By Peter S. Goodman
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — Few cities on earth can compete with Dubai for sheer verticality. Once a forgettable port alongside the emptiness of the Arabian desert, its pale sands have proved fertile ground for all manner of skyscrapers.
They rise as if conjured by an obsession with Las Vegas and a jones for altitude. The Burj Khalifa, the tallest structure on the planet, reaches twice the height of the Empire State Building.
Now,
Dubai is about to gain another landmark. The Dubai Frame, set to open
this year, is literally and figuratively a frame imposed on the
overwhelming view — two parallel towers linked by an observation deck.
It is a marker of how far the city has traveled, drawing the eye from
the drab buildings of the old settlement along Dubai Creek to the
riotous profusion of neon-draped skyscrapers stretching south to the
Persian Gulf. It is a totem of Dubai’s ambitions.
It may also be counterfeit.
The
Mexican-born architect whose initial design inspired the structure,
Fernando Donis, has accused the Dubai municipality of breaching his
copyright in a lawsuit filed in December in United States federal court.
Nine years ago, Mr. Donis won an international competition to design
the building, besting more than 900 other entrants. Yet he was not
included in the project’s execution and was not compensated for his
intellectual property, his lawsuit claims.
The New York Times
