Oorvi Sharma (MArch ’18) Designed Pavilion and Curated Exhibition at the Abu Dhabi International Hunting & Equestrian Exhibition
Oorvi Sharma (MArch ’18) designed a pavilion and curated an exhibition for the 2025 edition of the Abu Dhabi International Hunting and Equestrian Exhibition (ADIHEX), held at Abu Dhabi’s National Exhibition Center between August 29 and September 6, 2025. The pavilion and exhibition welcomed more than 18,400 visitors, sharing knowledge of the historical and cultural aspects of falconry. Celebrated as a forum for architectural dialogue and knowledge exchange, the project fostered profound public engagement and was widely recognized as a success.
The pavilion, titled Miqnaṣ, draws inspiration from the deep-rooted traditions of falconry and communal gathering in the United Arab Emirates and celebrates the enduring connection between people, nature, and heritage. The pavilion is designed for dismantling and reassembly, through modular logic, offering a sustainable platform for future exhibitions.
Constructed with handcrafted elements, such as locally woven surood mats and al-sadu textiles, Miqnaṣ incorporates bait al-shaar enclosures and tiered mashrabiya screens to reflect the deep study of traditional Arabo-Islamic architecture and its successive evolution.
Miqnaṣ was presented to His Royal Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of the UAE, and was seen in the official photographs published on the front covers of and within local newspapers in the United Arab Emirates, including Al Ittihad, Bayan, and Al Khaleej.
The exhibition, A View from the Skies: Falconry, a Living Heritage, explores falconry as a practice, passion, and philosophy through finely crafted objects, master paintings, and rare artefacts, illustrating its material culture and the UAE’s enduring role in sustaining its craft, diplomacy, and cultural continuity, both regionally and globally. The exhibition was mediated in both English and Arabic. Through distinguished institutional collaborations, the exhibition also showcases exceptional works of art relating to falconry from the Timurid, Mughal, and Ottoman periods. Key collaborators included the Cleveland Museum of Art, the British Museum, the Morgan Library and Museum, the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, the David Collection, Copenhagen, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and the National Library of Sweden.
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Photos courtesy of Oorvi Sharma.
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