Flying Saucer Rehabilitation

Sharjah, United Arab Emirates

The Flying Saucer is a 1978 Brutalist-style building that originally housed a café, restaurant, newsstand and gift shop; use of the building changed several times from 1988 onwards. It comprises a star-shaped canopy around a seven-metre dome over a circular arrangement of eight columns and V-shaped pillars. The building was fully restored as a community art space, and a later extension to the building was demolished. The surrounding parking area was excavated for construction of a new underground community space to contain a public art library, a film-screening room, and workspace and social areas; the area above it and surrounding the building has been hardscaped as a public urban plaza.

Source: Aga Khan Trust for Culture