Cultural And Public Architecture
MEAN*’s work for public life ranges from the Sharjah Modern museum proposal for the Barjeel Art Foundation to Modulus, urban furniture built as a prototype for Dubai Design District. Modulus and Shell Star (2012, with MATSYS) are built; the other projects are proposals.
- A.R.M. Majlis Pavilion
MEAN*’s proposal for A.R.M. Holding’s majlis pavilion at Art Dubai 2026, Madinat Jumeirah: fabric arches, a sunken majlis and a planted roof.
- Lamella
Lamella, proposed shading structures for NEOM: a 3D printed concrete trunk, a UV-resistant polymer canopy and a steel frame, shaped after trees in a grove.
- Penumbra
Penumbra is a proposed carbon fiber shading pavilion in Dubai: polygonal cones 5 mm thick on slender columns, arranged across the site in the 15th type of pentagonal tiling, found in 2015.
- University of Sharjah Innovation Hub
A proposed Fab Lab interior for the University of Sharjah Innovation and Entrepreneurship Hub, set into the existing library with little change to its frame.
- Voxel
Voxel is a proposal to turn a public space in DIFC, Dubai into a gathering place: tiered modular seating under colored canopies, with food and drink stalls.
- Wormhole
Wormhole is a proposed installation for Dubai Design Week 2023 by MEAN* and DezignTechnic: portals of pool noodles that would later become urban furniture.
- Modulus
Modulus is a modular 3D printed urban furniture system for Dubai's public spaces, built as a prototype for Dubai Design District, after the Dubai 2040 plan.
- Expo 2020 Oasis At The UAE National Pavilion
Oasis is a proposed waiting area outside the UAE National Pavilion at Expo 2020 Dubai: an interactive landscape designed to welcome visitors before they enter.
- Expo 2020 Boulevard Roundabout Pavilion
A proposed 8-meter landmark for the Expo 2020 Dubai boulevard roundabouts: a walk-through forest of 3D printed concrete palms fitted with branching LED lights.
- Sabeel
Sabeel, a competition entry for Expo 2020 Dubai, is a proposed public fountain designed to draw part of its drinking water from the air, as some beetles do.
- Sharjah Modern
Sharjah Modern, a museum proposal for the Barjeel Art Foundation: limestone arcades, shaded terraces, flexible galleries and a courtyard designed to cool.
- UN Square Murals
Proposed murals for the United Nations Square on the Historic Promenade of Jordan in Amman, honoring Jordanian peacekeepers with an algorithmic photo montage.
- Urbani Balkoni
Urbani Balkoni, a competition entry for an observation tower in Zagreb: a concrete ramp clad in oak, spiraling 40 m up past balconies to a public platform.
- Sadaf
Sadaf is a proposed 3D printed bus stop for Dubai's RTA, shaped after the seashells on the city's beaches and printed in interlocking pieces.
- MEAL* Design Innovation Campus
A 2017 proposal for a 640 sqm design innovation campus in Dubai, drawing on research and workshops by MEAL*, the Middle East Architecture Lab.
- Yeoui-Naru Ferry Terminal
MEAN*’s 2017 competition entry for the Yeoui-Naru Ferry Terminal on the Han River in Seoul: a transparent terminal under a canopy of giwa-inspired modules.
- Willow Pavilion
Willow is a 2016 competition entry for Socrates Sculpture Park in New York: four canopies that give shelter from the elements and an identity for the park.
- Shell Star
Shell Star, with MATSYS, sheltered visitors to Detour 2012 in Hong Kong. Its star shape recalls the sea and the five-petal Bauhinia on the city's flag.