Office: waiwai | ArchDaily

Bukhara Heritage District / waiwai

Pilar Caballero — Tue, 18 Nov 2025 02:00:00 +0000

The revitalization of Bukhara's historical district is a multi-layered initiative that proposes a contemporary urban space within a UNESCO World Heritage Site. waiwai was commissioned to develop a masterplan for the restoration of the central heritage district, which was inaugurated with the first edition of the Bukhara Biennial in September 2025.

Otaru International Information Center / waiwai

Miwa Negoro — Wed, 04 Dec 2024 02:00:00 +0000

The Otaru International Information Center is located in the harbor area of Otaru in Hokkaido, once the heart of Japan's herring fishing industry. With the decline of the fisheries, redevelopment was planned in order to revitalize the area around the port.

Kokubunji Apartment / waiwai

Bianca Valentina Roșescu — Tue, 30 Aug 2022 18:00:00 +0000

Located in the residential area of Kokubunji, Tokyo, the Dimora Rossa multi-unit housing maintains a distance from the immediate urban fabric while encouraging proximity and interaction among residents in the interior.

Mosque of Reflection / waiwai

Hana Abdel — Tue, 26 Apr 2022 00:00:00 +0000

The Mosque of Reflection in Dubai re-imagines the role of the mosque in the city. Drawing reference from the traditional Arabian mosque typology where there is a communal element, the mosque reframes the spaces to encourage community use alongside its purpose as a sacred space of worship.

Hayy Jameel Cultural Center / waiwai

Hana Abdel — Wed, 16 Mar 2022 01:00:00 +0000

Hayy Jameel is a mixed-use complex for the arts in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia that encourages cross-pollination among the broadest range of creative disciplines: art, music, film and architecture; joined by Hayy Residents, a roster of homegrown creative enterprises who have each shaped the scene in their respective fields.

Sakuragien – Aomori Elderly Nursing Home / waiwai

Valeria Silva — Fri, 24 Apr 2020 19:00:00 +0000

Situated in Aomori, on the northern edge of Japan’s main island, this elderly center was designed to bring the natural landscapes which includes heavy snowfall in the winter and the tree farms which exist in the area with the sensitive needs of the residents.

Jaddaf Waterfront Park / waiwai

Hana Abdel — Wed, 25 Mar 2020 21:00:00 +0000

Located along the water’s edge of Dubai creek and adjacent to an arts centre, this park is the United Arab Emirates first open-air art park. We designed the park as an open public space with no fence to encourage social interaction through art. It welcomes Dubai’s diverse cultural community to gather around art and engage in a public dialogue.

Hai D3 Offices / waiwai

Daniel Sánchez — Fri, 29 Nov 2019 22:00:00 +0000

Hai d3 is a development that was conceived to be the incubator space for the development of UAE’s hub for emerging local creative talents, the Dubai Design District. It was meant to be a temporary facility with a 5-year program of use, and an 8-month construction schedule. The complex is intended to welcome a variety of events, exhibitions, collaborative works, and displays to encourage the growth within the different fields of art and design in the Middle East.

Al Warqa’a Mosque / waiwai

Cristobal Rojas — Wed, 18 May 2016 22:00:00 +0000

Designed with the intention of capturing the historical premise of a mosque as a communal space for worship, Al Warqa’a Mosque is a structure that also functions as a gathering place for the community. With the proliferation of the iconic Turkish Central Dome mosque typology in the UAE, the architects sought to return to a simpler design that is less focused on the mosque as an icon, and more as a social space. Al Warqa’a Mosque echoes the spatial simplicity of Prophet Muhammad’s 7th-century house in Medina, which is considered the first mosque in history. In what came to be known as the Arab Hypostyle typology, the original mosque structure was distinguished by an open courtyard surrounded by rooms supported by columns. The design approach behind this layout was influenced by an understanding of the mosque as a multifunctional space for the community to congregate and socialize in after prayer; in this way it is seen as an extension of its immediate environment.