In honour of women in construction week we have our spotlight on the incredible Zaha Hadid. Zaha (1950-2016) was born in Baghdad Iraq and studied mathematics at at the American University in Beirut. Later she moved to London in 1972 to study architecture at the Architectural Association. After graduation in 1977, she joined the Office of Metropolitan Architecture (OMA).
In 1980 Zaha Hadid started her own practice in London and won the prestigious competition in 1983 for the Hong Kong Peak Club, which is a leisure and recreational centre. Painting and drawing, were especially important in her techniques of investigation for her design work. Ever since her 1983 retrospective exhibition at the AA in London, her architecture has been shown in exhibitions globally and many of her works are held in important museum collections.
Below are some of her seminal built works:
Vitra Fire Station (1993), Weil am Rhein, Germany
Photo Credit : www.alluringworld.com
Mind Zone at the Millennium Dome (1999) Greenwich, UK
Photo credit: arquitecturaviva.com - Christian Richters
Ski jump (2002) in Innsbruck, Austria
Photo credit: www.pinterest.co.uk
Rosenthal Center for Contemporary Art (2003) in Cincinnati, Ohio.
Photo credit: www.inexhibit.com
Zaha Hadid is recognised as an architect who consistently pushes the boundaries of architecture and urban design, her work experiments with new spatial concepts sharpening existing urban landscapes and holding all fields of design, from the urban scale to interiors and furniture.
ZAHA HADID FOUNDATION
The Zaha Hadid Foundation is dedicated to the work and artistic legacy of Zaha Hadid, Although ZHF was first established by Hadid in 2013, its full development was, per the foundation, “inevitably delayed” by her sudden death. Hadid was 65 years old at the time of her passing. Zaha Hadid is recognised as an architect who consistently pushes the boundaries of architecture and urban design, her work experiments with new spatial concepts sharpening existing urban landscapes and holding all fields of design, from the urban scale to interiors and furniture. ZFH focuses in the advancement of research and education in areas pertaining to both, and to areas including architectural models, plans and blue-prints, drawings, furniture, interior design, paintings, fashion design, and jewellery.
At present, the collection is not generally accessible to members of the public or students, however the Foundation is committed to supporting research into Zaha and her legacy in the future.