Dubai (United Arab Emirate): Dubai by Design

Dates for WT2010: January 4 - 22, 2010

ARCH 678 (3 credits)

This is a design studio course focused on the urbanism and architecture in Dubai. Participants will spend two weeks in the United Arab Emirates and one week at the University of Maryland College Park.

Dubai has become emblematic of the rapid urbanization of the east. A desert just 30 years ago, Dubai has become home to over 1 million people in just 25 years. Unlike many of the world’s great cities of the past, where the value of land and scarce resources fueled density, Dubai remains relatively sparsely populated yet with all of the symbols of density - skyscrapers, a transit infrastructure, and thriving commerce. And unlike the many of the world’s great cities of the past that grew incrementally over centuries, Dubai continues to expand in development at the rate of 59% per year. This phenomenal growth defies nearly all traditional urban design principles, and is nearly without regulation.

This study abroad program offers the opportunity to take on the question of public space in the context of a city built so rapidly, and almost entirely of private speculative development. As global economic forces empower private entities to construct massive developments at unprecedented rates, the need for space that supports the collective, and patterns of life beyond business, shopping, and private home life becomes crucial. Students will have the opportunity to collaborate with students and faculty from the American University in Sharjah in a 3 week design charretee, which seeks to transform the developing fabric of Dubai to create public space and a pattern of development that supports both everyday life for the growing immigrant population and native Emratis, and responds to the needs of business travelers and tourists.

Faculty and Staff

This course will be team-led by Isaac Williams, Assistant Professor of Architecture and B.D. Wortham-Galvin, Ph.D. Please contact either professor with questions about the course content and itinerary.

For questions about the application, registration and pre-departure logistics, please contact the Study Abroad Office at 301-314-7473.