High-rise Apartment Building Design at Yemen

A 36-storey apartment building merges traditionality and modernity in Sana’a, Yemen

The calming aura of mud, stone, and rammed earth tower houses, closely knit together in clusters, envelops around every resident of the city of Sana’a, capital of Yemen. The process of designing durable structures that could withstand the extreme weather conditions of the desert region, led to the birth of beautiful houses made of burnt bricks and mud, with white gypsum carvings on the walls speaking volumes about the originality of the place.

Being the main political, religious, and economical center of Yemen, Sana’a is witnessing a rapid growth in population and hence the incorporation of high-rise buildings, elegantly amalgamating traditional aesthetics and modern design interventions, will significantly boost the overall development of the city.

With a vision to establish a tall, slender apartment building having 36 residential floors, the client approached a young Mumbai-based architectural firm, Atelier ARBO, to collaborate and arrive at a fresh and enticing design intervention. The client’s specific brief led to a simple design strategy with the main focus being on creating a structurally strong and durable building that can take the traditional architecture of the city to a higher level.

Each floor of the residential building offers two apartments separated by a common lobby, a space that encompasses a staircase and two elevators for vertical transport and a ventilation duct for maintaining a comfortable living condition in all houses. On entering each apartment, a spacious family living space welcomes the residents and further diverges into a guest room, a kitchen, a powder room, a master bedroom with a bathroom, and two separate bedrooms with a common bathroom. Conscious zoning led to the seamless separation of personal spaces and guest arenas to ensure the privacy of the residents. Each house can become a comfortable abode for a family of about four to six members.

Considering the importance of developing a durable and strong high-rise building, steel was used as the primary construction material, owing to its innate strength and flexibility. Every room of each apartment has large glazed fenestrations made of solar reflective tempered glass to flood the interiors with abundant daylight and natural wind while also keeping the harsh heat outside. A beautiful pattern of woven brick and concrete flows throughout the entire facade design adding a traditional touch to the contemporary structure. When all the internal lights of the houses are lit at night, the building exudes a charismatic warm feeling, much like a lantern glowing beautifully.

This project aims at becoming a small stepping stone in the developmental growth of Sana’a, opening up vast possibilities of incorporating more such high-rise buildings that emulate a beautiful blend of traditionality and modernity, while offering luxurious abodes to the residents of Yemen.