Rarely does a building reflect the true essence of its architect. But not so with the Gorlin – a modern condominium building named after the architect Alexander Gorlin, the first of three internationally renowned architects chosen to design a trio of 12-story condominiums at 6101 Aqua Avenue, Miami Beach. “The envelope was defined by its wedge-shaped plan,” says Gorlin, whose site offers spectacular views of South Beach, the Miami skyline and the ocean.
Designed with layered planes, the Gorlin building is strategically positioned at the south end of the Aqua development, overlooking the Intracoastal Waterway and picturesque Indian Creek on Miami Beach’s Allison Island. Gorlin was commissioned by the development’s master planner Duany Plater-Zyberk, the New Urbanism firm with whom he had previously worked on the celebrated Seaside development in Florida.
Bathed in soft light, the Gorlin’s whimsical first-floor lobby complements the building’s striking architecture with a dramatic two-storey ceiling, gleaming terrazzo flooring and the punch of primary colours. The openness integral to the architecture is prominently expressed here though features such as a glass balcony and open-riser stairway. Gorlin added a sense of drama to the space with sculptural furnishings such as Verner Panton’s iconic black and white S chairs.
However, in the development of the design, the Florida sun presented a formidable challenge – the glare would make it impossible to look at the exciting views. Gorlin solved this problem by creating a faceted, modern building that garnered normal perspective and concurrently subdued the sun’s glare through deep balconies with louvred metal brise-soleils.
With the design of the building underway, the New York-based Gorlin decided to make a home-away-from-home in his namesake structure by choosing a 2,600-square-foot, two-bedroom space on the sixth floor. Here, the designer introduces the modern milieu that flows throughout the building’s main areas, with striking art and bold colours. Soft blue walls pay tribute to Florida’s skies, while limestone flooring conveys an earthy hue.
The foyer establishes the playful attitude of the condominium with Column, an undulating sculpture by Judith Niedermaier, a black-and-white photo of a boxer by Tracy Rose and colourful, striped accent pillows. In the apartment’s main room, two walls of 10-feet-high windows and clerestories integrate views with the interior in a calculated sense of being on a boat. Parachute fabric is used as an ethereal window treatment to frame floor-to-ceiling views. A Girl Named Brancusi by Sean Mellyn hangs over a Cappellini sofa and is illuminated by an Isamu Noguchi floor lamp. “The building is like an anchored ship docked on the Intracoastal,” Gorlin says of the feel of his apartment.
Splashes of primary colours found in the accent pillows, art and furnishings refer to the building’s lobby and are complemented by a Marc Newson chair from Cappellini. Boasting polka dots in red, orange, grey and black, the chair mimics a canvas on which an exuberant artist has splattered paint. In contrast, a neutral area rug anchors a long sofa, a yellow occasional table by Konstantin Grcic and a low, square cocktail table. The table appears to be made of river stones embedded in concrete; in actuality, it’s simply made of foam.
Gorlin reinforced the openness of the room with a glass-and-steel dining room by Carlos Scarpa. Situated off the side, it adheres to the desired transparency exemplified by the room’s expansive windows. Custom-designed shelving contains Gorlin’s personal collections, including miniatures, mannequins, model planes and robots.
In his light-filled, airy apartment, Gorlin has created the ultimate beachside pad – a look that could easily be recreated in any number of beachfront properties across the UAE. Gorlin is respectful of the apartment’s stunning sea views, inviting them in and complementing them with a nature-inspired colour palette, but has also introduced pops of colour, drama and whimsy. Ultimately, the charm of this design lies in the fact that it doesn’t take itself too seriously.
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Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
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2018 ICC World Twenty20 Asian Western Sub Regional Qualifier
Event info: The tournament in Kuwait is the first phase of the qualifying process for sides from Asia for the 2020 World T20 in Australia. The UAE must finish within the top three teams out of the six at the competition to advance to the Asia regional finals. Success at regional finals would mean progression to the World T20 Qualifier.
Teams: UAE, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Maldives, Qatar
Friday fixtures: 9.30am (UAE time) - Kuwait v Maldives, Qatar v UAE; 3pm - Saudi Arabia v Bahrain
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Greatest of All Time
Starring: Vijay, Sneha, Prashanth, Prabhu Deva, Mohan
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