The soul of Qatar meets sustainable design

The museum’s design places a strong focus on environmental sustainability, using local materials to minimise its ecological footprint and incorporating green spaces, solar panels and water management systems to offset CO2 emissions. The design features three intersecting spheres forming two distinct parts: one resembling a full moon and the other a crescent moon. A crescent-shaped internal street will connect museum entrances to the central lobby and other public areas such as a library, auditorium, shop, café and prayer space. 

Sheikh Jassim’s legacy lives on

The museum’s Lusail location was chosen for its historical significance, as it’s near the site where the founder of modern Qatar, Sheikh Jassim bin Mohammed Al Thani resided in the late 1800s. He lived during a period when the Western world was captivated by the Arab and Indian Ocean worlds. In founding the State of Qatar, Sheikh Jassim defended his people’s cultural independence from the Ottomans and the British. As a result of his enduring legacy, Qatar is thriving as a cosmopolitan and influential hub with a strong identity. 

An important forum for contemporary Arab identity

A unique museum feature in the region, the Lusail Museum Think Tank will create a space for discussions on global issues. It will host local and international thought leaders, artists, curators, academics, and students in a series of fellowship programmes and workshops to address questions of contemporary Arab identity. These outputs will shape the museum’s activities, exhibitions and programming, creating an ever-evolving forum and dynamic experience for visitors and participants within the museum’s physical and digital spaces.

Replicas from four corners of the Islamic world

The highlight of the art space, the museum will feature four anchor spaces on the top gallery floor. These replicas from important historical buildings include Murat III's bedroom pavilion dome from the Palace of Topkapi (1579) in Istanbul, the Jameh Mosque dome in Natanz (1320), the Ablution fountain from Ibn Tulun Mosque courtyard in Cairo (1296), and the Aljafaria dome in Saragossa (1050).

A taste of the exhibitions to come

During the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022™, the Lusail Museum presented four collections:

1. Tales of a Connected World: Almost 250 objects encouraged visitors to consider and question the nature of identity presented in the works on display.
   
2. Experience Al Jazeera: Created for the network’s 25th anniversary, it celebrated this pioneer in the contemporary media landscape.
3. Labour of Love: Embroidering Palestinian History: A loan exhibition from the Palestinian Museum, presenting the art of embroidery to understand the identity of Palestinian. 
4. Raku Kichizaemon XV·Jikinyū: A Living Tradition of Japanese Pottery displayed a set of fourteen ceremonial tea bowls inspired by Qatar’s natural environment and people, and featuring the poetry of Sheikh Jassim.