Zayed National Museum - Exterior, UAE

Located on a hill surrounded by a moat in the Saadiyat Cultural District of Abu Dhabi, Zayed National Museum is the architectural manifestation of the founding of the modern United Arab Emirates and the life of  its founding father, Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan.

Inspired by Sheikh Zayed’s passion for falconry, the “Wings”  sculpt natural light while they are sculpted by it.  Their white finish is resplendent in the natural light as they protect the galleries that are nestled in pods inside them.

Consequently, it is central to the lighting design to work with the natural light to provide radiance from within the architecture and a frame for it on the wings in the form of backlighting and, most importantly, to not compete with it.  The luminance of the wings comes from reflected ambient light or light radiating from the pods within them. Inground uplights graze up the backs of the wings to highlight the tops.  No surface-mounted lights were used to light the wings.

The museum is the “mound” upon which the wings sit. The museum floats on a pillow of light. This continuous glow rises and lowers with entrances providing a skirt of light around it that evolves by how the triangular facets of the museum lean over or away from the continuous uplight. There are two paths carved into the side of the mound that wend their way up to the summit.  Continuous balustrade lighting makes the walls and soffit glow warmly in contrast to the moonlit mound.

For the main entrance, the skirt of light rises up and over like a wave to form a soffit where downlights are introduced to provide a welcoming mat of light.  The exterior lighting is balanced with the interior lighting so the interior remains clearly visible from the plaza.