Award-winning author and architect Ibrahim M. Jaidah
Doha, Qatar: The Indian Ocean Working Group at Georgetown University in Qatar (GU-Q) will host award-winning author and architect Ibrahim M. Jaidah (pictured) for a lecture on Qatar’s early modern architecture today (November 6).
The public event, which will be held on the university’s campus at 1pm, will focus on the author’s recent publication, “Discovering Arabian Deco: Early Modern Architecture in Qatar,” and feature discussions on the transformative urban development of Qatar from the 1950s to the 1970s, following the discovery of oil.
Jaidah, who is the Group CEO and Chief Architect of the Arab Engineering Bureau, will recount the stories from his book of Qatar’s development, a time marked by newfound oil wealth and rapid urbanisation. His expert insights will shed light on the history of iconic buildings and places around Doha, a tribute to a time when the nation laid the foundation for its future.
He will also discuss the never-before-seen photographs, drawings, and buildings from his private collection and the Arab Engineering Bureau (AEB) archives that accompany the stories in his book.
Jaidah’s architectural philosophy is reflected in his company’s contributions to the country’s skyline. His work celebrates the past while constructing a sustainable future, a vision underscored in his co-founding of the Qatar Green Building Council.
Formed in 2014, the Indian Ocean Working Group (IOWG) at GU-Q convenes researchers from across the world to build collaborative expertise across the boundaries of traditional area studies to remap the Indian Ocean World through historical circularities of people, culture, knowledge, ideas, commodities, technology, architecture, labour, and capital.
