Sky-Framed Living: How Organic Curves Transform a Dubai Home

By the Editorial Staff

Photo: Sky Lounge, SLS Dubai

Photo: Ales Vyslouzil, SLS Dubai

Dubai’s skyline is far more than a recognizable architectural silhouette; it operates as a cultural and ideological statement that reflects the city’s relentless pursuit of reinvention. Over the past two decades, Dubai has cultivated a vertical ambition that extends beyond engineering prowess, presenting towers that do not simply ascend into the sky but redefine how urban inhabitants psychologically and emotionally engage with elevation. From the monumental presence of the Burj Khalifa, which stands as a global symbol of architectural aspiration, to the continuously evolving residential towers that line Sheikh Zayed Road, the city has gradually transformed height into an experiential design language.

This vertical evolution now converges with a new interpretation of luxury, one that moves beyond visual spectacle and material opulence to embrace curated lifestyle narratives, sensory richness, and emotional connectivity. Living above the clouds in Dubai is no longer framed solely as a privilege of altitude, but as a carefully orchestrated encounter between architecture, environment, and human experience, where panoramic views become immersive environments and residences transform into elevated sanctuaries designed for contemplation, refinement, and modern urban elegance.

Masoomeh Hilal Design Taj Residence

Photo: Natelee Cocks

Suspended high above the animated urban tapestry of Jumeirah Lake Towers, this two-bedroom residence offers a rare synthesis of architectural poise and domestic poetry, where every line, surface and custom feature has been meticulously orchestrated to reframe the Dubai skyline not as a backdrop but as the soul of the home itself. Perched within the upper reaches of the Taj hotel’s residential floors, the apartment leverages its enviable vantage point with floor-to-ceiling glazing capturing uninterrupted panoramas in every direction to transform vast horizons into an ever-shifting, living mural of light and motion. This was the imperative that guided Dubai-based designer Masoomeh Hilal, whose commission was to craft a sanctuary for an internationally mobile couple as well as their extended family, accommodating fluid rhythms of daily life without diminishing aesthetic refinement or spatial clarity.

Masoomeh Hilal Design Taj Residence

Photo: Natelee Cocks

At first encounter, the apartment’s interior belies its vertical context with a language of soft geometry and tactile depth, where bespoke seating with gently curved profiles and an expansive system of custom oak joinery offer a nuanced contrast to the rectilinear order of the cityscape outside. Hilal’s design does not seek to compete with the dramatic urban silhouette; instead, it engages with it through composition and restraint inviting the horizon into the heart of the home while preserving a profound atmosphere of serenity. Together with furniture crafted by Dubai studio The Line Concept, the living spaces resonate with an understated elegance: furnishings are chosen not for flamboyance but for their capacity to frame and enhance the view, acting as quiet interlocutors between interior calm and metropolitan energy.

Masoomeh Hilal Design Taj Residence

Photo: Natelee Cocks

The material narrative is equally intentional. A palette of calm, neutral tones provides a timeless foundation, enriched by the tactile warmth of luxurious upholstery and the distinctive character of marbles such as Rosso Levanto and Dark Emperador. Strategic accents like an obsidian-green velvet Utrecht armchair from Cassina and bold-striped Rico armchairs by Ferm Living punctuate the space with both visual richness and compositional balance, while sheer ivory drapes temper the brilliance of Dubai’s sunlight, softening it into a warm, diffused glow that embraces the interior throughout the day.

Within the private chambers, these tonal dialogues continue in subtler keys, blending sage, charcoal and burgundy to evoke a sense of repose without sacrificing sophistication.

Masoomeh Hilal Design Taj Residence

Photo: Natelee Cocks

What distinguishes this residence is not merely its sculptural elegance, but the intelligence of its spatial choreography.

Storage becomes architecture: oak joinery in the entrance hall accommodates travel wear and personal accoutrements with a gracious ease, while integrated niches and marbled buffet surfaces blur the boundary between utility and display. A bespoke cocktail bar, a personal request from the homeowners, who are devoted wine enthusiasts, anchors the dining area with an element of convivial warmth, making hospitality an intuitive expression of the design rather than an afterthought.

Masoomeh Hilal Design Taj Residence

Photo: Natelee Cocks

The second bedroom further exemplifies Hilal’s adept handling of functional complexity. Conceived as a flexible multi-purpose environment capable of hosting adult guests or serving as a focused study space for visiting children, the room’s design avoids compartmentalization by leveraging adaptive furniture and soft contours that create distinct zones without visual fragmentation.

Here, a desk that doubles as a vanity, and seating that embraces without imposing, underscore a philosophy in which comfort, adaptability and spatial generosity are inseparable.

Masoomeh Hilal Design Taj Residence

Photo: Natelee Cocks

Cultural resonance further enriches the apartment’s narrative. The clients’ personal collection includes works by the celebrated Indian modernist F.N. Souza animates the living spaces with layers of expression, weaving art into the architectural fabric as a means of extending personal identity into the realm of design.

These works do more than decorate; they dialogue with the light, materials and vistas that define the home, enhancing its emotional depth while anchoring it in a broader cultural context that transcends geography.

Masoomeh Hilal Design Group

In this project, the view is not simply seen, it is felt and inhabited. Evening lights shimmer across the glass towers of Dubai as the skyline becomes an evocative performance of color and movement, refracted through the apartment’s soft architectural contours and carefully considered surfaces. The result is not just a residence with a view, but a rare interior ecology in which horizon, form, material and human presence converge to create a profoundly lived-in sense of place, one where every moment above the city feels both anchored and elevated. 

This article is an original editorial analysis produced by [DIBA magazine]

Research and references are used for contextual accuracy.