venue Dubai Alserkal Avenue Design – architects info

Address: Street 8, Al Quoz 1, P.O. Box 390099 Dubai, UAE