ABSTRACT
This chapter considers the role of architectural production and describes how works of architecture in Dubai have functioned as objects of exchange. Architecture played a central role in supporting speculative real estate development and attracting substantial foreign direct investment (FDI) that, in turn, seemed to indicate that demand far exceeded supply. It is not surprising that works of architecture have been privileged for their exchange value in Dubai, which has established itself as global trade center and tourist destination by taking concrete steps in terms of improving infrastructure, establishing of free trade zones, and continually increasing capacity by expanding its ports. Dubai has certainly been restricted by scarcity, and its extraordinary rise at the beginning of the twenty-first century was due to strategic decisions and bold steps to maintain financial independence that have since proven prescient. Merchants continued to benefit from Dubai's efforts to transform the natural environment to facilitate trade.
