KOA, a developer of unique community projects in the UAE, has launched the UAE’s first large-scale upcycling project, Canvas.

Upcycling is an up-and-coming trend that is typically the domain of the design students and local markets in Al Serkal and Al Quoz areas in Dubai.

Canvas has demonstrated the creative reuse (upcycling) of an existing office block to launch a sustainable, residential haven in Dubai.  It is located near Mohammed bin Rashid Gardens, off Emirates Road, offering its residents peace and tranquility with landscaped gardens and vast expanses of green space.

It is currently offering studio, one-, two- and three-bedroom apartment floor plans, with several layout options for available, it stated.

KOA was created by Mohammed Bin Zaal, former CEO of Al Barari, with the aim of leading Dubai’s real estate industry into a new era of cultural and urban enrichment.

The Canvas building was stripped back to its shell and built outwards again, recycling some materials as well as creating a new architectural masterpiece on a blank, concrete canvas.

At the heart of the concept, the aim was to connect culture, nature and unmatched amenities in one creative space, says the Emirati developer.

 Canvas has been built with a sustainable mindset, using specific materials and structural elements such as grey quartzite stone cladding, copper mesh and sustainably-sourced, thermally-modified tulipwood to reduce air-conditioning consumption.

The first phase of the Canvas project is likely to be ready in early 2018.