The recently completed Apple store located in the Dubai Mall is about more than just showcasing Apple’s products. Foster + Partners wanted to reinvent the traditional introverted idea of mall-based retail and replace it with one that’s more focused on looking outward at the surrounding urban landscape.
For this reason, Foster + Partners and the Apple design team decided to incorporate what is arguably one of the most impressive urban landscapes in the world into Apple Dubai Mall. Chief among the aspects turning the Dubai Apple Store into an outward looking experience is the 186-foot wide and 18-foot deep terrace. The terrace incorporates nine trees that sit in large, rotating planters that ensure each tree receives even sunlight. Seating for visitors is built into the planters. No other Apple Store in the world has a terrace like this, and it becomes even more unique when its views are taken into account.
The terrace provides views of the Dubai Fountain, the world’s tallest performing fountain, and the Burj Khalifa, the World’s tallest building. The terrace is also home to what Foster + Partners claims to be one of the world’s largest kinetic art installations: a reinterpretation of the traditional Arabic Mashrabiya. These Solar Wings shade the outside terrace during the day and open during the evening to connect visitors with the city. The architect calls the wings an “integrated vision of kinetic art and engineering” and says the motion of a falcon spreading its wings inspired the movement path.
Photo courtesy of Foster + Partners.
The wings are made entirely from carbon fiber and consist of multiple layers of tubes that form a dense net. This net of 340 carbon fiber rods allows people on both levels of the two-level store to see out, while the sunlight coming in is filtered and casts crosshatched shadows deep into the building’s interior. There are 18 wings in total and they take one minute to open or close. Each wing is 37.5-feet-tall and 10-feet-wide but weighs just one ton.
Customers can enter the store directly from Dubai Mall through full height, glazed pivoting doors on both levels. The lower level of the store is home to The Avenue, a specially designed area for accessories display. This area has a typical Apple Store look with display tables holding the latest products Apple has to offer. In addition to the “Genius Bar,” Apple Dubai Mall will have space to launch Apple’s new program “Today at Apple.” This program will employ “Creative Pros” that offer customers advice and training on photography, filmmaking, art, and design.
Apple Dubai Mall opened on April 27.
Photo courtesy of Foster + Partners.
Photo courtesy of Foster + Partners.
Related Stories
| Sep 25, 2014
Bjarke Ingels headed home for latest project: Aarhus Island
Aarhus Island will be a waterside development in Denmark's second-largest city. The mixed-use development will implement Ingels' signature angled look in its residential towers.
| Sep 24, 2014
Architecture billings see continued strength, led by institutional sector
On the heels of recording its strongest pace of growth since 2007, there continues to be an increasing level of demand for design services signaled in the latest Architecture Billings Index.
| Sep 22, 2014
4 keys to effective post-occupancy evaluations
Perkins+Will's Janice Barnes covers the four steps that designers should take to create POEs that provide design direction and measure design effectiveness.
| Sep 22, 2014
Sound selections: 12 great choices for ceilings and acoustical walls
From metal mesh panels to concealed-suspension ceilings, here's our roundup of the latest acoustical ceiling and wall products.
| Sep 15, 2014
Ranked: Top international AEC firms [2014 Giants 300 Report]
Parsons Brinckerhoff, Gensler, and Jacobs top BD+C's rankings of U.S.-based design and construction firms with the most revenue from international projects, as reported in the 2014 Giants 300 Report.
| Sep 9, 2014
Using Facebook to transform workplace design
As part of our ongoing studies of how building design influences human behavior in today’s social media-driven world, HOK’s workplace strategists had an idea: Leverage the power of social media to collect data about how people feel about their workplaces and the type of spaces they need to succeed.
| Sep 3, 2014
New designation launched to streamline LEED review process
The LEED Proven Provider designation is designed to minimize the need for additional work during the project review process.
| Sep 2, 2014
Ranked: Top green building sector AEC firms [2014 Giants 300 Report]
AECOM, Gensler, and Turner top BD+C's rankings of the nation's largest green design and construction firms.
| Aug 21, 2014
RTKL's parent company Arcadis acquires Callison
The acquisition of Callison, known predominantly for its leadership in retail and mixed-use design, builds on Arcadis’ strong global design and architecture position, currently provided by RTKL.
| Aug 19, 2014
Goettsch Partners unveils design for mega mixed-use development in Shenzhen [slideshow]
The overall design concept is of a complex of textured buildings that would differentiate from the surrounding blue-glass buildings of Shenzhen.