Abu Dhabi, UAE
What if industrial waste could be the future for architecture in the UAE?
waiwai first explored this question in 2021 with Wetland, a structure made from salt-based cement. This project was presented at the National Pavilion of the United Arab Emirates at the Venice Architecture Biennale, where it was awarded the Golden Lion, the Biennale’s highest honor.
With Barzakh, waiwai continues to investigate industrial waste as a way forward for architecture. In response to a warming planet and rapidly growing cities, architects have a responsibility to develop sustainable solutions. Barzakh is a pavilion that consists of plastic, palm fiber, and wastewater brine. These three materials draw from the local environment and react to the challenges that we face in the UAE and around the world.
The reliance on plastic for large-scale infrastructure projects produces a high level of carbon emissions. Palm fiber is found in abundance across our natural environment and has been used in traditional architecture in the region for centuries. Like many countries, the UAE relies on desalination to produce drinking water. Desalination at a large scale here produces brine, which is often pumped back into the Gulf, damaging the marine ecosystem. This project invites us to think again about the context we inhabit, to respond to local manifestations of global problems. waiwai proposes a solution that embraces the materials and processes that surround us to find what could be a future vernacular for architecture.
