One of my favorite saying is that, Architecture is the mirror of the Society and societies, these days, generally tend to re-examine the connotation and desirability of built environments very swiftly. DUBAI seems to be a Perfect example for this, only that the mirror here seems to have been tampered with! There is an inherent search for an architectural individuality and a general a lack of the rise and fall of various (Architectural) movements in DUBAI unlike in other cities in India, the States and Paris etc. The continuous debates on symbolism and character issues in architecture have actually branched out from this very FACT. This search seems to be a preoccupation with most countries that have vast cultural richness and multiple layers of history, Dubai included.
Architects as well as budding DESIGN professionals in these countries find themselves dealing with a paradox needing to project a certain image of themselves through their built environment. What I mean is, in Dubai, the buildings and infrastructure need to portray a sense of opulence and PRIDE!! It’s like the Waltz, (I am Sorry I digress, but it’s dancing… I sort of can’t help it), while Waltzing, one’s posture is given at most importance; there is a need to hold your head high and elude a feeling of superiority! It basically requires us to dance unhesitantly, briskly, and with aplomb!!! Dubai also seems to want to waltz through the current economic scenario primarily to much show the WORLD… “We are okay!”… in FACT we are the “Number ONE”! Numero Uno!!
EVERYONE will agree with me when I say, Dubai is a city that has a winning mind behind it all! One that is passionate about making Dubai the world’s BIGGEST, TALLEST, FASTEST, and RICHEST venture in the world, never settling for anything but the first place. Read the news on any given day, and you'll most likely hear about the BIGGEST, tallest, and most expensive something or other in Dubai.
This very fact is reflected throughout; Driving through the roads of Shaikh Zayed Road and the Business Bay the only few things that remind us of the Arabic Influence would be the Signage’s having Arabic Names as well as the billboards having Fazaa (drool...) i.e. Crown Prince Shaikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum’s photographs. The main pointers express themselves QUITE differently. The buildings, infrastructure, bridges, highways and urban gateways fail to give us an insight into the deep cultural and traditional heritage of the region.
The swift pace of the emirate's development often lacks in-depth analyses and thought. The physical progression of Dubai is notorious for its unprecedented speed, and also for the number of slip ups and adversities. There is a need to resist the urge to chase the latest spectacle and instead explore the various layers of ethos that exist beneath the city brand. Taking a look at the Bus stops (Can they be called Stops??)! There is no radius of curvature, the bus stops write in the middle of the road, coolly blocking the rest of the Road for a good 5 to 10 minutes. Instead the bus stops need to have a “kerb” or an embankment, where the *Articulated* bus can easily get into, and let the traffic flow smoothly. Or look Roads in Dubai, Has there been a single day where in you can seen Dubai Completely devoid of any construction activity?? One day the road is being widen, and once the roads are ready, the Roads ripped apart to be fitted with underground pipe lines and so after that the Fiber optic cables need to upgraded… so on and so forth…
IMAGES and *image making processes* like the one Dubai is undertaking do not DONE to address the issue of meaning in relation to the GENERAL public. I personally feel there is a need to mandate looking at the built environment as a TWO WAY MIRROR. One way can be seen in the sense that, it conveys non-verbal messages that reflect INNER LIFE, activities, and social conceptions of those who live and use the DUBAIN environment. The other way is seen in terms of how it is actually perceived and comprehended by a certain society at a certain time.
In a sense, Dubai exists as a PARADOXICAL place. With its infamously fragmented population and its corresponding ethnic and socio-economic breakdown, it inevitably represents itself as a different place to different people. This poses some basic questions: What communities belong to Dubai and what community does Dubai truly belong to? What does its collective memory look like? Why is debranding Dubai significant? Or better still is Dubai PERFECT????
I believed initially that research needs to carry out to understand the unbranded, rebranded or further still brand extended Dubai. But then I realized that in the case of Dubai the conclusions themselves can be revealed in the questions; perhaps the conclusion is that Dubai is meant to remain a QUESTION!
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