more of the Arabic calligraphy that will adorn the exterior of the 78m-high museum comes into view. The museum directors have not yet revealed what the words say, but it is known to be phrases of poetry written by Dubai’s ruler Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, who is also the vice president and prime minister of the United Arab Emirates. The cursive scripts double as the windows of the museum. By day, they cast dappled light throughout the column-free interior; at night, they will be illuminated to dramatic effect by 14 kilometres of LED lighting.

A wide range of technologies including augmented reality and virtual reality will be used to project the visitor forward into the future to create an immersive theatre experience. “This is not the museum where you will see objects in cases with labels next to them,” says Carlson. “In a lot of the main galleries, there will be no labels at all. It will be a completely immersive experience that engages the visitor as a really important contributor to the experience, rather than as a viewer of someone else’s work.