In spring 2018, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) inaugurated The Founder’s Memorial as a permanent national tribute dedicated to commemorating, celebrating and reflecting on the life, legacy and values of the late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, founder of the UAE, as a man and a leader. The inauguration coincided with the national and international Year of Zayed, the 100-year anniversary of the father of the nation’s birth.
The Founder’s Memorial is a qualitative addition to the UAE’s growing number of cultural offerings. It creates a tranquil new public space in Abu Dhabi’s Corniche area where UAE nationals and residents can gather to celebrate the founding father’s legacy with a great sense of pride and purpose.
Through a series of personal encounters with Sheikh Zayed, the man and the leader, the memorial invites visitors to embark on a journey of discovery through his life and legacy, enriching understanding of his character, the causes he championed, and the values he voiced to the UAE and the world.
The space features a range of experiences designed to reveal aspects of the broader social, cultural and environmental heritage of the UAE, including art, stories, exhibitions and an array of local trees and plants. The memorial is located at the intersection of First and Second Street along the Abu Dhabi Corniche.
The centrepiece of The Founder’s Memorial is The Constellation, a dynamic three-dimensional portrait of the late Sheikh Zayed that can be experienced differently from multiple viewing points around the memorial and from other vantage points. The artwork was conceptualized and designed by eminent artist Ralph Helmick, whose practice explores human perception through large-scale public sculptures and installations that invite optical discovery.
One of the largest art installations of its kind in the world, The Constellation redefines commemorative portraiture, exploring the boundaries of perception through oscillating moments of abstraction and representation that infinitely dissolve and resolve on a monumental scale. Housed within a pavilion that is 30x30x30m in size, the artwork has been constructed using 1,327 geometric shapes suspended on more than 1,000 cables.
The Welcome Centre is the starting point of The Founder’s Memorial, from where most people will commence their journey. The Welcome Centre features an insightful multimedia experience, which compiles rarely-seen footage, images and testimonials from people that knew Sheikh Zayed personally, together with audio clips that enable visitors to encounter Sheikh Zayed’s wisdom directly through his voice.
A visit to The Founder’s Memorial is a unique opportunity to become immersed in the history and culture of the UAE through an artistic exploration of the life, legacy and values of the nation’s founding father. The space features a range of experiences designed to reveal aspects of the broader social, cultural and environmental heritage of the UAE, including art, stories, exhibitions and an array of local trees and plants. Dedicated Emirati Cultural Tour Guides are on hand daily to give tours, guiding visitors around the memorial and providing further insight into Sheikh Zayed as a man and a leader, as well as the transformative impact of his enduring legacy on the UAE nation.
The landscape of the memorial encompasses 3.3 hectares of public space featuring trees, plants and shrubbery indigenous to the UAE and the Arabian Peninsula, in memory of Sheikh Zayed’s commitment to the preservation of local flora and fauna.
The memorial also includes a Heritage Garden displaying plants with a rich history in local culture, from their usage in traditional objects to their medicinal properties. Visitors will find a variety of indigenous plants including Desert Cotton, used as a padding for saddles and cushions; Henna, still used today to dye hair and apply intricate patterns to hands and feet; and Caralluma, which is brewed as a tea.
An elevated walkway encircles the site, curving around the pristine, prismatic pavilion housing The Constellation. The pathway rises above the landscape to offer stunning views of the Abu Dhabi skyline. Along the walkway, visitors will also find inspiration in a series of quotations from Sheikh Zayed, which reveal his personal philosophy in life, and the causes and beliefs he held close to his heart.
The Sanctuary Garden is the public plaza around The Constellation Pavilion, and provides refuge from the hustle and bustle of the surrounding city. Groves of Ghaf and Sidr trees provide shade and an ideal public space where visitors can rest, contemplate and appreciate being in Abu Dhabi. The groups of trees are arranged to provide shaded seating areas, while open areas allow different views of The Constellation.