The Saadiyat project comprises residential, community, nursery and commercial facilities. We set out to create an interior design of place, people, the past and the present, drawing on the inspiration of the local maritime industry of pearl diving. Qualities of traditional timber boats, juxtaposed with modern sleek yachts have been translated into the interior finishes for the yacht club component of the Saadiyat scheme.

The long narrow floor plan created a procession of spaces from the main bar to wine bar, to grazing lounge to restaurant and open kitchen. This sequence of spaces enabled a story to be told of the traditional maritime vessels that once graced the surrounding waters and of today’s contemporary white boats that would soon come to moor nearby. A sinuous white corian bar flows through the initial spaces to become a projection wall in the grazing lounge and seating nooks in the restaurant. Wire brushed timber ribs form the backdrop to the bar and flow up on to the ceiling of the restaurant in a more contemporary style creating a pattern that alludes to waves on the open sea.