Desert Residence
Salt Plain House
Abu Dhabi, UAE
Client
Private commission
Abu Dhabi, UAE
The project
A house between the sabkha and the road inland, built of low salt-white walls around two shaded courts, its openings facing the salt flat and the sky.
Discipline
Desert Residence
Location
Abu Dhabi, UAE
Year
2024
Area
560 m²
01·The brief
A house at the sabkha's edge
A coastal site in Abu Dhabi where the ground is salt flat and the horizon is a white line. The brief was a house that stands off the ground, shades its own walls, and treats the sabkha as the garden: a still, silver foreground that changes with the light.
02·The approach
Salt-white walls, two courts
The house is two courts held between salt-white walls on a raised plinth; the openings face the salt flat and the sky, not the road. Porous concrete and lime render keep the walls breathing; a bronze water channel through the main court cools the crossing air.
03·The result
Completed in 2024
The house was completed in 2024. The courts hold shade through the afternoon; the water channel runs at dusk. Published with the family's consent.
Scope of work
01Architecture
02Courtyard and shade design
03Interior architecture
04Water-feature design
05Custom joinery design
06Landscape coordination
