A cultural quintet: 5 big new museum openings to look forward to

From national foundations to food, this year’s big new museum openings promise to bring their subjects to life with plenty of interactivity and spectacular architecture, says David Whitley.

Etihad Museum

Dubai

While the Louvre Abu Dhabi is expected to open later this year, the new Etihad Museum in Dubai officially opens tomorrow. The content is referred to in the design – which looks like a manuscript and has seven "pens" as columns. Spread over eight pavilions, the museum will tell the story of the UAE's history, formation and founding fathers. Each concentrates on a slightly different aspect: an interactive map of the era before federation; the crucial meeting between the UAE's Founding Fathers, Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Rashid bin Saeed Al Maktoum; and the UAE constitution. The museum is next to Union House, where the treaty bringing the UAE into existence was signed in 1971. etihadmuseum.dubaiculture.ae

King Abdulaziz Center for World Culture

Dhahran, Saudi Arabia

Since 2007, Norwegian architecture firm Snøhetta has been working on a vast cultural complex in Dhahran, close to the causeway with Bahrain. Designed for oil company Saudi Aramco, the buildings include giant grey pebble-shaped pods housing a museum, auditorium, archive, cinema and exhibition hall. Set to fully open in the second half of the year, the centre promises to be a "catalyst for creativity and an oasis of knowledge." www.kingabdulazizcenter.com

The Museum of the American Revolution

Philadelphia, United States

Philadelphia has long been one of the United States' strongest historical cities, and it's adding to that legacy with the Museum of the American Revolution. Due to open in April in Philly's historic heart, two blocks from Independence Hall, the museum will tell how the US became a country in its own right. Spread across four floors of permanent and temporary exhibition space, it will use original artefacts, theatre presentations and immersive settings to explore the causes and events of the Revolution. www.amrevmuseum.org

Zeitz Museum of Contemporary Art Africa

Cape Town, South Africa

An ambitious project that has seen a 57-metre-tall grain silo on Cape Town's waterfront converted by London 2012 Olympic torch designer Thomas Heatherwick, the Mocaa, due to open in September, isn't just aiming to be among the best on the continent. Underwritten by German business mogul, art collector and philanthropist Jochen Zeitz, the nine-floor project is aiming for world-class standards. With more than 9,500 square metres of exhibition space, the focus is on the best contemporary artists from Africa, plus those from the African diaspora. And the grain silo – which was once the tallest building in sub-Saharan Africa – has undergone its dramatic makeover in a firm statement of that intent. www.zeitzmocaa.museum

Eataly World

Bologna, Italy

GCC residents will already be familiar with the Eataly group of restaurants (www.eatalyarabia.com), but Italian food obsessives will want to travel to the source. Labelling Eataly World – slated to open in September – a "museum" is underselling it somewhat. It borders on being a theme park without the thrill rides, spread across an eight-hectare complex and telling the story of food from farm to fork. On the site of a former fruit-and-vegetable distribution centre on the outskirts of Bologna, it will feature 10,000 square metres of pastures, orchards and gardens, plus 40 different workshops where expert chefs will show how to make pastas, cheeses and more. Specially made tricycles with shopping baskets will be provided for getting around, and there's a real focus on showing the processes our food goes through before we consume it. www.eatalyworld.it