Art Jameel, an independent organisation that supports arts, education and heritage in the Middle East, has launched an international competition, inviting architects and designers to conceptualise a cinema for Hayy: Creative Hub in Jeddah.

A 17,000-sq-m multidisciplinary complex located in the north of Jeddah city, Hayy: Creative Hub is the Saudi city's first bespoke home for the arts and creativity.

Hayy will act as an incubator, bringing together and nurturing artists, playwrights, photographers, filmmakers, entrepreneurs and creatives, along with the enthusiastic audiences that support them.

The three-storey complex, conceived by ibda design, offers a contemporary re-interpretation of the traditional courtyard typology, common within the Gulf.

The Art Jameel competition invites proposals that foreground innovative ideas and creative approaches to the design of an independent picture house in Saudi Arabia. Registration opened on February 5 and closes on March 22.

The competition challenges applicants from around the world to deliver turnkey design proposals for a completely-fitted cinema space, and to explore benchmarks for sustainability and technological efficiency, said a statement from the Saudi organisation.

After the initial registration closes on March 22, applicants will be required to submit a proposal by April 11, it stated.

This dynamic competition, a rarity in the Middle East and globally, features a renowned international jury that includes leading architects and cinema specialists. One winner and two runners-up will be announced by the jury at the end of the competition in June 2019.

Alongside the awarding of the design project itself, this competition programme includes learning opportunities for Saudi-based upcoming architects and designers.

A forum series, managed in collaboration with Studio Bound, includes discussion of the shortlisted submissions, and a debate on possibilities, formats and ideas in determining the cinema-going experience, it stated.

Art Jameel regularly engages in new commissions and awards for artists, designers and architects, including the Jameel Prize, now in its 10th year (held in conjunction with the Victoria & Albert Museum in London), and Art Jameel Commissions, a multi-disciplinary anchor programme of the Jameel Arts Centre, Dubai.-TradeArabia News Service