Amid a flurry of high-profile openings in Saudi Arabia’s ambitious Red Sea development, homegrown Saudi project Shebara Resort stands out with its futuristic design. But then, the future is something architect Shaun Killa, founder of the Dubai-based firm Killa Design, contemplates often: he was the mastermind behind Dubai’s landmark Museum of the Future. At Shebara Resort, overwater villas clad in polished stainless steel with sinuous mirrored silhouettes resemble a string of pearls skimming above the waves. “We wanted to reflect the sky and the lagoon and the coral below—whether it’s sunrise or a cloudy day or an orange sky, they’re constantly changing,” Killa says. “They blend into nature although they’re highly futuristic.” While it’s no rustic beach retreat, it’s very much an eco-sensitive escape: all 73 villas were constructed in Sharjah, UAE, and shipped over so as not to disrupt the delicate ecosystem of mangroves and coral reefs with building activity, and the island is entirely powered by a solar park, with more than 1 million square feet of solar panels that guests are invited to bike through. “We want people to get excited about the fact they are on an island that’s 100% powered from the sun,” Killa says. His latest project, Dubai’s long-awaited Jumeirah Marsa Al Arab, sees him coming full circle: he first arrived in Dubai more than 25 years ago to work on Jumeirah’s iconic, sail-inspired Burj Al Arab. The new 386-room hotel, with a façade modeled after a yacht, joins that and the wave-shaped Jumeirah Beach Hotel to complete the hospitality brand’s trio of maritime properties.