santiago calatrava chosen to build observation tower in dubai creek harbor

santiago calatrava chosen to build observation tower in dubai creek harbor
image © santiago calatrava

spanish engineer and architect santiago calatrava has been chosen to build a landmark observation tower in dubai creek harbor. the result of the international competition was announced by his highness shaikh mohammad bin rashid al maktoum, vice president and prime minister of the united arab emirates and ruler of dubai. the scheme, one of six proposals submitted by competing firms, pays homage to islamic architecture and seeks to bring together sustainable contemporary design with the country’s rich culture and heritage.

‘we feel extremely thankful and honored to have been selected for such an important project,’ said santiago calatrava upon receiving the commission. ‘dubai is where innovative and revolutionary architecture is making incredible strides. in our proposed design, we have united local traditional architecture with that of the 21st century.’

‘combining islamic architecture with modern design, the tower at dubai creek will become a national monument as well as a cultural and tourist destination,’ explained mohammad ali al alabbar, president of emaar properties, the firm that built the world’s tallest building — the burj khalifa. ‘this architectural wonder will be as great as the burj khalifa and the eiffel tower,’ added his highness shaikh mohammad.

in december 2015 it was announced that santiago calatrava had designed three landmark bridges to span huashan’s yangtze river canal in china, while his museum of tomorrow in rio de janeiro is now open in brazil. see more projects by the spanish architect on designboom here.