In 1996, Diar Consult won a competition to design the official residence of the ruler of Dubai. The three-storey palace, designed in a simplified neoclassical European style, is constructed over a full basement and uses an arcade to protect the interiors from the elements and provide shade and shadow.

Entry at the formal side is through a grand semicircular and domed atrium, which leads guests to the imposing entrance hall. The palace is crowned with a dome over the central formal reception area.

Externally, the uniform precision that characterizes the facades was achieved by cladding the entire building in custom designed, figured and multilayered GRC with a marble chip acid washed aggregate finish.

Project team

• Diar Consult: Architectural and structural design, post-contract administration in all disciplines
• Ian Banham & Associates: MEP design sub-consultants
• Khansaheb Civil Engineering: Contractors

Diar Consult was appointed in 2003 to design this waterfront palace for a member of the Dubai Royal Family who is passionately devoted to traditional and classical Arab Islamic architecture. The design sought to respond to this by providing an architectural statement that reflects status, presence and the artistic beliefs and conviction of the client.

Its domed silhouette stands proudly on the prestigious Al Sufouh Road, where most of the Dubai royal palaces are located, and it has a commanding location on the beach.

The façades are articulated with traditional architectural vocabulary set against a lush landscape and turquoise sea. The design of the palace is a reflection of Dubai’s unique cultural context: old and new; traditional and contemporary; East and West; simple and complex and optimistic.

In this case the client is an artist and her art gallery, located in a separate quarter, has become a cultural centre where she proudly exhibits her work and interacts with other artists.

Project team

• Diar Consult: Architecture, structural and building services design and post-contract administration in all disciplines
• Condor Building Contracting Co. LLC: Contractors

In 2004 Diar Consult was appointed to design a presidential palace along the Mussafah canal of Abu Dhabi with a water frontage of some 700m. The design aimed to reflect status and authority, presidential in its scale and setting and includes all one would expect of a palace, including a men’s majlis and residence, and guests’ suites.

The architecture has Western classical origins, reflecting the taste and preferences of the client. The entire facade is clad in sandstone while the domes are clad in GRC in matching colour and texture; a contemporary technique that maintains a sense of visual uniformity. Vertical towers and pavilions are used to punctuate the facades, disguise the horizontal length of the buildings and to celebrate ceremonially the most significant areas and spaces.

Construction began in April 2006 and took two and a half years to complete.

Project teams

• Diar Consult: Architectural and structural design, post-contract administration in all disciplines
• Ian Banham & Associates: MEP design sub-consultants
• EC Harris: Project managers
• Arabian Construction Co. LLC: Contractors

This palace is designed in the local architecture of the Gulf region, with North African/ Moroccan influences in the facade treatment as well as in the spatial planning and volumetric expression.

Its rustic sand-coloured painted facades are enriched with the subtle use of glass mosaic friezes and frames, giving an Andalusian spirit.

Although wind towers and domes rarely coexisted traditionally, they have been combined effectively in this palace. The semi-open courtyard planning brings tranquility and is reminiscent of the older forms of courtyard architecture, regulating the family rooms and activities and organizing their adjacencies and connectivity to the outdoors. This allows the formal quarters of the palace to front a more formal and lush landscape garden, with a sequence of covered arcades adding a sense of scale and rhythm to the palace.

Project team

• Diar Consult: Architecture, structure, MEP design, post-contract administration in all disciplines and interior design
• Bel Badi Contracting: Contractors

Diar Consult was appointed by TDIC in February 2010 to prepare concept designs for Royal Bay Residences, a project comprising 57 luxury residential units on Sir Baniyas Island. This island, 170km southwest of the city of Abu Dhabi, is historically significant and home to the Arabian Wildlife Park which has more than 10,000 free-roaming animals. H.H. Sheikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan (the Father of the Nation) had a personal attachment to the island and used it as a retreat; hence the idea was to continue this tradition amongst the members of the ruling family. The brief was to develop a high-quality, luxurious and unique residential product specifically for the royal families of the UAE, comprising 40 island residences and 17 canal and beach residences in three different styles:

• Eclectic Arabian style
• Reinterpreted Nubian Oasis style
• Gulf Arabian Ranch Style

Diar Consult’s scope of services included architecture, interior design and landscape design.

The design of the individual palaces generally aimed to create a sense of individuality of lifestyles and the feel of a secluded private resort or holiday home and sanctuary amid the impressive natural assets of Sir Baniyas Island, without compromising issues of privacy, culture and traditional values.

Diar Consult’s designs focused on the connectivity between the internal and external spaces, maximizing the use of gardens, terraces, patios and pool decks through exotic transition spaces, such as pavilions, covered walkways and shading structures.

In 2004, the client, a scholar, distinguished linguist and collector of precious items, appointed Diar Consult to design a palace whose main majlis should accommodate what is arguably one of the largest handmade carpets in the world. The carpet was initially presented by the client to the late H.H. Sheikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan. Sheikh Zayed accepted the gift but offered it back to the client and ordered the design of a new palace to accommodate it.

Situated in Al Taweelah area, near the highway between Abu Dhabi and Dubai, this palace was intended to become a museum for Islamic art. The entrance portico has a sculptural wall, with Islamic Quranic texts and calligraphy, as well as some of the client’s favourite proverbs carved in stone.

This is a weekend palace for a member of the royal family, not his formal residence; it therefore offers a range of leisure activities both indoors and outdoors where he can actively pursue his interests and hobbies. He has a particular passion for landscape and is interested in cascading waterfalls, fountains, water gardens, water treatment and wildlife. The garden has an aviary which showcases his passion for birds, while a series of fish ponds accommodate exotic Japanese Koi Carp. Internally, there is a highly personalised spa, and the dining area includes a show kitchen.

Project team

• Diar Consult: Architecture, structure, building services design and landscape
• UNICO: Contractors