Kuwait City, Kuwait – 23 September 2020: Delving deep into the creation and history of one of the largest museums in the world, the exemplary 20-minute story of Sheikh Abdullah Al Salem Cultural Centre was featured on National Geographic Abu Dhabi on 21 September 2020. The documentary by the first free-to-air Arabic documentary channel, explored the features that have transformed the Centre into a world-class cultural complex making it a prominent symbol of Kuwait’s ambition to become a leading social, creative and cultural hub.

 

The new National Geographic Abu Dhabi film gives audiences a rare glimpse into the massive and complex task of building the Sheikh Abdullah Al Salem Cultural Centre, which started in 2016 and involved over 3,000 suppliers working together to deliver the mammoth project on time. The international film covered the colossal 18-hectare site which encompasses six museums - including the museum of Natural History, Science & Technology, Fine Arts & Theatre, Museum of Islamic History and the Space Museum - all connected by a covered central street forming the Centre’s spine, in the shape of human DNA. 

The film captured how designers of the Centre created a work of architectural wonder that reflects Kuwait’s heritage and culture, combined with cutting-edge audio and visual technologies to attract future generations; taking viewers on a visit to external spaces such as the Public Realm, which houses 22 galleries and over 900 individual exhibits.  It also chronicles the behind-the-scenes design and installation of over 350 audio visual display exhibits and other key components, which are seamlessly integrated through glazed wings.

 

The film can be accessed on the National Geographic channel, at the upcoming screening on Saturday 26th September 2020 at 6:00 pm.

Today, Sheikh Abdullah Al Salem Cultural Centre is the largest museum project of its kind in the world and was awarded ‘Best Museum Project’ at the 2019 Commercial Integrator Integration Awards for the provision of state-of-the-art AV exhibits in each of its four museums: Natural History, Science & Technology, Space, and Arabic Islamic Science followed by ‘Public Building of the Year’ at the prestigious ABB LEAF Awards 2017. The Centre was also honoured with several premium accolodates namely ‘The Best Public Services Architecture Building in the MENA’ award, and ‘Best Architecture Single Residence in the ME’ as part of the International Property awards in 2018.

 

Sheikh Abdullah Al Salem Cultural Centre is one the many projects developed by the Amiri Diwan to facilitate the exchange of knowledge and promote critical, creative, and interpretive thinking within Kuwaiti society through world-class exhibitions and educational public programmes.