Location
Doha, Qatar

Date
2023–ongoing

Client
JMJ Group Holding

Operator
SLS Hotels and Residences

Design Architect
Zaha Hadid Architects

Executive Architect + MEP
FD Consult

Landscape
Cracknell

Interior Designer
Design Lab

Facade + Sustainability
Werner + Sobek

Structural Engineers
FHECOR

Images
Zaha Hadid Architects | Atchan

ZHA unveils design for The Grove, a new seafront neighbourhood and marina in Qatar for JMJ Group Holding in collaboration with Qetaifan Projects. SEAM Design brings enhancements, comfort and identity at night with light.

Comprised of 293 apartments offering panoramic views of Qetaifan Bay and the Lusail skyline, The Grove has been designed with its waterfront promenade as the heart of the community.

Passive design strategies are combined with advanced cooling technologies powered by on-site renewables to enable residents and visitors to enjoy outdoor living, dining and recreation along the neighbourhood’s waterfront promenade throughout the year.

Defining the development's unique geometries, the façades are characterized by an interplay of vertical and horizontal 'scoops' designed to meet Global Sustainability Assessment System (GSAS) targets of less than 50% glazing.

Qatar's JMJ Group Holding in collaboration with Qetaifan Projects has unveiled The Grove, a new seafront neighbourhood and marina by Zaha Hadid Architects incorporating the highest standards of design and sustainability.

Comprised of 293 one- to four-bedroom apartments offering panoramic views of Qetaifan Bay and the Lusail skyline, The Grove has been designed with its waterfront promenade as the heart of the community. A tree-lined pedestrian street along the shore, The Grove's waterfront promenade will incorporate the local cafes and restaurants, as well as the local shops and boutiques that enrich the vibrancy of enticing neighbourhoods around the world.

Passive design strategies are combined with advanced cooling technologies to enable residents and visitors to enjoy outdoor living, dining and recreation along the neighbourhood’s waterfront promenade throughout the year. Powered by on-site renewables and developed for optimum efficiencies, the re-utilization of pre-cooled extracted air from the buildings will cool the promenade during warmer months to enhance comfort.

Maximizing The Grove’s renewable energy potential while minimizing consumption, the development’s cooling energy demand is reduced with integrated shading and the high thermal mass of its low-carbon concrete structure including foundations designed to transfer heat away from the buildings. Photovoltaic panels within the optimized building envelope will be complemented by energy supplied via a high-efficiency geothermal heat pump system.

Rainwater harvesting, alongside micro-irrigation systems for locally acclimatised plants, will curtail water demand whilst a network of photovoltaic ‘trees’ throughout the promenade will enhance outdoor comfort and combine shading, water harvesting, lighting, and renewable energy production.

Supported by The Grove’s interconnecting podium is an elevated landscape of sheltered walkways, verdant gardens and terraces with infinity pools offering residents and guests uninterrupted views across the bay. The residents' members’ club, wellness center, entertainment lounge and other amenities are located at this level to directly connect with this elevated landscape.

The orientation and composition of The Grove’s residences have been designed to optimise views, shading and privacy, together with intricately crafted interiors of the common areas designed byZaha Hadid Architects. Each apartment includes extensive outdoor living spaces on generous balconies for residents to enjoy dining and relaxing at home within The Grove's cooled external environment powered by the development's renewable technologies.

Defining the development's unique geometries, the façades are characterized by an interplay of vertical and horizontal 'scoops' that create a dynamic visual rhythm and have been designed to meet Global Sustainability Assessment System (GSAS) targets of less than 50% glazing.

The stepped balconies and vertical components within the façade provide separation and privacy for residents while maintaining views of the waterfront from each apartment. Developed as a modular system enabling repetition and optimization to increase efficiencies in production, the façades enhance the building’s environmental performance and provide extensive shading in response to the region’s climatic demands.

Sheikh Jabor bin Mansour bin Jabor bin Jassim Al Thani, Chairman of JMJ Group Holding, said: “The Grove embodies our commitment to crafting residences that harmonize luxury, innovation, and sustainability. This project sets a new benchmark; offering exceptional design and world-class amenities. The Grove promises to be not just a home, but a premium lifestyle investment. Partnering with SLS Hotels & Residences further enhances this experience. A name synonymous with world-class hospitality, SLS’s expertise will ensure that residents at The Grove enjoy unparalleled service that truly redefines luxury in Qatar.”

Sheikh Nasser Bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, Managing Director of Qetaifan Projects, said: “The Grove is a significant addition to Qetaifan Island North and a testament to what can be achieved through strategic partnerships. Our collaboration with JMJ Group Holding has resulted in a development that sets a new standard for luxury and innovation in Qatar’s real estate market. We are proud to support such a visionary project that not only enhances the appeal of Qetaifan Island but also strengthens Qatar’s position as a leader in luxury, sustainable living.”

Gianluca Racana, Director at Zaha Hadid Architects, said: "We are greatly honoured to collaborate with JMJ Properties. Located on the shoreline of Qetaifan Island North with spectacular views across the bay, The Grovewill seamlessly combine living, leisure and recreational spaces of the highest quality within the most integrated, sustainable community centred around its waterfront promenade and marina. This mixed-use development looks to future with a unique design incorporating advanced technologies that ensure the comfort and wellbeing of residents and visitors throughout the year."

Juan Ignacio Aranguren, Associate Director at Zaha Hadid Architects, said: "Innovation has always been at the heart of Zaha Hadid Architects’ approach to design. Collaborating with Qatar’s leading companies to harness the technology, sustainability, and cultural understanding that will shape the city of the future, The Grove exemplifies how architecture can be a catalyst for creating vibrant, resilient communities."

Emory Smith, Director at SEAM said, "Innovative design thinking and collaboration with ZHA and Cracknell on the identity and master planning of The Grove, has given us the opportunity to contribute and provide impact through light. We have challenged ourselves to go beyond the lighting design brief to create a legacy for JMJ Group and for Doha—a vision that unites aesthetic beauty with environmental responsibility."

Marci Song, Director at SEAM, said "Lighting, often an unspoken language in itself, serves as a powerful communication tool. We are thrilled to share our collaboration on The Grove – a seaside community and destination designed by Zaha Hadid Architects for JMJ Group and Qetaifan Projects. As a design partner to ZHA, Cracknell and Werner + Sobek, we have woven advanced lighting design and sustainable technologies into a seamless experience, ensuring comfort and wellbeing for residents and visitors alike. It’s a testament to collaborative design that balances innovation with design legacy.

Location
Melbourne, Australia

Date
2016

Clients
Seventh Wave
QIC

Architects
ACME
Universal Design Studio
Softroom Architects
Buchan Group

Landscape
GROSS MAX

With full completion in 2016, the high-profile retail and leisure development of Eastland is the product of intense collaboration between London-based emergent designers and Melbourne executive teams. A visionary proposal for the 21st century, the development creates an extensive public realm and Town Square flanked by a substantial extension to the 1960s shopping centre, a new community library, and an innovative facade redressing an expansive multi-storey car park. Each of five retail districts within the remodelled mall has been carefully designed to offer visitors a unique shopping atmosphere and experiences. Fully integrated lighting highlights each of the distinct design districts with details to emphasise materials and architectural form. Through lighting, Eastland extends its placemaking and influence into the evening and early night, creating a unique destination for Ringwood, Victoria and the Greater Melbourne area.

Awards
2019 Prix Versailles – Best Shopping Mall Exterior in South Asia and the Pacific
2017 World Architecture Festival – Shortlisted
2017 Victoria Architecture Awards – Public Building of the Year – Shortlisted
2017 Lighting Design Awards – Retail Project of the Year – Shortlisted

Photography
Stephanie Rooney

Location
Phuket, Thailand

Floral designer
PHKA

Architects for Central Phuket complex
Studio DS
A49

As part of the masterplanned Central Phuket lifestyle complex, the nature-themed Central Floresta mall features dramatic planted ceilings, led by floral designer PHKA and lit by SEAM. Throughout these eye-catching installations, all natural elements are high-quality replicas, to preserve and showcase Thailand’s ecological offering for visitors.

At the entrance to the first-floor luxury brand zone, white Phalaenopsis orchids hang within a grid of bronze aluminium bars, with matching metal pendants that diffuse downwards through the translucent petals to dapple the floral pattern in silhouette across the chevron-tiled floor. On the level-two lobby above – leading to lots of trendy outlets – some white coral-like structures nestle between acrylic rods and glowing tubes, to draw visitors visually through the space.

The assorted, suspended steel and rattan boxes on level three reference Phuket’s local basket craft, hovering within a dense tropical forest that’s permeated with Pink Bougainvillea. Here, simple pendants focus attention on the flowers and foliage, announcing the seating area underneath. Nearby at the level-three lift lobby, more tropical foliage hangs between curved polycarbonate curtains, with perimeter cove lighting to create a cloud-like effect. Here, discreet downlights additionally bridge from the day-lit perimeter circulation into the artificially lit interior concourse.

In each instance, SEAM’s lighting highlights the forms and textures of these varied natural elements, inviting visitors to explore deeper into this new commercial complex.

Photography
Courtesy of PHKA

Location
Canberra, Australia

Date
2017

Clients
QIC
Seventh Wave

Architects
Universal Design Studio
Mather Architects

Team
S4B
BLOC

The design scheme includes restoring and redeveloping the historic 1963 centre, housing both Ainslie and Monaro Malls, with a new masterplan and newly designed facades, interiors and exterior spaces. The lighting was carefully designed and integrated within both new and existing architectural elements celebrating the new modernist design by Universal Design Studio.

Harking back to 1950s and ‘60s lighting influences of simple yet bold shapes, the lighting language of illumination, hidden luminaires within architectural details, and use of metal finishes threaded together three main designed environments, connecting Ainslie Mall, Monaro Mall and the flagship Beauty Precinct as a new and innovative shopping experience in the city of Canberra.

Awards
2018 AIA (Australia) Awards – The W Hayward Morris Award for Interior Architecture
2018 AIA (Australia) Awards – The Robert Foster Award for Light in Architecture
2018 AIA (Australia) Awards – The J S Murdoch Award for Heritage
2018 AIA (Australia) Awards – Commendation for Small Project Architecture
2018 AIA (Australia) Awards – Award for Commercial Architecture

Photography
Diana Snape
Tom Ross

Location
Phuket, Thailand

Floral designer
PHKA

Architects for Central Phuket complex
Studio DS
A49

As part of the masterplanned Central Phuket lifestyle complex, the nature-themed Central Floresta mall features dramatic planted ceilings, led by floral designer PHKA and lit by SEAM. Throughout these eye-catching installations, all natural elements are high-quality replicas, to preserve and showcase Thailand’s ecological offering for visitors.

At the entrance to the first-floor luxury brand zone, white Phalaenopsis orchids hang within a grid of bronze aluminium bars, with matching metal pendants that diffuse downwards through the translucent petals to dapple the floral pattern in silhouette across the chevron-tiled floor. On the level-two lobby above – leading to lots of trendy outlets – some white coral-like structures nestle between acrylic rods and glowing tubes, to draw visitors visually through the space.

The assorted, suspended steel and rattan boxes on level three reference Phuket’s local basket craft, hovering within a dense tropical forest that’s permeated with Pink Bougainvillea. Here, simple pendants focus attention on the flowers and foliage, announcing the seating area underneath. Nearby at the level-three lift lobby, more tropical foliage hangs between curved polycarbonate curtains, with perimeter cove lighting to create a cloud-like effect. Here, discreet downlights additionally bridge from the day-lit perimeter circulation into the artificially lit interior concourse.

In each instance, SEAM’s lighting highlights the forms and textures of these varied natural elements, inviting visitors to explore deeper into this new commercial complex.

Photography
Courtesy of PHKA

Location
Paris, France

Status
Design – commenced 2016

Client
Galeries Lafayette

Architects
AL_A
Patriarche

Team
Theatre Projects

SEAM is working together with AL_A and a team of design consultants on the transformation of the flagship Galeries Lafayette department store, located on the Boulevard Haussmann in Paris.

Images
AL_A

Location
Chester, UK

Status
Ongoing – commenced 2016

Client
Cheshire West & Chester Council

Architect
ACME

Landscape
Vogt Landscape Architects

Access
David Bonnett Associates

As part of Chester's £300m investment into the city centre revitalisation, SEAM is providing lighting design services for ACME's ambitious vision for a vibrant retail-led mixed-use development. Planning was awarded in September 2016. Working together with multiple architects and separate design teams, SEAM has provided lighting design services that work to create cohesiveness across the site while featuring the unique characteristics of the various architectural designs. The first phase of works comprises a new cinema and theatre district.

Images
ACME

Location
Phuket, Thailand

Floral designer
PHKA

Architects for Central Phuket complex
Studio DS
A49

As part of the masterplanned Central Phuket lifestyle complex, the nature-themed Central Floresta mall features dramatic planted ceilings, led by floral designer PHKA and lit by SEAM. Throughout these eye-catching installations, all natural elements are high-quality replicas, to preserve and showcase Thailand’s ecological offering for visitors.

At the entrance to the first-floor luxury brand zone, white Phalaenopsis orchids hang within a grid of bronze aluminium bars, with matching metal pendants that diffuse downwards through the translucent petals to dapple the floral pattern in silhouette across the chevron-tiled floor. On the level-two lobby above – leading to lots of trendy outlets – some white coral-like structures nestle between acrylic rods and glowing tubes, to draw visitors visually through the space.

The assorted, suspended steel and rattan boxes on level three reference Phuket’s local basket craft, hovering within a dense tropical forest that’s permeated with Pink Bougainvillea. Here, simple pendants focus attention on the flowers and foliage, announcing the seating area underneath. Nearby at the level-three lift lobby, more tropical foliage hangs between curved polycarbonate curtains, with perimeter cove lighting to create a cloud-like effect. Here, discreet downlights additionally bridge from the day-lit perimeter circulation into the artificially lit interior concourse.

In each instance, SEAM’s lighting highlights the forms and textures of these varied natural elements, inviting visitors to explore deeper into this new commercial complex.

Photography
Courtesy of PHKA

Location
Sydney, Australia

Status
Ongoing – commenced 2017

Client
QIC
Seventh Wave

Architects
UNStudio
Universal Design Studio
Buchan Group

Executive lighting partner
PointOfView

Just outside of Sydney, SEAM is collaborating with the award-winning architectural practices UN Studio and Universal Design Studio on a long-awaited expansion to the Castle Towers Mall. This massive urban-renewal development remodels the existing retail centre in concert with extensive new leisure and retail-led development zones to create a stunning new destination for Castle Hill.

With the aspiration of creating a unique world-class destination, the designers challenge the standard retail typology of inside malls and have created a dynamic spatial arrangement where interior and exterior environments flow seamlessly together.

The development comprises four zones that are continuously connected across multiple levels linking new and existing areas spanning a site more than half a kilometre in length. Visitors can wander distinct design districts detailed with unique architectural character. Zone 1 brings the existing mall into the 21st century with extensive refurbishment and modernisation. The bright and ambient atmosphere of Zone 2 is created around a central multi-storey atria that is filled with natural and artificial light. Central Mall provides a strategic multi-level link from Zone 2 to the streets of Zone 3 through a contemporary space reminiscent of Scandinavian modernism. With the bustle of the city as design inspiration, Zone 3 showcases shop fronts designed as facades and malls as streets; materials and detailing provide a consistent impression of being outdoors. The lighting designs adopt this expressive urban aesthetic proposing robust exposed fittings with authentic metal finishes.

The different atria are each designed with theatrical lighting infrastructures to host performances, while outdoor dining is set within extensively landscaped areas designed as night gardens. Spanning 180m from east to west, visitors move through the East Village’s vertical facades and green walls to the cascade of horizontal terraces to the north that look out towards the distant Blue Mountains.

Images
Hill News

Location
Bangkok, Thailand

Date
2014

Client
Central Pattana

Architects
Synthesis Design + Architecture
A49
Foundry of Space

Landscape
Trop Design

The Central World Expansion is a new retail centre with upscale food and beverage outlets, designed by the London- and Los Angeles-based Synthesis Design + Architecture, for Central Pattana (CPN) corporation. As a new icon for a well-established retailer in Southeast Asia, the new building is designed as a sculptural feature, giving CPN presence on the main shopping avenue along Ploenchit Road – the former Central World shopping centre was set back from the main touristic traffic.

New lighting technologies are incorporated into the architect’s perforated cladding system. For the interiors, integrated lighting features the organic surfaces of rich materials that clad and hide the bulkhead services and storefront systems that feature the individual retail tenants. The geometry of the open retail circulation is based on vortices derived from an analysis of pedestrian flow, serving to connect the main routes from street level and the BTS elevated rail to the existing Central World shopping centre. Within these vortices are areas for rest, events and performances that attract activity and increase dwell time.

"The client wanted their new courtyard to be 'Talk of the town', in terms of commercial activities and Wow effect, in order to compete with their competitors, other High-end malls in the area." - ArchDaily

Photography
Synthesis Design + Architecture

Location
Cairo, Egypt

Date
2009–ongoing

Client
Rooya Group

Architect
Zaha Hadid Architects

Landscape
GROSS MAX

Wayfinding
SpaceAgency

SEAM’s unique lighting design solutions support the signature architectural identity of this expansive masterplanned mixed-use development in Cairo. Comprising 18 corporate towers, a luxury hotel, two levels of underground car parking, and a landscaped public realm with five retail clusters, the extensive 21-hectare site is set to become a regional economic and cultural hub.

SEAM has designed the lighting for all public areas, including the feature facades and atria of all towers, plus facade lighting for the five-star hotel. The intricate centralised landscape ‘The Delta’ additionally provides the opportunity to integrate lighting into landscape design and develop intuitive wayfinding strategies with the use of lighting and bespoke signage.

The lighting strategy for Stone Towers starts at the urban scale – understanding the multiple identities of a large mixed-use development, its varying perceptions on approach, and the complex movements – and proceeds through a hierarchy of architectural spatial systems that encompass the entirety of the site. While achieving aesthetic fluidity, SEAM’s lighting carefully considers the complex dynamics of the various participants through the site, supporting these dynamic relationships functionally through light.

"Inspired by the patterns and textures of ancient Egyptian stonework, the north and south facades of each tower will be covered with recesses and protrusions emphasising the effects of light and shadow on the surfaces." - Dezeen

Images
Zaha Hadid Architects
SEAM Design

Location
Dubai, UAE

Date
2010

Client
EMAAR Group

Developer EMAAR Group invites SEAM to Dubai, to review the lighting and architectural design of the Dubai Mall, set within the Downtown Dubai development zone.

The lighting and architectural assessment takes into consideration the existing design, pedestrian flows, key views, and analysis. SEAM provided lighting design strategies and recommendations to reduce visual clutter and create a more comfortable retail environment, with proposed improvements to the installed lighting systems, lighting controls and light balance.

Location
Doha, Qatar

Status
Competition – 2012

Architect
ACME

Engineer
AKT II

As part of the expansive Lusail masterplan in Qatar, developers sought the creative vision of international design practices to create a pedestrian bridge connecting the Corniche Souq on the Qetaifan Islands. As one of the selected designers, ACME invited SEAM to join their competition team and develop a site-specific architectural lighting design that would create an iconic landmark along the waterfront.

The architecturally ingenious structure consists of two interlaced forms that merge to create a unique destination where shopping and leisure environments blend together generating a new synergy that evolves daily from early evening to late night.

The structure of the bridge is a series of concrete arches that work in conjunction with a system of intersecting concrete walls to create meandering pedestrian paths across the span of the bridge. A new modern souq shopping experience knits together spaces for pedestrian views with movement back into the waterfront context.

At the scale of the landscape, light is used as a cohesive visual element that unifies the form by articulating the repetition of arches as an expressive linear stroke. Internally, diffuse indirect lighting is used to create a lantern-like glow at night.

Images
ACME
SEAM Design

Location
Beirut, Lebanon

Date
2013

Client
Majid Al Futtaim Group

Architects
ACME
Samir Khairallah & Partners
DesignInc

Landscape
Francis Landscapes

City Centre Beirut – a development by Majid Al Futtaim – is a large, USD 300m retail complex comprising over 60,000m2 of retail space to house 200 stores, located in Beirut's Hazmieh district. SEAM, as the specialist lighting designer, joined an international design team led by Samir Khairallah Partnership of Beirut, alongside London-based ACME for the feature roof-light design, with DesignInc for the food and beverage outlets. The project provides a world-class shopping and leisure experience in Lebanon.

Images
ACME

Location
Europe

Date
2012

Client
Pandora

For this international jewellery manufacturer and retailer, SEAM has provided lighting design for a typical retail store concept, with production of accompanying brand lighting design guidelines.