Rehabilitation and Remodeling of Rainbow Cinema House (Rainbow Cinematheque)
Client : Mr. Mohammad Yousef Al Taher
Location : Rainbow Street, Amman- Jordan
Year : 2007- 2009
The Project included researching & documenting Rainbow Cinema and its history before making a comprehensive proposal for its rehabilitation and adaptation into Rainbow Cinematheque. Project included architectural and interior design in addition to research and design for the different illustration boards on cinematography and cinema genre in the Western World.
The design philosophy respected the era during which the actual buildings was built and the style of the original building (Art Deco); therefore, an attempt to understand that architecture of Modernity affected and influenced design decision. The challenge was how to make best use of marginalized small spaces and how to adapt them into contemporary uses and functions such as cafes, restaurants, and foyer spaces. Other challenges included how to achieve structural stabilization of the existing building while also accommodating new functions and users where structural solutions did not affect the authenticity of the original structure or building.
The new Rainbow Cinematheque attempted not only to reuse the original building again as a cinema and theater, but also to narrate the story of cinemas in Amman and also displaying information about cinematography and cinema genre in the Western World. The objective is for the main theater hall to host also cultural and musical events in addition to showing contemporary movies, classics, short local films, and documentaries.