City limits

摘要

A distant sight from the Dubai-bound highway, obfuscated in a heat haze on the plane between Khalifa City suburbia and the periphery of Abu Dhabi airport, Masdar City appears at first indistinct on the horizon. Yet on approaching it is revealed for what it is: raised above the flat datum of the desert and standing in relief against its dusty yellow, it configures itself as an isolated citadel of rich terracotta - and, since Sheppard Robson's new regional HQ for German firm Siemens recently completed - of pale, faceted steel.