by ANNE QUITO
Leila Araghian, an architecture graduate in Iran and Canada, designed Pol-e-Tabiat when she was 26 PHOTO/Mohammad Hassan Ettefagh/Al Jazeera
Female architects are finally in the spotlight. Besting a field of over 348 finalists from 69 countries, projects spearheaded by three women were named winners of the prestigious Aga Khan Award for Architecture at an Oct. 3 ceremony in Abu Dhabi. The win is a significant milestone amid the lack of career recognition for female architects in the traditionally male-dominated profession.
With a $1 million purse—the biggest monetary prize among architecture competitions—the award is given every three years to architects, builders, craftsmen, engineers, mayors or clients behind remarkable building projects that enhance the life of Muslim communities around the world.
Among the six winning projects this year is a sun-dappled mosque in Dhaka by Bangladeshi architect Marina Tabassum, a multi-level pedestrian bridge in Tehran designed by Iranian architect Leila Araghian and a striking office building at the American University of Beirut by the lone female “starchitect,” the late Zaha Hadid.
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