Much of the built environment in Islamic contexts facilitates the needs of everyday life. Self-built spaces are constructed by the community, and schools, housing and streetscapes are reshaped by users to better meet the needs of local people. Settings for assembly are made, adapted, and reshaped. Investigations of these design practices will broaden our understanding of spatial needs and intentions. Twentieth-century architects borrowed liberally from regional materials and traditions, winning awards for designs based on the work of master builders. We can question whether the vernacular label is a useful categorization for localized traditions or the contemporary revival of local practices. Why does vernacular design continue to be presented as if it is less meaningful than institutionally guided and canonical projects, or to be overlooked altogether? There are many ways to engage place-based design needs, communal spaces, and sites erected to facilitate learning, worship, festivals, ritual, and daily life.
Please join us for the annual ‘Dialogues’ roundtable as the International Journal of Islamic Architecture (IJIA) brings together scholars and practitioners from varied disciplines for a discussion of critical contemporary issues that interrogate the boundaries between architecture, art, anthropology, archaeology, and history. In this year’s session, ‘Building the Vernacular and the Everyday in Islamic Contexts’, IJIA Associate Editor Angela Andersen and panelists Yasaman Esmaili, Hussein Keshani, and Solaiman Salahi will discuss the idea of the vernacular, how current needs act to shift and adapt past traditions, and how the digital realm intersects with local brick and stone.
Panelists:
Yasaman Esmaili is an architect and educator based in Tehran, Iran. She is the founder of the award-winning Studio Chahar, which fosters community participation through collaborative architectural processes. Her work was shortlisted for the Aga Khan Award in 2022.
Hussein Keshani is Associate Professor and Program Coordinator in Art History and Visual Culture at the University of British Columbia, Okanagan, Canada. He is a specialist in Delhi Sultanate and Awadhi visual cultures, and digital art history.
Solaiman Salahi is a civil engineer and Fulbright Scholar based in Seattle, in the United States. He is experienced in sustainable design, and has been involved in creating safe learning environments for girls through sustainable educational infrastructure in Afghanistan.
