T
o be located in the centre of Bahrain, Big Box is an
office tower that will sit along a prominent high-
way intersection in Salmabad and rise to a height
of 74m.
Giving occupants panoramic views of the city and seascape
beyond, the project consists of four stacked cubes with simi-
lar proportions. While retail spaces and a lobby activate the
pedestrian level, parking is placed in the aluminium louver-
cladded podium box. Office spaces are designated to the three
upper boxes, which are visually separated from the lower box,
as they are cladded with a ceramic-fritted curtain wall.
According to Omar Al Omari, founder and director of the
UK-based OAOA, the concept of the project is a response to
the client’s desire for the structure to stand out from other
buildings in Bahrain and achieve a high-density commercial
space using a reasonable budget.
“The unique form of the building, as a series of stacked
and shifting boxes, is a simple yet novel way of fulfilling these
requirements within a complex set of planning and site con-
straints,” Omari said.
Due to the tight proportions of the plot, the architects
found a rectangular plan to be the most efficient in terms
of cost and area optimisation. And with a high water table
in Bahrain, OAOA placed parking within the podium and
raised it to create an inviting and permeable lobby and retail
space at the base.An office tower in Bahrain designed
by OAOA features four stacked boxes
with façades consisting of innovative
ceramic-fritted glassBig Box
Written by Rima
Alsammarae
Images courtesy of
OAOA32 / PROJECTS