A collaboration between the Catalonia-based firm RCR Arquitectes and the property developer Muraba, the Veil residential skyscraper – 380 meters tall – stands next to Dubai’s main transport artery, Shekh Zayed Road. The slender 73-story tower contains 131 apartments of two to five bedrooms apiece, every one of which takes up the entire width of the building: 22.5 meters. The outer skin of stainless steel protects the various inner layers, which draw inspiration from the traditional Arabian house through sequences leading to a cool and communal innermost core. Surrounded by large exterior spaces, the units face two directions, so temperatures are reduced naturally.

A space at the foot of the tower evokes sand deserts and caves eroded by wind and water, and here we find leisure and sports amenities: swimming pools, restaurants, a cinema, meeting rooms, and so on.