Yas Marina | Abu Dhabi

On Yas Island in the Persian Gulf, within the ambitious $36 billion Yas Marina development, stands one of the most iconic buildings of the contemporary world: W Abu Dhabi – Yas Island (formerly Yas Hotel and Yas Viceroy Hotel), the world's first and only hotel built directly above a Formula 1 circuit. Commissioned by Aldar Properties PJSC and inaugurated on 30 October 2009 to coincide with the inaugural Abu Dhabi F1 Grand Prix the complex is the result of a 2007 design competition won by New York-based studio Asymptote Architecture, led by principals Hani Rashid and Lise Anne Couture

The architecture consists of two ten-storey elliptical blocks one on land, the other in the marina inlet waters connected by a monumental monocoque steel bridge spanning the Formula 1 racetrack below, affording unprecedented views of the circuit. The defining element is the grid shell: a sweeping steel and glass lattice canopy 217 metres long, comprising 5,800 diamond-shaped glass panels (2,800 tonnes of steel, 10,700 individual rods), engineered by Schlaich Bergermann und Partner (Stuttgart) and fabricated by Waagner-Biro (Vienna). By day the glazed skin reflects sky and surroundings; by night it transforms into a luminescent surface through approximately 5,000 programmable RGBW LED luminaires designed by Arup Lighting under Rogier van der Heide, capable of projecting seven customised video sequences.

Interior architecture was designed by Jestico + Whiles (London), Richardson Sadeki (New York) and De8 Architetti (Bergamo). The surrounding landscape was created by Cracknell Landscape Architects, with structural consultancy by Dewan Architects & Engineers and Arup New York. The project received the Le Grand Prix de l’Architecture at the International Property Awards and a Citation for Technical Artistry at the 2010 IES Lumen Awards for its exceptional lighting design.

Year
2009

Architecture Studio
Asymptote Architecture – Hani Rashid and Lise Anne Couture, New York

Local Architects
Dewan Architects & Engineers / Tilke & Partners W.L.L.

Interior Design
Jestico + Whiles (London), Richardson Sadeki (New York), De8 Architetti (Bergamo)

Grid Shell Engineering
Schlaich Bergermann und Partner (Stuttgart) / Waagner-Biro (Vienna)

Photographer
Bjorn Moerman