Museum in Fort Al Fateh
PAD
The choice of sandstone, created by layers of sand compressed and solidified over thousands of years, for use in an urban landscape rising from the Middle Eastern desert, is particularly significant. Inside the crystal setting, designed by PAD, of the permanent exhibition centre in Forte Al Fateh, the ancient royal residence, the curved stone creates a clearly defined series of spaces carved out along the obligatory indoor pathway. The Crema Fiorito stone is an ultra-modern technical covering and at the summit a series of slim rectangular elements are laid out in a chequer pattern. Some of these are precisely carved using a water-jet technique to replicate traditional geometric patterns.