Etihad Museum
Moriyama & Teshima Architects + RSP · Dubai, United Arab Emirates · 2017
Etihad Museum is organized around a flowing white roof inspired by the form of a manuscript, with seven columns symbolizing the pens used to sign the UAE’s founding agreement. Most of the exhibition program is placed below ground so the new museum does not overwhelm the historic Union House retained on the site. Moriyama & Teshima with RSP integrate landscape, heritage structure and contemporary galleries into a single commemorative complex. Opened in 2017, the museum is a major example of national history being interpreted through symbolic contemporary architecture and adaptive site planning.