No-one could reasonably accuse Saudi Arabia of lacking in ambition. Its government is currently carrying out an unprecedented development boom that includes the construction of a 170-km-long skyscraper and a cuboid supertall skyscraper to help turn the country into a top tourism hotspot. As part of this effort, Heatherwick Studio has revealed plans to transform a former desalination plant on the waterfront in Jeddah into a one-of-a-kind museum and cultural destination.
The Jeddah Central Museum will be situated on the Red Sea coastline and, as the renders show, will retain much of the original infrastructure from the site, which was used to convert sea water into drinkable water.
Naturally, keeping the site's buildings a comfortable temperature cool for visitors can be quite a problem in an area that can get very hot during the summer, but a Heatherwick Studio representative told us that each will have high levels of insulation added, as well as solar shading and a silvery metal wrap that will reflect the sun, lending the project a distinctive eye-catching appearance. Additionally, solar panels will reduce the museum's draw on the grid, though there are no figures available yet on their capacity.
"The Museum will play a major role in the city's transformation from its fossil fuel past to a new economy focused around creativity and a young population," explained Mat Cash, Partner and Group Leader at Heatherwick Studio. "The project takes a disused desalination plant that people in Jeddah have always seen from far away and turns it into somewhere they can use and explore. It takes a building designed for machines and turns it into a space designed for people."
The museum proper will be dedicated to educating and inspiring people with exhibits related to the creative process. It will also provide studios and workshops, alongside public exhibitions and a bustling marketplace. In a nice touch reminiscent of London's Battersea Power Station, Heatherwick Studio will convert the former desalination plant's huge turbine hall into a dramatic exhibition space.
The Jeddah Central Museum is part of a massive development project in the area that will measure 570 hectares (roughly 1,400 acres). It will feature tourist facilities and sporting, cultural, commercial and residential areas. We've no word yet on when it's expected to be completed, but Heatherwick Studio has plenty of experience with these types of redevelopments and previously transformed a grain silo into a stunning museum and a coal storage area into an attractive shopping center.
Source: Heatherwick Studio