Asif Khan’s gateways to Expo 2020 in Dubai are a giant mashrabiya

The British architectural studio led by Asif Khan has designed the entrance portals for the next Expo in Dubai. The event will be inaugurated in October 2020 and will last 170 days, with the expected arrival of a total of 25 million people from all over the world.

The first Universal Exposition in the Arab world will be located in an area of 4,38 sqkm adjacent to the Al Maktoum International Airport. The theme chosen for this edition is “Connecting Minds, Creating the Future”, and it aims to highlight brilliance and human development.

The dense plot of the three portals is a reinterpretation of the traditional mashrabiya, an architecture device used in Arab countries for natural forced ventilation and controlled entry of sunlight. 21 meters high and 30 meters long, they are made up of two 10,5 meter wide doors on the entrance side, which “will be opened every morning in a symbolic act of welcoming the world”, as the design studio explains. They’re made with ultra-lightweight carbon fiber composite that offers high structural resistance, thus allowing the cubes to support themselves without any additional support.

Each of them will be positioned at the entrance of the three thematic districts: Opportunities, Mobility and Sustainability. These will then lead to reception areas also designed by the British studio.

“The portals will be the first and last encountering moment for anyone who makes the journey to Expo 2020 Dubai” explains Asif Kahn “and these capture the very transcendental moment the region is experiencing as it hosts its first World Expo – the celebration not only of UAE’s heritage, but also the future.”