Center for World Culture Emerging - Saudi Aramco

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Dimensions International
Center for World
Culture Emerging
CONSTRUCTION FORGING AHEAD By Paul Sauser

DHAHRAN — Work progresses on the King Abdulaziz
Center for World Culture, and the physical embodiment of
the institution, the building itself, grows at its site near the
Saudi Aramco Exhibit.
Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah laid
the symbolic cornerstone of the Center in
May 2008. Facility design and engineering
were completed in 2009. Site preparation
and excavation were completed in 2010.
The main contract was awarded to Saudi
Oger and the first concrete was poured in
August 2010.
The Mosque design is done, and what
may be the complex’s most striking and
original feature – the main facility facade –
is in final fabrication design with a leading
German manufacturer.
When the steering committee met in
2011, it reviewed visions for the technology
the Center will house, before touring the
building site.
The facilities will comprise a multistory
complex of approximately 80,000 square
meters near the Saudi Aramco Exhibit in
Dhahran and will accommodate a 21st
century library, Discovery Zone (children’s knowledge center),
community education facility, creativity center, exhibition
halls, theater and multimedia theater, museum, mosque,
archive, special collections, dining facilities,
media center, a
volunteer center, and landscaped gardens.
Opposite page: The Cultural
Center, designed by Snohetta
of Norway, takes the shape
of pebbles randomly piled
together, suggesting the
region’s occupation with
geology. Left: Khalid A.
Al-Falih, Saudi Aramco
President and CEO, and Kjetil
T. Thorsen, Snøhetta Senior
Partner, discuss the facility
design at the Snøhetta office,
in Oslo, Norway. Below: An
image of the Cultural Center’s
Sky Lounge shows some of
the scenic design schemes
planned for the Center.
Winter 2011 15

The excavation covers an area that
is equivalent to the foot print of the
Great Pyramid.
Construction
materials
STRUCTURAL STEEL:
2,802 tons
CONCRETE:
109,588 cubic meters
REINFORCEMENT:
7,000 tons
STAINLESS STEEL PIPE:
375 kilometers
LOW-VOLT CABLES:
166,583 meters
MEDIUM-VOLT CABLES:
11,343 meters
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Dimensions International
The theater is a 900 seat facility for cultural performances,
events and shows.
Construction of the Center
is well underway, and the
various building foundations
are being placed for the multilevel
concrete structures, which
extend down to four levels
below ground. Several of the
Center’s 18 levels are already
visible among a forest of bluegreen
steel reinforcing bars, and
walls and towers of concrete.
PHOTOS
At the moment, it doesn’t look
much like the gleaming, iconic,
92-meter-tall structure that’s
planned, but the designers,
ARTHUR/MAGNUM
architects, engineers and construction
workers know how to
OLIVIA ©
get it there. TOP:

Meet
the
experts
DHAHRAN — A world-class Cultural Center needs worldclass
people to envision and carry out its programs.
The staff at the center began in 2008 with fewer
than 10 people. The staff is now 85 strong and
growing.
It includes experts who have been recruited
from around the world. One of those is chief archivist
Ahmed Abu Zayed, who specializes in libraries and
By Soha F. Khan and Paul Sauser
archives, as well as knowledge management.
Recent projects include Digi-Islam, which describes the landscape
of Middle Eastern and Islamic studies, and Digi-Turath, a
project for digitizing heritage and cultural material from the Arab world.
The center’s vision inspired him to come on board. “There are other good libraries
here and there in the Arab world,” he says, “but you don’t have this consolidation of
library, archives and museums. It’s a whole vision, one package.”
Lorraine Cornish, a museum collections specialist, worked for 30 years at the
Natural History Museum in London, where she looked after 17 million objects,
LORR ORR ORRAINE INE CORNI CORNISH especially in the Department of Paleontology.
“I worked in a museum that was very old and very well-established,” she
says, “and I really enjoyed my time there, but I think I was looking for a new challenge. I like
the idea of working on something that is just at its birth.”
Khalid S. Al-Yahya, head of the Knowledge and Research Division, has served as a professor
of physics at King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals and as a scientific
consultant for King Abdulaziz Foundation for Giftedness and Creativity.
“It is clear to all of us that we have the most exciting job in the world,” he says. “We feel
that there is something uniquely magical and stimulating about establishing an intellectual monument
that shall be seen by millions.”
Almost 32,000 cubic meters of structural concrete have been
poured, and 1,300 construction workers are on-site. Bringing it
all together is a 70-member Project Management Team.
The façade for the main complex is one of the most striking
and original features, which is in final fabrication design with a
leading German manufacturer.
The project has already attracted the attention of the
international community, as many of the building components
have and are being developed in various countries such as
Norway, the United Kingdom, Germany, the United States,
South Korea and Saudi Arabia. Designs for the various exhibits
and audio-visual technology packages will incorporate
state-of-the-art technologies to support the company’s vision
for uniquely informative, engaging displays. These designs will
be further developed to support the award of several design,
fabrication and installation contracts to install the completed
Center exhibits.
Jamal Al-Benali, Senior Project Manager, advised that the
project is critically important for bridging the cultural gap
and creating a positive impact. He added, “the project team
is proud to be on this iconic project, but most importantly is
AHMED ABU Z ZZAYED
AYED YED
KHALID S. AL-Y AL- AL-YAHYA YA HYA HY
proud to be part of this cultural transformation process.”
Three members of Project Management Team recently
explained how the construction process works and how it
feels to be part of a landmark project. They were Faisal I.
Al-Dossary, lead project engineer, Architecture; Mohammed
A. Al-Khalifa, lead project engineer, Mechanical; and Murad
M. Al-Zayer, senior project engineer, Mechanical, Electrical,
Plumbing and Communication.
Al-Dossary and Al-Khalifa say they have been working on
the project from the beginning, with the architect Snohetta in
Oslo and its engineering subcontractor Buro Happold Engineering
in Glasgow. Engineering covers the structure, electrical,
fire protection, loss prevention, mechanical — all the areas
in which technical challenges arise.
One of the best-known of those challenges is the unique
facade of stainless steel pipes. About 70,000, 5.4-meter long
pieces will come from the manufacturer tagged and mapped.
Each piece will be unique, and each will be installed separately.
“I have to give credit to the design team,” Al-Dossary
says, “because there was a lot of detail. We know the
Continued on page 19
Winter 2011 17

World-class partnerships
optimize Center’s development
The Cultural Center plans to stand among the
premier cultural organizations in the world. It
is currently partnering with members of its
intended peer group, among them the Library of Alexandria
in Egypt, the Centre Pompidou in Paris and the
Natural History Museum of London.
The Center’s partnerships will cover the wide range
of center components and be distributed around the
globe, says partnership coordinator Maureen Bozell.
“By aligning and working with the best organizations
in terms of culture and education,” she said, “we make
sure that we don’t reinvent the wheel but also that we
exchange expertise and learnings with the leading cultural
centers in the world.”
In partnering with the world’s best cultural institutions,
“We of course build a network for ourselves, but
we also build relational capital for the company and
even for the Kingdom,” Bozell said.
Each partnership, and there are several formalized
so far, may lead to one or more outcomes, such as
knowledge transfer, training or an exhibit loan.
For example:
• The first three of a proposed 10 books on museum
science have been translated into Arabic with
the cooperation of the American Association of
Museums.
• A feasibility study for the Center’s Great Hall
exhibit is underway with the Centre Georges
Pompidou of Paris. The institution’s president
18
Nasser A. Al-Nafisee,
Public Affairs general
manager, meets with
a visiting delegation
from the Centre
Georges Pompidou.
Dimensions International
visited the Cultural
Center in March 2011.
• A digital archive is
being conceived with
support of the Bibliotheca
Alexandrina of
Alain Seban, president of the
Centre Georges Pompidou.
Egypt, which possesses the world’s largest collection
of digitized manuscripts in Arabic.
• The Cultural Center co-sponsored with the Arab
Thought Foundation, the most comprehensive Arabic
digital content study for the Internet, which is
planned to be released in the third quarter of 2012.
• Representatives of Harvard’s Peabody Museum
conducted a training program course in January
2011 and certified 20 members of the Cultural
Center’s staff.
Other current partnerships are with:
• Le Laboratoire of Paris for a creativity program
in the Keystone pilot project (see separate story,
page 21).
• London’s Natural History Museum, focusing on a
Gallery 4 natural history exhibit.
• The Saudi Commission for Tourism and Antiquities, a
company-wide Memorandum of Understanding (MOU)
over access to Saudi artifacts and historic areas.
Several more collaborative agreements are under
development with institutions from Europe, the United
States, the Far East and Saudi Arabia.

Continued from page 17
position of every piece of pipe
because of a 3D model.”
Al-Zayer says that among Project
Management’s roles, whether in the
Preparations are being
made for the Arcade
Wall, a curved wall
defining the main
entrance to the Center.
design phase or in construction, is to make sure everything
meets expectations. “We make sure that the design meets
Saudi Aramco standards, and other quality standards that are
part of our qualification reviews,” he says. “When it comes
to construction, it is also our job to make sure that it is being
done according to quality standards, according to schedule,
and to make sure the project is delivered safely, in a timely
manner, and within cost projections.”
The Project Management Team has grown with the project,
Al-Zayer says. “This project started out as a unit and then
grew into a division. Then it grew into a department. That
shows you how important this project is, how extensive the
work is and how great the manpower requirement is.”
Another department, called Project Support, was created
within the Cultural Center’s organization to focus on technology
development, commissioning and design and construction
to ensure the facility meets program requirements and the
architectural vision.
Just like everyone on the project, Project Management
employees express pride and a sense of privilege in
being involved.
Abdulaziz F. Al-Khayyal, senior vice
president of Industrial Relations, and
Khalid I. Abubshait, executive
director of Saudi Aramco
Affairs, visit the
construction site
for a regular
update.
They say this project feels different. “We are so attached
to it because I feel this project is noble, touching the society
in every aspect and it is for our kids,” says Al-Zayer. “I can
see the idea behind it will have a big influence on the new
generation.”
“I will be very grateful to tell my kids, ‘Look, this is a
project which I built.’”
“The nice thing is that in every corner of that building we
have a story,” Al-Dossary says. “Everyone has a story on
how this was built, the discussion during that process, during
design, during construction.”
“We can work as tour guides,”
says Al-Khalifa.
Winter 2011 19

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Dimensions International
Left: The Knowledge Tower
includes educational and
Lifelong Learning facilities, as
well as a volunteerism center.
Below: While the Center is
being constructed, Saudi
Aramco launched its 2011
Cultural Program to pilot some
of the Center’s experiences.
These four young men were
recruited by the Center to
participate as volunteers in
the 2011 Cultural Program.
“ T h e Center will promote volunteerism as a focus area of its
programs to leverage the knowledge of subject matter experts
and provide youth with thousands of opportunities to learn new
skills and serve their communities,” said Khalid I. Abubshait, Saudi
Aramco Affairs executive director.

They call it the center of the Center. It’s small
compared to many other aspects of the Cultural
Center, but it holds a key position.
It’s the Keystone.
“The Keystone is a place, but it’s also an idea,” said
Fatma Al-Rashid, Keystone founding leader. “It’s meant to
promote creativity in everyday life.”
“From where the Keystone is located, you can look
through an opening called the “Eye” and see all the way to
the Center’s ‘Source,’ where the foundation of the Kingdom’s
prosperity, oil, is celebrated,” Al-Rashid says.
The Keystone is the Center’s font of creation and
innovation. There, ideas will be brought to life through an
“idea translation” process that will result in potentially
patentable, commercial products with vibrant exhibits.
Developed by the Center, the process is one in which
interdisciplinary collaboration and experimentation all
feed into the creative ecosystem the Keystone is planning
to develop.
While the place has yet to be built, the idea has
taken off.
A Keystone pilot project was launched this past spring
in partnership with Harvard’s Arts Science Laboratory,
a global leader with a track record in idea development.
According to Keystone coordinator Nourah A. Tubayyeb,
seven young professionals were selected through a
rigorous application process to participate
in the carefully structured
project-based program, which is
primarily designed to develop
local capacity for cultural
creativity and social innovation.
During Phase 1, program
participants took an intensive
five-week Idea Translation Course
at the Engineering School at
Harvard University and underwent
additional training at the Cloud
Foundation in Boston. After conducting
research and making concept
presentations before their colleagues,
the Keystone participants unveiled two
innovative project ideas for how to combat
the shortage of water.
The Keystone program
will inspire a
wave of creativity
with youthful spirit.
During Phase 2, the program participants worked collaboratively
with some 20 subject matter experts in Dhahran
to develop their ideas further, and create project prototypes
and business plans. Phase 3 took them to Le Laboratoire,
an affiliate of ArtScience labs. There, they worked
with exhibition designers, intellectual property lawyers and
venture capitalists to prepare project exhibits, investigate
commercialization and register legal rights.
The inspiring result is a set of two completely innovative,
Center of the Center
Keystone to empower people to creatively ‘make things happen’
commercially attractive, and popular products. Both are
already drawing the attention of domestic and international
funders. They are also, as part of the overall plan,
proving to be quite successful in advancing the Keystone’s
larger mission to build a creative ecosystem.
Where the Keystone pilot program is project-based, the
Keystone Think Tank, an event-based program, is designed
to spread and nurture creativity on different fronts
by creating ripple effects to build up a local and global
creativity network. The Think Tank program will be hosting
events with international partners, such as TED, which
co-hosted a forum at Saudi Aramco this summer, and the
Kauffman Foundation, which granted Keystone participants
exclusive rights to its patented Startup Weekend
program in Saudi Arabia and Dubai, based on the success of
the pilot program. A bi-annual Creativity Award is planned
to
acknowledge leaders in the field of creativity and inno-
vation vation in the Kingdom and the world.
The Keystone sights are clearly set on the future of
Saudi
Arabia as a world leader in creativity. If the success
of
its pilot program and events are any measure, it will
not
be long before the world begins to take note of Saudi
Arabia’s
creativity.
Above left: Harvard Professor and Keystone partner Dr. David Edwards
addresses Keystone participants and lecture attendees in his presenta
tion “Creating The Future.” Left: Nasser A. Al-Nafisee, Public Affairs
general
manager, encourages the first participants of the Keystone pilot
program
at the “Creating The Future” lecture.
Winter 2011 21

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Dimensions International
The Center
ICONIC KING ABDULAZIZ CENTER FOR WORLD CULTURE
WILL LIGHT THE WAY — TO THE PAST, THE FUTURE
DHAHRAN — When you talk to employees of the King
Abdulaziz Center for World Culture, one phrase you hear
time and again is “iconic vision.”
Their vision is for a landmark institution that honors the
Kingdom’s past, lives in the present and projects into the future.
Physically, it will stand out as an architectural icon, but
inside and outside, it will be a home not only of learning but
also of ideas, innovation and productive collaboration.
Fatma Al-Rashid, head of Design and Construction
Interface for the Center, says it is rooted in the initial source
of prosperity, oil, but goes on to say that the Center embodies
the vision that in the present and future, prosperity will
come from people and ideas. “The building itself is a carrier
of the vision,” she said.
“Creativity, knowledge sharing and cross cultural engagement,
these goals are in every aspect of the building.”
The project is not only iconic with its structure, but
with its content and programs. More than 50 programs
covering diverse interests are being developed to keep the
Center vibrant with edutainment activities and continuously
attractive with high impact content. There will be something
for everyone. Two million physical and 8 million online visitors
are planned for annually. All in all, the King Abdulaziz Center
aspires to be a benchmark for the museums and the cultural
centers of the future.
“You might expect galleries and museums to be all about
objects, and though the Center will have 500,000 books and
will exhibit historic objects (see related story, page 26) and
works of art, the objects are meant to inspire people and tell
the story of the company, the Kingdom and the world,” says
Fuad F. Al-Therman, Director of the Center.
We are an ideas-based Center rather than an object-based
Center,” he said at the March 30, 2011 meeting of the Steering
Committee. “The technology will be the back bone ...
enabling the knowledge to touch and interact with visitors,
volunteers and members of staff.”
The first step in realizing the Cultural Center vision was
a design competition led by Nasser A. Al-Nafisee, General
Manager of Public Affairs. The resulting design by Snohetta
of Norway draws its inspiration from the culture and environment
of Arabia. The building takes the shape of pebbles
randomly piled together, suggesting the region’s occupation
with geology and the rocks that preserve petroleum energy.
Continued on page 27
Below: The Cultural Center’s facade,
unlike any other in the world, will
be clad in 1,000 tons of stainlesssteel
tubes. Opposite page:
A view across the Center’s
Museum Galleries.
By Paul Sauser

“While Saudi Aramco is engaged in so many
industrial projects to power the world, the
King Abdulaziz Center is a very special one
because it directly touches the lives of
millions and will be a global source
of inspiration, cross-cultural
engagement and human
development,” said Abdulaziz
F. Al-Khayyal, Industrial
Relations senior vice
president.
Winter 2011 23

Children’s Discovery Zone to provide
rich soil for growing minds
By Paul Sauser
Think of the Cultural Center as a greenhouse where
culture and knowledge grow. That makes the Children’s
Discovery Zone (CDZ) the soil and children’s
minds the seeds that grow after a lifetime of learning.
“It will be the foundation of a love for learning by
catching kids at a very early age and infusing them with
a love of what the whole Center offers,” says Michelle
Seaters-Alireza, the CDZ’s founding leader, who has been
Above top: There are eight main program areas being developed for
the Children’s Discovery Zone. The development team has gathered
ideas from child-focused institutions from around the world. Above
bottom: The entry way will ignite children’s curiosity to explore the
Children’s Discovery Zone.
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Dimensions International
with the project since January 2007.
Programs will be thematically based and holistic in
nature to capture the imaginations of children from
ages 2–12. “We are going to be more humanities-based
than science and technology based to support character
building and life skills,” she says, “although we do have
significant science and technology woven into a lot of
our programs.” So rather than addressing the environment
in terms of chemistry and biology,
it will be “caring for your environment,
understanding your environment,
respecting it,” Seaters-Alireza says.
Even with technology, the goal of
the Center is to be creators of digital
media rather than mere consumers.
“So instead of just sitting at home and
watching a cartoon, children will learn
all the concepts in filmmaking and animation
and create a cartoon,” she says.
Eight main program areas are under
development. They are:
CDZ Children’s Library – Inspiring the
Center’s youngest visitors with a love of
reading through activities such as story
times and book clubs.
Adventure Zone – Emphasizing
physical, emotional and intellectual
courage and giving
children the opportunity
to test their courage
through challenges.
Eco Lab – Delving
into marine
science, environmental
science,
physics, geology
and environmental
stewardship.
Islamic Arts –
Bringing a new
dimension to the
genre with cutting
edge technology, virtual reality
and learning tools to engage
visitors beyond standard
art creation.

Story Cave – A space where visitors can exercise
their imagination using the ideas from their own culture
while learning and expanding on the cultures of
others.
Our World – A place to develop awareness and
appreciation about the different people of the different
cultures of the world.
Sound Studio – Exploring the variety of ways music
can be made, appreciated and understood. Those with
no musical background or natural ability as well as
those with experience can take part.
Techno Kids – Exploring appropriate technologies
designed with special consideration for the environmental,
cultural, social and economic aspects of a
community.
There also will be an outdoor Children’s Oasis, with
exhibits that tie in with activities and concepts from
the indoor exhibits.
Seaters-Alireza says the CDZ’s development team
has met with many child-focused institutions in forming
the physical space and programs. “If we’re able
to show (children) this is a cool place, as they grow up
they’ll be excited to experience things in other areas
of the Center and the world beyond.”
The Adventure Zone tree will provide children
with a multilevel, multisensory
experience.
Emerging Saudi art
featured in new book
It may be something of a coincidence that Saudi
contemporary art and the Cultural Center are
rising at about the same time, but the Cultural
Center intends to take that coincidence and work
with it.
The Center recently published a book featuring
some of the pioneers of contemporary art in Saudi
Arabia. Center personnel were first approached by
artist Abdulaziz Ashour to sponsor the book.
Ashour compiled the book, says museum founding
leader Wafa H. Al-Zaid, “He gave insights into the
status of artists in Saudi Arabia and how they are
emerging. They are becoming very popular. There is a
great demand for their work internationally.”
“We were very impressed by the book, which,” she
said, “presents 18 Saudi artists and their work.”
“Contemporary Saudi artists first came up in auctions
about three years ago,” said Al-Zaid. “It’s still
very much an emerging art scene, but there is a lot
of interest.”
“Saudi artists are considered among the most
important in the Gulf region and the Arab world today,”
Al-Zaid says. “Their creativity is just admirable.”
One reason for the growing interest, she says,
may be that Saudi contemporary artists are participating
more internationally and there is a lot of
curiosity. “So now everybody is wondering what the
Saudi artist has to offer,” she says. “We are proud
of having a good number of Saudi artists who are
offering innovative art work at an international level
with local identity.”
The Cultural Center will have a gallery dedicated
to Saudi contemporary art, photography and calligraphy.
“We would like to be a platform for the Saudi
artists to exhibit their work,” Al-Zaid said.
There aren’t a lot of places for Saudi contemporary
artists to display their work. The Center
would be the first museum platform where their
works could go — and travel internationally
as well.
The Center wants to encourage emerging
and amateur artists to develop their skills. In
keeping with one of the overarching purposes
of the Center, “We also want to create this appreciation
of art among our visitors, the young
generation in particular.”
Winter 2011 25

Historical Donations
By Stephen L. Brundage and Paul Sauser
The Cultural Center’s archives will
hold documents, photos, artifacts,
audiovisual material and
electronic records, telling the powerful
stories of the people who built
Saudi Aramco.
With a short ceremony recently,
some artifacts entered the archives, a
gift from King Fahd University of Petroleum
and Minerals’ Dr. Samir Abdul Jauwad.
Jauwad, dean of the College of Engineering
Sciences, presented an envelope used by
pioneer geologist Max Steineke and two gold
discs to Abdullatif A. Al-Othman, Sr. Vice President,
Engineering and Project Management.
Al-Othman met Jauwad during a visit by
KFUPM’s International Advisory Board, and
Jauwad had brought the discs with him.
“After that, I kept reflecting on how an
important part of our history can be
shared with the whole world,” Al-Othman
said. “I approached Dr. Samir to see if he
wanted to make the contribution, and without
hesitation he was more than generous.”
Steineke used the envelope to send a
letter to his wife in Los Altos, California. Steineke, then
chief geologist for CASOC in the Kingdom, signed it.
Jauwad is an avid stamp collector and acquired the
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Dimensions International
Geologist Max Steineke used this envelope to
send a letter to his wife while in Saudi Arabia.
The larger coin
(above) was
equivalent to $20
and weighed about
one-quarter of an
ounce. The smaller
coin (below) was
equivalent to $5.
envelope in pursuit of that hobby.
The small gold discs, which are about the
size and shape of coins, and are sometimes
referred
to as Aramco dollars, were
specially specially minted by the United States
in
the 1940s to enable Aramco to
make payments owed to the King-
dom
by the Concession Agreement
under
which the company operated
for
many years. “I bought the two
Aramco
gold coins from an international
auction house a long time ago,” Jauwad said.
According to an article in the September/
October 1981 Saudi Aramco World, the discs
were minted in Philadelphia in the 1940s. On
one side is an image of an eagle and the
words “U. S. Mint, Philadelphia, USA.” On the
other side are three lines on the fineness
and weight of the gold. In one year, 1945,
the mint produced 91,210 large discs
worth worth $20 and, in 1947, 121,364 small discs
worth $5, according to The Numismatist
magazine.
“Because most of the discs were melted
down for bullion or later redeemed for the
Kingdom’s gold sovereigns, the discs are interesting additions
to art collections,” Saudi Aramco World says.
“Saudi Aramco is proud of its history!”
Al-Othman said after the event. “The coin represents
an important part of the company’s
history — the Concession Agreement, the
desire of our King to transform the nation
into a modern society. These are all prevailing
thoughts when you look at the period.”
Saudis also are proud of Saudi Aramco’s
history, he continued. “The fact that Dr.
Samir’s family kept these coins is a testimony
to the value people place on the history
of the Kingdom and the company.” He
applauded Samir and his family for donating
the items and setting an example of
sharing with the community and society.
Cultural Center director Fuad F.
Al-Therman encouraged others with
similar items to consider donating them
to the Center. If you have items to donate,
contact haitham.jehairan@aramco.com.

Continued from page 22
“The King Abdulaziz
Center is the flagship
of Saudi Aramco
citizenship programs
and it is a legacy for
generations to come.
It will be homegrown,
but globally connected,”
said Nasser A.
Al-Nafisee, Public Affairs
General Manager.
Enveloping the building is a
facade, or veil, of stainless-steel
tubes being made by leading
German manufacturer Seele.
“The facade has never been done
anywhere in the world,” says
Mohammed H. Al-Ghosain,
Manager of the Project Support
Department for the Center.
Each of the tubes will be
unique and will be bent to fit its
precise position on the building
by a specially designed bending
machine. All together, the tubes
will weigh about 1,000 tons and
be attached to the skin by 75,000 titanium pins.
Each of the pipes is 7.7 centimeters in diameter and 5.5
meters long, and the system has been examined every way
possible. “We’ve looked at the heat effect,” Al-Ghosain said.
“We’ve looked at the wind effect by using wind-tunnel testing.
We’ve also looked at the cleaning of the facade.”
“Elements of the building are derived from Islamic architecture,”
Al-Rashid says. The building also respects the desert
around it, reflected in the materials and colors borrowed from
the environment. There is harmony between the outside and
the inside. “All-natural material reflects what you saw when
you came in,” she says.
“The building itself has a timeline,” she said. It starts with
the foundation, or roots, at the lowest point. There, an exhibit
displays the history of oil in the Kingdom and acknowledges
oil as the foundation of Saudi Arabia’s economic prosperity.
Rising from the foundation are galleries of calligraphy,
Arabia’s foundational art form. History gives way to the
present as visitors rise to ground level. That’s where 3D
Left: Saudi Aramco Executive Committee
(EXCOM) members are joined by Saudi
Aramco management, Center and PMT
leaders at the site of the emerging facility
in December 2011. Below: The Great Hall
is a jewel that will showcase the best of
world cultural experiences.
multimedia displays can be seen, and that’s the level
of the Great Hall, exhibiting collections on loan
from some of the world’s greatest museums.
The future is above ground. The materials
become more contemporary and the technology
and environment are all about stimulating thinking,
Al-Rashid says.
Floating above ground level is the Keystone,
home of a think tank and collaborative creativity programs
(see separate story). From the Keystone, you can see into
the Source, so visitors and program participants are always
reminded they are building on successes of the past.
Just as a contest produced the Center’s structural design,
contests are also producing the technology package and creative
exhibits including concepts for the Museum Complex,
the Children’s Discovery Zone, the Saudi Aramco Exhibit
upgrade and two galleries at Prince Salman Science Oasis in
Riyadh. One Oasis gallery will focus on energy education and
the second will be about Saudi Aramco and the Saudi petroleum
and energy industry.
The staff is excited and proud to be working on the landmark.
“This is not just something for Saudi Aramco employees
or even the community, this is something for the Kingdom;
this is something for the neighboring countries; this is something
for the whole world,” Al-Ghosain says.
For more information on the King Abdulaziz Center for
World Culture, visit www.kingabdulazizcenter.com.
Winter 2011 27