Founder’s Memorial in capital opens to public on April 22
ENTRY TO ZAYED MONUMENT IS FREE AND PEOPLE CAN VISIT IT FROM 9AM TO 10PM DAILY
The Founder’s Memorial in Abu Dhabi, a permanent national tribute to Shaikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan, will open to the public on April 22, it was announced yesterday.
Entry is free and people can visit the monument from 9am to 10pm daily, a senior official told journalists during the first media tour to the Memorial.
Yousuf Al Obaidi, general manager of Founder’s Memorial, said: “Great nations value their leaders and this is what we have done by establishing the Founder’s Memorial.”
The memorial was officially inaugurated on February 26 to coincide with the Year of Zayed initiative.
Located at the intersection of the first and second street along the Abu Dhabi Corniche, the monument offers a dynamic, informative and inspirational visitor experience through art, landscaping, stories and multimedia experiences.
The site will open up 3.3 hectares of pristine public space to the UAE community for walking and quiet reflection, featuring landscaped areas planted with trees and shrubs indigenous to the UAE and the Arabian Peninsula.
An elevated walkway in the Memorial will offer captivating views of The Constellation, the Corniche and the Abu Dhabi skyline. The Constellation is made up of 1,327 geometric shapes suspended from 1,110 cables. Illuminated by more than 2,000 lights, the suspended shapes of The Constellation shine like stars at night.
This celestial display evokes the timelessness of Shaikh Zayed’s vision, which continues to offer the UAE a guiding light along the path of progress and prosperity.
The work by public artist Ralph Helmick depicts a dynamic three-dimensional portrait of Shaikh Zayed, and can be experienced differently from multiple viewing points around the monument and from other vantage points.
Helmick said he designed the artwork keeping in mind the potential audience, including young Emiratis and foreigners who have not met the leader.
The visitor experience will begin at the welcome centre, offering a multimedia presentation highlighting Shaikh Zayed’s life, legacy and values. The visitor can hear the voice of the leader through a series of ■ audio clips. Emirati tour guides speaking both Arabic and English will accompany the visitors on a 30- minute tour throughout the monument.
The public plaza that surrounds the art work, known as sanctuary garden, offers a seating areas in serene ambience.
A water channel that symbolises the Falaj — the ancient irrigation system in Arabia, and a heritage garden with native plants are also around.
The Ministry of Presidential Affairs owns and supervises the Founder’s Memorial.