Diriyah Art Futures. Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

Commissioned and curated by the Saudi Ministry of Culture, the "DIRIYAH ART FUTURES" is a new hub for contemporary art: beyond its exhibition spaces, this expansive 12,000 m2 facility features ateliers, research laboratories, an education center focusing on new media and emerging artistic languages, as well as residencies for Saudi and international artists. It is a prototype conceived to unite education, exhibition, documentation, and research. Within the framework of Vision 2030, the "Diriyah Art Futures, emerges as the first public building within the Giga Project reshaping the historic area of Diriyah, north of Riyadh. The design unfolds horizontally, perched upon the cliff of a wadi, an agricultural depression amidst the desert plateau.The complex comprises a series of compact and austere volumes, with narrow, deep passages that create shaded and cool areas, mirroring the architectural tradition of these lands. We aimed to evoke the sense of the architecture emerging from the earth.The architecture embodies a philosophy of minimal waste, drawing from the desert tradition to address as many questions as possible through form, spatial distribution on the ground, leveraging conditions, materials, and knowledge deeply rooted in the place. The complex reveals an understanding of traditional Najd settlements, evident in its articulation, distribution of volumes and geometries, compactness, and porosity. It is a contemporary project that embraces the challenge of creating a new human dimension in a territory stratified in history. The entire historical tradition of Najd architecture, desert architecture, is based on the use of construction materials sourced from the site itself: stone, raw earth, and mud plaster. The result is a strong material continuity between the ground and the built environment.

Property: Ministry of Culture
Client: Diriyah Gate Development Authority
Project: SCHIATTARELLA ASSOCIATI
Location: Diriyah (Riyadh), KSA
Completion Year: 2024
Area: 12,000 sqm

Developer: Diriyah Company
Construction: MARCO
PMC: Arcadis, Ellisdon
Construction Management: Schiattarella Associati Saud Consult
Art Direction: Schiattarella Associati
Fire Safety: SAGR
Commission for Riyadh City
Structural Project: Proge77
Systems Design: Euroengineering, Drisaldi Associati, Tekser
Acoustic Specialist: P2ADESIGN
Educational Content: Le Fresnoy - National Studio of Contemporary Arts
Cultural Consultant: Cultural Innovation
Graphics and Wayfinding: Sabir