Working in Abu Dhabi

I have left this blog for a long time, which I do regret, but it is a cumulative problem – much like avoiding the gym or a library fine; the more you leave it the worse it gets.

Anyway, I recently had the pleasure of going to work in the Benoy architecture office in Abu Dhabi for a week, which involved meetings as well as designing and general practice.

It was a real shock for me. Firstly, the lifestyle change both shocked and compelled me; I can see why people stay to work there for years. The luxury is crazy. 

And the opportunities for architectural greatness are fantastic. There is so much money floating about, that everything is made possible. My work was awfully pedestrian, but I have never felt so lost before - designing an object rather than a space to be inhabited (on a budget). It was also the first time I had really got to design solely on a computer - no sketches, no models; not a scalpel cut or glue blob in sight.

All in all, fantastic trip, and it was an experience that will never leave me.