A few more pics of AquaXP

I wanted to give the facility a distinct middle east look and name it Al-Aab. This was not purely unintentional. When I first heard about an aquarium, I had this fantasy of having an oasis in desert, which emphasizes on the importance of water.

I live in a land where water is plenty. For me aquariums are not the most wonderful places to be. It somehow gave me the feeling that I could enjoy an aquarium more in a place where there is a noticeable absence of water. Although there is a large oasis nearby the facility, the need for water and the pleasantness of water is distinctly felt by the people in the desert. Water is an elixir of life for them.

The concept about making it as a stepped pyramid to emphasize on ecological balance also gels with the original frame of a middle east architecture.

The underwater viewing central is the node around which the aquarium galleries move. While designing this particular part I had this frame in mind of moving in a transparent tube with water all around me. A few days back I came to know about this large tunnel which is going to bridge the Berring Strait. The underwater tube was inspired by a simple notion of giving the visitors a 360 Panaromic view.