Description: Architecture of the Contemporary Mosque Edited by Ismail Serageldin with James Steele No other building is so charged with symbolism, so hemmed in by established architectural convention, and so likely to be scrutinised by friends and critics alike. From this appraisal of the complex and challenging subject of the architecture of the contemporary mosque, Ismail Serageldin, James Steele and many specialist contributors, proceed to offer a valuable insight into the development of this building type over the last three decades. In his introductory essays Ismail Serageldin provides an historical background and explanation of the development of the mosque, its constructive form, constituent parts, and place in the Muslim city. He proceeds to suggest a framework within which the contemporary mosque should be judged, taking into account its inherent design challenges (principally the reconciliation of tradition and innovation). He discusses the different building approaches the popular, traditional, populist and adaptive modern and the different building types the large state mosque, major landmark structure, community centre complex, small local mosque and zawiya. Then, since from its inception the mosque has varied more by region than period, the book is divided into six sections according to geographical area. It examines the Islamic heartland of Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the Maghreb, Turkey and Iran, and also includes an evaluation of the mosques built in the more recently established Muslim societies of the West. Each case study which is introduced by an essay discussing the historical, social and typological context of the area presents the most important and influential mosques through detailed commentaries, critiques and extensive illustrations. At a time when Islam is the fastest growing monotheistic religion, embracing some of the worlds richest as well as poorest nations, this book provides an important picture of contemporary mosque architecture. Abdelhalim I Abdelhalim is Professor of Architectural Design and Theory at Cairo University and a practising architect and planner. He was on the Aga Khan Award for Architecture Technical Review Committee in 1983, 1986 and 1989. Aydan Balamir teaches at METU and holds a PhD from Berkeley where she worked as a teaching associate. She has worked for the Chamber of Turkish Architects and has published and lectured on many aspects of architectural theory. Darab Diba is Professor of Architecture and Director of PhDs at Tehran University. An architect and designer, he is author of Art and Nature and Principles of Architectural Design and is a specialist in Islamic architecture at LEcole des Beaux-Arts and MIT. Jale Erzen is a painter, art historian and author of several books on Ottoman architecture and Turkish art. She teaches at the Middle East Technical University, is the General Secretary of the International Association for Aesthetics and a founding member of SANART. Safei El-Deen Hamed is an architect and environmental planner practising in America and the Middle East. He has taught at universities in Canada, the United States and the Middle East, and has acted as consultant for many organisations. Samir El-Sadek is a senior architect and planner at the World Bank. He has practised and taught in Egypt, America and Saudi Arabia, where he was Vice Dean and Head of the Department of Architecture at King Faisal University. He has written and edited numerous publications. Golnaz Raadi-Azarakhshi is Professor of Art and Comparative Literature at Beheshti University, Tehran. Other relevant titles published by Academy include: Architecture Beyond Architecture, Cynthia C Davidson with Ismail Serageldin (eds); Building For Tomorrow, Azim Nanji (ed); Architecture for a Changing World, James Steele (ed); Architecture for Islamic Societies Today, James Steele (ed); Hassan Fathy, James Steele

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