Press release for immediate release

Al Manakh: Gulf Continued
Issue 23 of Volume magazine
almanakh.org

Al Manakh: Gulf Continued is an essential and comprehensive guide to the cities of the Gulf, penetrating media clichés and delving deep into the new challenges facing the region in the wake of the financial crisis.

A follow-up to the first installment of Al Manakh – made in the very different moment of 2007 – this 536-page book of interviews, travelogs, analyses, propositions, infographics and photography develops a unique inside-out perspective on the region. More than 140 contributors report from six cities in five countries (UAE, Bahrain, Qatar, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia) on the new connections being forged within the Gulf, and the new kinds of influence emanating from the region despite the bleak economic climate.

Guiding voices include editors Rem Koolhaas and Todd Reisz (OMA/AMO), Lilet Breddels and Arjen Oosterman (Archis/Volume), Daniel Camara and Mitra Khoubrou (Pink Tank) and Ole Bouman (Netherlands Architecture Institute).

Al Manakh: Gulf Continued explores the region in four themes:
Crisis and Crises analyzes the events and responses of the Gulf to the economic crisis. Vision reveals the extent of the infrastructural plans, including connectivity, transport, energy and water.
Cohabitation deals with the integration of culture in cities and the dynamics of urban living.
Export Gulf illustrates how the Gulf is exporting not only products and urban models, but also social, political and economic influence.

Al Manakh: Gulf Continued uncovers the structures and networks beneath the stories and events of the past two years – the height of the boom, and the depths of the crash. The impact of the international financial crisis on the Gulf has changed the world’s perspective of the region. But the real dynamics are much more complex than generally perceived. In documenting the crucial transformations in the Gulf, Al Manakh: Gulf Continued develops a new, deeply researched and nuanced viewpoint on the tenacious growth of the Gulf region.

Facts:
Volume #23 – Al Manakh: Gulf Continued
536 pages, 149 contributions, 140 contributors
Editors: AMO, Archis, Pink Tank, NAi
Design: Irma Boom with Sonja Haller
Publisher: Stichting Archis
Binding: Soft cover
ISBN: 978 90 77966 23 5
Total print run: 13.000 copies
Price: € 29.50 or AED 200
Release: 18 April 2010

Al Manakh: Gulf Continued is exclusively sponsored by the Abu Dhabi Urban Planning Council.

Requests for review copies, image use, and interviews:
Valérie Blom – pr@archis.org (world)
Jacques – info@pinktank.ae (GCC)
Farina Kast – pr@oma.com
A press kit can be found at www.almanakh.org

About AMO
AMO is a research and design studio within OMA (Office for Metropolitan Architecture), applying architectural thinking to disciplines beyond the traditional borders of architecture and urbanism. Flick through Al Manakh: Gulf Continued at www.oma.eu

About Archis
ARCHIS is the editorial engine behind Volume, a project by Archis + AMO + C-Lab +…. As experimental think tank devoted to the process of real-time spatial and cultural reflexivity, Archis has three departments: Archis Interventions, Archis Publishers and Archis Tools. www.archis.org

About Pink Tank
Pink Tank is a specialized consultancy based in the UAE. It builds on its work over the last 5 years in the fields of business, knowledge and culture. Combining management and research experiences at the World Economic Forum, Dubai Holding and the cultural scene in the UAE, Pink Tank manages research and cultural projects of relevance to the Gulf region.

About NAI
NAI, The Netherlands Architecture Institute is archive, museum and platform for architecture. By way of its many events, it strives to engage people to cherish architectural creativity for its power to address the major issues of our time. The NAI positions architecture as the key to social, economical and cultural innovation and as an unmistaken force of optimism and the pursuit of the common good. www.nai.nl

About the Abu Dhabi Urban Planning Council
Abu Dhabi is moving towards realizing its ambition to be globally recognized as the sustainable Arab Capital and the gateway to the Gulf. The Abu Dhabi Urban Planning Council (UPC) is committed to strategic and sustainable urban planning and creating a dialogue with communities.

Reactions to Al Manakh 1
‘Al Manakh reads like an argument Koolhaas is having with himself about whether it’s worth it, morally or architecturally, to work in the UAE’ (LA Times)

’With shaky photos that seem to have been taken on cellphones, and short, punchy texts that take on difficult issues and never lapse into jargon or condescension, this odd book represents a serious attempt to analyse the development explosion in the Gulf states.’ (Financial Times)

‘This is one of the best architecture/travelogue books I’ve read for years.’ (RIBA Journal)