herzog & de meuron unveils al maha island masterplan in qatar

Tomas Kauer - News Writer and News Moderator

herzog & de meuron unveils al maha island masterplan in qatar

AL MAHA ISLAND MASTERPLAN UNVEILED DURING ART BASEL 2026

Herzog & de Meuron unveils the masterplan to transform Al Maha Island, a 230,000sqm man-made island established in Lusail, Qatar, in 2022. Presented during the 2026 Art Basel in Basel by Jacques Herzog, Her Excellency Sheikha Al-Mayassa bint Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, and Art Basel CEO Noah Horowitz, the project reimagines the site as a premier cultural and residential district where contemporary architecture, art, design, gastronomy and community converge. The sweeping masterplan encompasses the Swiss architecture studio’s bowl-shaped Lusail Museum, a permanent home for Art Basel Qatar future editions, a contemporary souk, verdant gardens, restaurants, a boutique hotel, and an array of waterfront villas, hilltop homes, and townhouses.

Initially unveiled in 2024, the Lusail Museum will serve as the cultural anchor for both the island and the broader Lusail City. This world-class institution will function as a platform for cultural diplomacy, providing a dynamic setting for discourse on the historic and contemporary exchanges that shape global cultures. ‘When the museum was first presented, it was in a different location, but because of the purity of the building and the importance of the collection, it was moved to Al Maha Island,’ explained Sheikha Al-Mayassa during the intimate gathering in Basel.‘This is one of the few places where foreigners can acquire houses and land, so we developed the whole island to be an ecosystem of residential areas, a boutique hotel, as well as a little souk combining modernity with tradition.’

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aerial wide view of Al Maha Island | all renderings © Herzog and de Meuron

SHAPED BY QATAR’S HISTORY, LANDSCAPE AND TYPOLOGIES

Situated near the historic area where Sheikh Jassim bin Mohammed Al Thani, the founder of modern Qatar, established his home in the late 1800s, Al Maha Island represents a contemporary vision deeply rooted in the region’s heritage. Throughout the masterplan, expected to break ground in 2028, Herzog & de Meuron employs vernacular typologies and distinct architectural languages tailored to the island’s diverse residential, commercial, and cultural zones. Regional traditions are reflected throughout the design, from courtyard houses and townhouses linked by narrow, shaded streets and walled gardens, to monolithic, earthen-like structures that appear to rise organically from the ground itself.‘This island is man-made, and land-making, or building a piece of a city, has a totally different connotation here,’ noted Jacques Herzog.‘We want this to be integrated into the project concept and the buildings to be made with local materials, such as sand and rock, so that it feels like a whole piece, not just something we brought in.’

Nature plays a pivotal role in the island’s experiential design. A series of ‘gem’ gardens are strategically woven into the landscape, offering moments of contemplation and natural points of orientation. To promote and rejuvenate native ecosystems, the project will collaborate with local nurseries and initiatives focused on indigenous species, such as those championed by the Qatar Foundation.‘The gardens should be as specific as each individual building,’ Herzog emphasized.‘We cannot turn this into a golf resort; we have specific gem gardens surrounded by landscapes which are more traditional to what grows around Doha. Every single piece of nature should be precisely integrated.’ The Arabian oryx, a species native to the peninsula, will also be integrated into the landscape experience.‘Al Maha means oryx in Arabic, and the oryx is the symbol of our national airline,’ Sheikha Al-Mayassa added.‘More importantly, had it not been for Qatar, these animals would have been extinct, so we’re very proud of them.’

‘gem’ gardens are strategically woven into the landscape

WATERFRONT RESIDENCES AND A PERMANENT HOME FOR ART BASEL

Connectivity to Doha and Lusail will be facilitated through water transport, as well as dedicated vehicle and pedestrian bridges. Thanks to the island’s subtly elevated, hill-shaped terrain, all infrastructure will be subterranean. This ensures a traffic-free, pedestrian-friendly surface level while preserving uninterrupted sightlines toward the water and its surrounding reefs. The island’s residential zone will feature over 150 units, spanning waterfront houses, hilltop villas, townhouses, and apartments, while a boutique hotel is also being planned.

Once a year, the island will host Art Basel Qatar, the latest and most substantial addition to the country’s cultural calendar following its inaugural edition last February. Rather than confining the event to a traditional convention hall, the vision for the permanent exhibition space embraces the entire island. Planners have envisioned a scenario where the Al Maha bridge serves as the gateway to the fair, transforming the wider ecosystem, down to the local restaurants, into an immersive, island-wide experience. This expanded footprint turns Al Maha into a creative playground to rethink the future of the art fair, a concept that resonates deeply with its leadership.‘We are profoundly excited coming out of this co-creation,’ says Art Basel CEO Noah Horowitz.‘We are not just plugging into something that exists; we are truly building something with partners. Tracking the cycles of our industry, creating deep and meaningful connections with new regions, artists, and institutions is one of the most exciting things we can do.’

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arrival at Art Basel Qatar’s permanent location

The masterplan addresses the perennial challenge of large-scale event architecture: what happens to the space when Art Basel is not taking place? Recognizing the high local demand for cultural venues, the design prioritizes flexibility and long-term sustainability over high-maintenance spectacle. The architecture is conceived to be modest and adaptable, engineered to age well without burdening future generations with unnecessary upkeep or energy costs. Because the exhibition space sits within a vibrant community, it is designed to adapt to the programming desires of the island’s residents, transforming seamlessly to host movie screenings, weddings, conferences, or intimate gatherings. This holistic approach underscores the studio’s broader ethos for the island.‘What we do as architects is less about a genius unique idea; rather, every single element should be part of a whole vision,’ Herzog notes.‘It becomes real through how it is made, giving you a different feeling from the conventional way developments are built.’

monolithic, earthen-like structures appear to rise organically from the ground

inside herzog & de meuron’s lusail museum

Anchoring the southern tip of Al Maha Island, the Lusail Museum is conceived as the cultural powerhouse of the masterplan. Herzog & de Meuron’s circular design is defined by three intersecting spheres that carve the building into two distinct volumes, one resembling a full moon, the other a protective crescent. Grounded in its coastal context, the exterior will be crafted from locally sourced sand and rock, minimizing the project’s reliance on imported materials while rendering the building as a monolithic, earthen extension of the landscape. The facade’s deeply recessed windows act as a direct, climate-responsive defense against the extreme Gulf sun. Drawing inspiration from the protective shade and hidden intricacies of traditional Islamic architecture, this deliberate recessing shields visitors from the heat while framing uninterrupted views of the sea and Lusail City.

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view from Lusail Marina looking towards Al Maha Island and Lusail Museum

Inside, a naturally lit, crescent-shaped internal street connects the entrances to a central lobby and public spaces, where tactile elements, a polished plaster staircase, a wood-paneled library, and a reflective metal prayer space, enrich the sensory experience. Yet, the museum’s most striking spatial intervention lies within its exhibition design. Breaking away from the conventional ‘white cube’ model, the architects have inserted full-scale, proportionately accurate replicas of historic domes from across the Islamic world, including a soaring Iranian structure. Stripped of their traditional ornamentation, these striking, abstract white volumes act as monumental canvases for contemporary installations and visual projections. This deliberate juxtaposition of historic architectural proportions with modern, abstract voids promises a highly unusual and dynamic gallery experience.‘We were interested in using the real proportion of original structures without the decoration,’ Herzog explains.‘We don’t want to just have white cube galleries, we want this juxtaposition of unlikely spaces.’

Beyond its architectural ambition, the museum will house Qatar Museums’ extensive collection of Orientalist art, featuring masters such as Eugène Delacroix, Gustav Bauernfeind and Jean-Léon Gérôme, alongside an exceptional photography archive. More than just a repository for historic works, the building will also serve as the home of the Lusail Institute. Conceived as a ‘museum of ideas,’ the Institute will leverage the surrounding art and architecture to foster advanced research, public dialogue, and multimedia production. By creating a dedicated space for cutting-edge thought and cultural exchange, the museum ensures it will function as an active, evolving forum rather than a static monument.

Lusail Museum south entrance

UNDERSTANDING THE POWER OF CULTURE

The Al Maha Island masterplan represents the culmination of a two-decade cultural evolution in Qatar.‘I remember when I started, nobody believed in building museums,’ Sheikha Al-Mayassa reflected. Yet, the overwhelming success of landmarks like I.M. Pei’s Museum of Islamic Art and Jean Nouvel’s National Museum of Qatar has fundamentally shifted the paradigm, transforming these institutions into bustling community catalysts. Building on this momentum, Al Maha Island marks the first time Qatar is executing a development of this scale through a public-private partnership. While the prime real estate could have easily taken a far more commercial shape, the project’s private investors championed a national vision that places culture at the center of society.‘They believe so much in what established museums have done to enhance the quality of life and attract creatives to make Qatar their home,’ the Sheikha explained.‘That’s a great reflection of the maturity of society and understanding the power of culture.’

This cultural power extends far beyond the exhibition walls to directly enrich the regional economy. Rather than relying solely on industrialized construction, the project’s interiors will be shaped by the hands of artisans from across the Middle East and South Asia, including Afghanistan, Palestine, India, and Syria. By integrating traditional techniques into these contemporary spaces, the development is forging a sustainable new market that elevates the global perception of regional craftsmanship.‘This is not just high art and culture; everything you see here will be done by artisans and craftsmen from our region,’ Sheikha Al-Mayassa emphasized.‘We are creating a new market, and informing people of the potential of artisans in our region. The lives of these craftsmen will be transformed, which is one of the most important legacies of this project.’

at the Village, houses are linked by narrow, shaded streets and walled gardens