For the inauguration of Zayed National Museum in Abu Dhabi, Factum Arte has produced a selection of animals for the Al Masar Garden. These sculptures represent species native to the wider region—gazelle, peregrine falcon, saker falcon, houbara, hare, jerboa, saluki hound, Egyptian vulture, spiny-tailed lizard, caracal cat and Arabian tahr goat. The concept, design development, and fabrication were carried out in close collaboration with Zayed National Museum team, ensuring that each piece reflected the vision and ambitions of the project.

The sculptures were carefully researched and digitally modelled to capture their dominant characteristics. They were created using computer-controlled technologies (CNC milling, advanced 3D printing systems, organic modelling software and machine learning applications) merged with high levels of craftsmanship. The mixture of their materiality, elegance, anatomical accuracy and intricate detail animates the gardens.

Each of the 26 different animals required an individual sculptural approach, material selection and engineering solutions. The works were conceived not simply as figurative representations but as part of an ongoing history of animal sculptures. Their production methodology places them in the 21st century, but the sculptural focus attempts to dissolve the barriers that separate the human and the non-human.

The animals have been carefully located in the gardens, with many positioned in places where they will be touched. The tactile materials were carefully finished with this in mind. The forms were adapted to ensure durability and safety without compromising their sculptural and aesthetic integrity.

Durability was essential: the intense heat, humidity and seasonal variations of Abu Dhabi required materials with inherent stability such as marble, alabaster, onyx, quartz, stainless steel, patinated metal, amber and seasoned wood. These natural materials offer both longevity and chromatic richness. Some surfaces were treated to protect against environmental conditions, while others were intentionally left untreated to weather naturally, enhancing their integration into the outdoor setting.

Digital Modelling and Development

Each animal began as a digital model informed by photogrammetric recordings of live animals, detailed anatomical research, and high-resolution scanning of stuffed museum specimens. This digital foundation ensured that even the most stylised forms retained a connection to the species’ distinctive structure and behaviour.

The modelling process required hundreds of hours of work to develop each piece. Using specialised sculpting software, each animal was shaped to capture the way the animals might see each other. The rhythm of their movement, the tension of musculature and the particularities of their posture exist alongside the texture of their fur or feathers and their markings and colours. These digital models are the basis for everything that follows: engineering, milling, 3D printing, assembly, hand finishing and surface treatment.

Every sculpture underwent an individual engineering analysis to ensure long-term stability, structural functionality and visitor safety. Internal stainless-steel armatures were designed to be completely concealed within the body of each animal, supporting multiple materials meeting at precise angles and often transitioning between heavy stone and slender metal elements.

Due to the small size of limbs, the combination of materials, or the need to withstand accidental loads—for instance, a child climbing on a sculpture—the engineers found innovative ways to ensure stability by distributing the stress without altering the external appearance. All joints, overlaps and tolerances were determined in the modelling phase to allow clean assembly and invisible transitions between materials.

The translation of the digital model into a physical sculpture required a combination of advanced technologies:

Stainless Steel 3D Printing (316L) enabled the production of complex volumes at exceptional precision, from delicate feathers to interlocking components. Some pieces required continuous printing for up to 20 days. In several cases—such as the Falcon & Houbara ensemble—elements as thin as 0.5 mm were successfully printed, exceeding standard technical expectations through precise programming and calibration.

Robotic milling and CNC machining were used to carve marble, onyx, alabaster, quartz and seasoned walnut at the highest level of detail. Each material demanded different toolpaths, speeds and cutting protocols. From the start, the aim was to create accurate volumes and reveal the means of production. Tool marks were sometimes desired, showing the path of the cutting tool, while at others they were removed. Leaving the witness marks was part of the aesthetic design of each piece, celebrating hybrid methods that merge today’s technologies with the technologies of the past.

More than 20 specialists across Factum Arte’s workshops were involved in the final fabrication. Metal components were welded, chased, polished and, where required, electroplated, silver-plated or patinated. Stone and wood elements were hand-finished, and details such as eyes, claws and inlays were crafted using amber, obsidian, slate, silver and black glass.

Adhesives and structural bonding systems were laboratory-tested under conditions replicating the museum’s climate. Once all components were validated and reassembled, every sculpture received its final surface finish—sometimes a protective treatment, sometimes a colour-enhancing wax, and in other cases no treatment at all to allow graceful natural ageing.

Gazelle (Female)

• Dimensions: 1107 × 458 × 1271 mm

• Weight: 110 kg

• Materials: Red Cehegín marble (upper body); stainless steel 2 mm (lower body); stainless steel 1.5 mm, silver-plated (face, ears, tail); black obsidian

Gazelle (Male)

• Dimensions: 1104 × 398 × 1229 mm

• Weight: 154 kg

• Materials: Red Cehegín marble (upper body); stainless steel 5 mm (lower body); stainless steel 1.5 mm, silver-plated (face, ears, tail); black obsidian

Gazelle (Young)

• Dimensions: 924 × 330 × 711 mm

• Weight: 68 kg

• Materials: Red Cehegín marble (upper body); stainless steel 5 mm (lower body); stainless steel 1.5 mm, silver-plated (face, ears, tail); black obsidian

Goat

• Dimensions: 712 × 460 × 1412 mm

• Weight: 107 kg

• Materials: Aged walnut (body); stainless steel, patinated (hair, hooves); black slate (horns); amber (eyes)

Falcon 1

• Dimensions: 160 × 244 × 630 mm

• Weight: 5 kg + 5 kg base

• Materials: Grey alabaster (body); stainless steel 1.5 mm, brass-electroplated (head, beak, legs, chain); Swaledale fossil stone (base); stainless steel rods Ø8 × 200 mm

Falcon 2

• Dimensions: 224 × 350 × 616 mm

• Weight: 9 kg + 5 kg base

• Materials: Grey alabaster (body); stainless steel 1.5 mm, brass-electroplated (head, beak, legs, chain); Swaledale fossil stone (base); stainless steel rods Ø8 × 200 mm

Falcon 3

• Dimensions: 224 × 350 × 616 mm

• Weight: 9 kg + 5 kg base

• Materials: Tundra Grey marble (body); stainless steel 1.5 mm, patinated (head, legs); black crystal (eyes); Swaledale fossil stone (base)

Falcon 4

• Dimensions: 289 × 206 × 648 mm

• Weight: 7 kg + 5 kg base

• Materials: White alabaster (body); stainless steel 1.5 mm, brass-electroplated (head, beak, legs, chain); Swaledale fossil stone (base)

Vulture 1

• Dimensions: 540 × 252 × 380 mm

• Weight: 22 kg

• Materials: Carrara white marble (body); stainless steel 1.5 mm, patinated (head, legs); black crystal (eyes)

Vulture 2

• Dimensions: 1335 × 470 × 548 mm

• Weight: 58 kg

• Materials: Carrara white marble (body); stainless steel 1.5 mm (wings), patinated (head, legs); black crystal (eyes)

Arabian Hare 1

• Dimensions: 520 × 214 × 506 mm

• Weight: 17 kg

• Materials: Emperador marble (body); Cristallo pink quartzite (ears); amber (eyes)

Arabian Hare 2

• Dimensions: 452 × 167 × 177 mm

• Weight: 12 kg

• Materials: Emperador marble (body); Cristallo pink quartzite (ears); amber (eyes)

Falcon Hunting Houbara

• Dimensions: 972 × 837 × 717 mm

• Weight: 16 kg (falcon) + 33 kg (houbara)

• Materials: Bardiglio Grey marble (falcon body); stainless steel 1.5 mm, painted (houbara body); stainless steel 1.5 mm, patinated (beaks, legs); black crystal (eyes)

Saluki Hounds

• Dimensions: 1837 × 689 × 768 mm

• Weight: 157 kg

• Materials: Portoro black-and-gold marble (upper body); Imperial Brown marble (upper body); stainless steel 5 mm (lower body); stainless steel 1.5 mm (ears); black obsidian and amber (eyes)

Jerboas 

• Dimensions: 258 x 138 x 109 mm; 192 x 177 x 118 mm; 280 x 118 x 101 mm

• Weight: 0.5 kg

• Materials: Stromatolite stone (body); stainless steel (extremities); black obsidian (eyes)

Spiny-Tailed Lizard 1

• Dimensions: 350 x 153 x 54 mm

• Weight: 1.2 kg

• Materials: Waledale fossil stone (body); silver (eyes)

Spiny-Tailed Lizard 2

• Dimensions: 353 x 215 x 109 mm

• Weight: 2.7 kg

• Materials: Onyx emerald (body); silver (eyes)