Hopkins Architects
Using sustainable interpretation to design thematic districts
Hopkins Architects is an international architectural practice with studios in London and Dubai . Led by its five Principals , the practice ’ s work is rooted in clear and logical design thinking , a deep understanding of the potential of materials and craft , and consideration of context . A consistent and rigorous approach has resulted in a portfolio of ground-breaking , beautiful , and functional buildings across Europe , the US and Asia .
The Thematic Districts , designed by Hopkins Architects , formed the largest part of the Expo 2020 Dubai site . They comprised of 87 permanent buildings spread over three separate ‘ petals ’, housing 136 participating countries .
The design was a modern sustainable interpretation of the traditional historic Arab city , characterised by a series of tree-lined , self-shaded , human scaled streets , with a variety of different sized and themed courtyard spaces . These created comfortable environments through passive cooling , from entrained natural breezes and buildings with large thermal masses .
A central spine ran through each district , which created special shaded places with water features , event stages , activity areas and rest places , clustered underneath a series of dramatic and elegant funnel shaped shade structures .
Off the main spine was a series of intimate streets that encouraged visitors to discover new places and spaces . The districts created diverse connected spaces , each telling a unique story with exciting indoor and outdoor environments for visitors to explore , eat , play or rest .
The Thematic Districts Shade Structures comprised of a canopy of interconnected lightweight metal structures that ran between the three Thematic Districts and were one of the most striking elements of the project .
Visitors experienced a dance of dappled natural light and shade through the structures along the central spine . They were nicknamed ‘ Al Waha ’ which means Oasis and just as in a real oasis , they also protected smaller trees , some of which bear fruit , flowers and scents , as well as the plants and indigenous shrubs that populated the courtyard spaces below .
The buildings were designed to be fragmented into smaller modules or interconnected as larger buildings . The project was designed with sustainability and legacy in mind whereby all buildings can be easily adapted and repurposed to virtually any future building type whilst also achieving LEED Gold .
12 Hopkins Architects