king abdullah II house of culture and art in amman

this week zaha hadid architects unveiled plans for the new king abdullah II house of
culture and art in amman, the jordanian capital.

conceived as a place to rehearse, discuss, teach, study and perform, the king abdullah II
house of culture & art will be the premiere venue for theatre, music and dance performance
and education in jordan – a vital element in the cultural life of the city and country, bringing
together all members of the community in the shared experience of art and music.

the complex includes a 1600-seat concert theatre, 400-seat theatre, educational centre,
rehearsal rooms, and galleries.

the architectural expression for the new performing arts centre has been inspired by
the magnificent ancient city of petra explains zaha hadid. 'petra is an astonishing example
of the wonderful interplay between architecture and nature, as well as the intricate complexity
and elegance of natural forms – the rose-colored mountain walls have been eroded, carved
and polished to reveal the astonishing strata of sedimentation. we have applied these principles
to articulate the public spaces within the centre, with eroded interior surfaces that extend into
the public plaza in front of the building.'

zaha hadid architects was awarded the project in june 2008 after an international
competition that included snøhetta (norway), atelier christian de portzamparc (france),
delugan meissl (austria), henning larsens tegnestue (denmark) and kerry hill
architects (singapore).



the architectural expression for the new performing arts centre has been inspired by
the uniquely beautiful monument of petra. as an artificial oasis and sanctuary the ancient
city of petra is an appropriate source of analogy for a performing arts centre that aspires
to be an oasis and sanctuary for contemporary culture.

petra is also a fantastic example of the wonderful interplay between architecture and nature. contemporary architecture is striving to emulate nature and imbue architecture with
the intricate complexity and elegance of natural forms. in petra we admire the way
the rose-colored mountain walls have been fissured, eroded, carved and polished to reveal
the strata of sedimentation along the fluid lines of the fluvial erosions.

we are applying the principle of fluid erosion and carving to the mass of the building for
the performing arts centre. this principle of erosion is the sole means of articulating the public
spaces in the building. thus there is a very strong, legible relation between the exterior
and interior public spaces.

the interior public foyer space is a continuous, multi-level space that cuts through the building
and connects the north and south side of the valley. the fact that the erosion is cutting through
the building implies that the beautiful interior surfaces will be light-flooded and thus very visible
from without.

the eroded interior surface extends deep into the public plaza as a welcoming gesture drawing
the public into the building. there can be no doubt that this inviting design will wash away
the threshold anxiety that sometimes is felt in front of monumental cultural buildings.

while the erosion creates the public foyer spaces the remaining mass represents the performance
spaces. the shape of the eroded space reveals the two main performance spaces as the figurative
parts of the eroded mass. the big concert theater is exposed at the end of the public void. the small
theater is exposed overhead at the front of the building where the public foyer space fuses with
the public plaza. these two recognizably shaped volumes that contain the primary event spaces
are then encapsulated by the support functions to create the exterior cubic volume.

however, this exterior volume is not a rigid box. the volume is given tension be letting it gently
swell – like the entasis of a column – in response to the public void in the centre of the building.
another nuance is to be noticed with respect to the treatment of the ground-surface – both on
the plaza and within the public foyer.

the plaza ground outside receives the underpass coming from the gam strip and thus creates an
amphi-theatre-like valley. the surface of the plaza rises gently as it approaches the building.
the foyer ground is thus slightly raised and dips again slightly in response to the small theatre.
the ground is eroded again in front of the big concert theater to reveal and give access to this
performance space creating another situation that might become a kind of amphi-theatre within
the overall space.

such quasi-topographic manipulations of the ground surface are very communicative. they
help to structure the large public surface and facilitate orientation and overview, in particular
if the space is filled with people. thus this play with the ground plane goes hand in hand with
the overall ambitions of the multi-level public void that allows the audience to participate in
the unified public space on many levels. in particular the second, elevated foyer level that
connects across to the south-side of the valley might become aman’s favorite spot to relax
and enjoy the city.













project info:
program: concert theatre: 1600 seat, small theatre: 400 seat, educational centre
and galleries
cliente: the greater amman municipality
architect: zaha hadid architects
design: zaha hadid and patrik schumacher
project director: charles walker
project architect: tariq khayyat
competition team: maria araya, melike altinisik, dominiki dadatsi, renata dantas,
sylvia georgiadou, britta knobel, rashiq muhamadali, bence pap, eleni pavlidou,
daniel santos, daniel widrig, sevil yazici.
structural consultants: dar al-handasah, beirut-cairo
mechanical & environmental consultants: dar al-handasah, beirut-cairo
theatre and acoustics consultant : artec consultants inc, new york
facade engineers : ramboll, london
lighting consultants: OVI, new york