Papers by Rachel Goodfriend
Books by Rachel Goodfriend
Transformations: The Emirati National House
Abu Dhabi’s urban fabric, as represented through its architecture, has drastically changed since ... more Abu Dhabi’s urban fabric, as represented through its architecture, has drastically changed since its nascent stages of urbanization. Much of the built city has undergone complete erasure and transformation fueled by large scale government development and more recently, a growing real estate market in Abu Dhabi. Amidst its rapidly changing urban atmosphere are Abu Dhabi’s original national houses or Sha‘biyat, which illustrate the story between Abu Dhabi’s urban past and present. Sha‘biyat, a colloquial Arabic word meaning “popular,” were Abu Dhabi’s first modern residential buildings developed by the government. Abu Dhabi’s 1968 mass-housing plan, designed by urban planner and architect Abdelrahman Makhlouf, called for the development of 2,000 family units. Initially, the Sha‘biyat were meant to house Bedouin families who had been living a nomadic lifestyle. Though the houses were meant to bring a sense of residential permanence to Abu Dhabi, the Sha’biyat were not designed to be rigid. They were to be modular and easily expanded throughout time. Some of Abu Dhabi’s earliest national housing can be found 150 kilometers outside of Downtown Abu Dhabi in the Maqam district of Al Ain.
I arrived at Maqam, as an American urban design student, with preconceived notions about the failure of government housing. However the public housing in Maqam is successful because it is able to adapt and provides each family with a sense of ownership. I was welcomed into a Sha‘biyat by a family of four generations who were granted the house in the 1970’s. Each family member had a different story and attachment to the home. For the grandmother, the house was her first introduction to a sedentary life style. For her daughter, the house was a bridge between her mother’s traditions and her own children’s expectations for modern commodities. The daughter had expanded the house as her family grew over the years. The Sha‘biyat were designed not only to fill a housing gap, but to also continuously adapt to the needs of each Emirati household. Each Sha‘biyat is no longer confined to its original layout. The neighborhood scheme in Maqam has now matured into a mix of expanded, low-rise Sha‘biyat houses and upgraded villas. Maqam's evolving architecture continues to illustrate each family’s distinct case of Emirati modernity.
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Papers by Rachel Goodfriend
Books by Rachel Goodfriend
I arrived at Maqam, as an American urban design student, with preconceived notions about the failure of government housing. However the public housing in Maqam is successful because it is able to adapt and provides each family with a sense of ownership. I was welcomed into a Sha‘biyat by a family of four generations who were granted the house in the 1970’s. Each family member had a different story and attachment to the home. For the grandmother, the house was her first introduction to a sedentary life style. For her daughter, the house was a bridge between her mother’s traditions and her own children’s expectations for modern commodities. The daughter had expanded the house as her family grew over the years. The Sha‘biyat were designed not only to fill a housing gap, but to also continuously adapt to the needs of each Emirati household. Each Sha‘biyat is no longer confined to its original layout. The neighborhood scheme in Maqam has now matured into a mix of expanded, low-rise Sha‘biyat houses and upgraded villas. Maqam's evolving architecture continues to illustrate each family’s distinct case of Emirati modernity.
I arrived at Maqam, as an American urban design student, with preconceived notions about the failure of government housing. However the public housing in Maqam is successful because it is able to adapt and provides each family with a sense of ownership. I was welcomed into a Sha‘biyat by a family of four generations who were granted the house in the 1970’s. Each family member had a different story and attachment to the home. For the grandmother, the house was her first introduction to a sedentary life style. For her daughter, the house was a bridge between her mother’s traditions and her own children’s expectations for modern commodities. The daughter had expanded the house as her family grew over the years. The Sha‘biyat were designed not only to fill a housing gap, but to also continuously adapt to the needs of each Emirati household. Each Sha‘biyat is no longer confined to its original layout. The neighborhood scheme in Maqam has now matured into a mix of expanded, low-rise Sha‘biyat houses and upgraded villas. Maqam's evolving architecture continues to illustrate each family’s distinct case of Emirati modernity.