Abbas Hasan Azzaoui House

Notes

The house’s design revolves around the inner courtyard; the central, lively, and interactive space around which the rooms are arranged. The fountain featured in the middle of the courtyard is topped with a sculptural piece with an abstract design of a swastika, meant here as an allusion to the 4000 BCE Sumerian Architecture symbolism of the ‘cycle of life’ concept. This design has also the utility of displaying the fountain’s slow water circulation.

The design showcases a dynamic interplay between balconies as they extend to several distances while exhibiting sculptural details. This is well complemented with the roof cantilevering in a similar manner. Here, Chadirji’s design is inspired from features of traditional Baghdadi houses.

Sources

Chadirji, Rifaat, Al-Ukhaider and the Crystal Palace, London: Riad El-Rayyes Books Ltd, 1991, pp. 156-159

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