The Gulf Architecture Project Exhibition organized by Qatar National Library in collaboration with Liverpool University’s School of Architecture and Ibrahim Jaidah, GCEO and Chief Architect, Arab Engineering Bureau was opened for public on October 10th in light of the Gulf Architecture Conference.
The Gulf Architecture Project Exhibition is a part of a larger programme on protection of architectural heritage. It attempts to promote a broader understanding of architecture as an important aspect of theour region’s identity and heritage as part of the material culture and physical manifestation of its cultural identity.
University of Liverpool team presented their regional multi-scale perspective findings related to urbanism, landscape, infrastructure and architecture. The exhibition is organized into four sections – landscape, infrastructure, urbanism, architecture – in which common traits across the Gulf is analyzed from a multi-scale perspective. Sub-sections identify Country-specific natural and man-made settings, settlement and dwelling patterns, building types and infrastructure systems are identified.
Specific to Qatar, AEB contributed by exhibiting key findings from the architectural drawings developed by the firm between 1960s and 1980s. The drawings are part of Ibrahim M. Jaidah’s private collection which includes records for almost 1000 buildings. The aim is to examine how Gulf indigenous societies, trade and migration flows between Qatar, Arabia and the wider world, interacted and shaped urbanism, architecture and material culture of Qatar during the decades immediately after the discovery of oil. This architectural exhibition is organised into four sections based on the different building typologies – residential buildings, traditional and new elements, banks, public and civic buildings – which analyze the features of the new architectural style in Qatar that emerged shortly after the export of oil from Qatar begun.
Specific to Doha, Ibrahim M. Jaidah contributed from his archive collection the drawings and description of iconic projects by AEB between the 1960s and 1980s which reflected architectural style that developed in Qatar post oil discovery. The exhibition is available on the ground floor of the Qatar National Library library until the end of the month of October.