The Sheikh Abdullah Al Salem Cultural Centre (ASCC) has now opened its doors to the world following its spectacular inauguration on 5 February in the presence of His Highness Sheikh Sabah Al Ahmad Al Jaber Al Sabah, the Emir of Kuwait, and representatives of the Amiri Diwan.
Visitors will now be able to enjoy six distinct experiences housed within their own buildings at the new complex.
- The Natural History Museum will feature seven galleries from Arabian Landscapes to Prehistoric Life, giving visitors to ASCC an insight into the natural world.
- The Science and Technology Museum will allow visitors to meet and play with robots, test and engineer inventions and travel through the human body fighting germs.
- The Space Museum tells the story of our planet and the universe and allows visitors to explore the wonders of space right here on earth.
- The Islamic Museum will guide visitors through 1,000 years of Islamic influence on the arts and sciences, demonstrating its impact on the world today with interactive installations and valuable artefacts.
- The complex’s Fine Arts Centre and separate Theatre round up the exciting offering visitors can look forward to at ASCC.
The Cultural Centre, which covers a total area of 13 ha, is the largest museums project of its kind in the world and has been constructed using modern 21st century materials to reflect traditional Kuwaiti architecture.
Because of its innovative design, ASCC was recently named Public Building of the Year at the prestigious ABB LEAF Awards 2017, and now forms part of a new world-class museum district within Kuwait City.The award-winning ASCC development, together with the Sheikh Jaber Al Ahmad Cultural Centre (JACC), is alsopart of Kuwait’s new national cultural district.
SSHwas appointed by Al Ghanim International, the design and build contractor as lead architecture and engineering designer on the complex. Working collaboratively with world-leading museum specialists, SSH was able to deliver the ASCC project for the Amiri Diwan to the stringent standards required of world-class public cultural buildings.
“We’re very excited that the Sheikh Abdullah Al Salam Cultural Centre has finally opened to the public,” said Simon Dennison, Design Director at SSH, who led the design on the project. “The contemporary architectural style and technical innovations of this complex, combined with its traditional Kuwaiti aesthetic and grand sense of scale, enables ASCC to act as a perfect regional focal point to encourage scientific and curiosity and celebrate humanity’s scientific endeavours.”
ABOUT SSH
SSH is one of the leading master planning, infrastructure, building design and construction supervision firms in the Middle East, with a reputation for design integrity and a portfolio that includes landmark projects throughout the region. The firm maintains offices in Abu Dhabi, Algeria, Bahrain, Dubai, Iraq, Kuwait, London, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and South Africa.
Founded in 1961, we employ approximately 1,400 high-calibre local, regional and international experts in their individual fields, most of whom are from globally renowned international consultancy firms. We ranked 3rd architecture company in the Middle East among the top 100 Architects in the world and number 1 design firm in the cultural sector in the world by World Architecture Magazine in 2015 and 2016.
We were also ranked in 95th place among ENR’s Top 225 International Design Firms for 2017.
SSH’s multifaceted practices include architecture, urban design and planning, landscape architecture, structural and civil engineering, MEP/building services, interior design, highway and bridge engineering, stormwater drainage, utility design, sanitary engineering, marine engineering and district cooling, in addition to high-profile project management and construction supervision services.
