mirrored concert hall appears as a giant mirage in the desert landscape of saudi arabia

in north-western saudi arabia, the region of ​​​al-ula is home to archeological treasures, natural beauty and magnificent monuments that span millennia. sited on the ancient incense route between southern arabia and egypt, al-ula became a hub of commercial and cultural exchange. here, the wadi al-qura (the valley of villages) — a lush oasis valley that runs through al-ula — created an ideal environment for civilizations to flourish.

for the first time, the residents of al-ula organized a festival that would shed light on the region’s natural splendor. ‘winter at tantora’ — which ran from december 2018 to february 2019 — hosted a range of activities, including a celebration of the winter planting season, weekly cultural events, and premiere musical performances from some of the world’s greatest musicians.

all images courtesy of winter at tantora | video by blue abaya

a stellar lineup of performers, including andrea bocelli, yanni, and lang lang, took place at one of ‘winter at tantora’s’ most impressive attractions — a purpose built concert hall wrapped in a mirrored façade. ‘maraya’ (arabic for mirror) forms an extension of the environment, with two sides covered entirely by reflective panels that refract abstract views of the golden sands and majestic mountains that surround it. the project — encompassing land art, architecture and set design — has been the vision of milan-based studio giò forma, and realized in collaboration with the project and creative management of black engineering dwc-llc. the installation also hosts an immersive theater and an interactive exhibition by cultural spaces and a kinetic artwork by leva-todo.

‘the ‘maraya’, a giant mirror cube, is a site specific ‘object- architecture’ — an experience that makes us reflect on the incomparable spectacle of the geological epic, the radical abstraction of the surroundings and the singular incursions of man into the landscape,‘ describe the giò forma team. in a video uploaded by ‘winter at tantora’, ‘maraya’ project manager massimo fogliati and engineer talal al-mas explain the creative concept of the building, and their feelings after the construction was completed.

project info: 

performers: mohamed abdo – 21st december 2018; majida el roumi – 28th december 2018; renaud capucon – 4th january 2019; omar khairat – 11th january 2019; lang lang – 18th janury 2019; andrea bocelli – 1st february 2019; yanni – 8th february 2019
agency: MMG | KSA
land art, set design and architecture: studio gioforma, milan
creative and production management: black engineering dwc-llc
video art: bonsaininja, italy
kinetic art: leva-todo, italy
video exhibit: cultural spaces, paris