Mohamed Makiya: A Modern Architect Renewing Islamic Tradition

'Makiya was Baghdad and Baghdad was Makiya.' These words sum up the life of one of the Middle East's most famous architects, whose career spanned seven decades and included projects in more than ten countries. Mohamed Makiya was a master of incorporating traditional styles into modern architecture, whose work metamorphised Abbasid forms into modern architecture. For Makiya, the continuity of tradition as a 'living dimension' was the justification for his work. Mohamad Makiya was also revered as a teacher who inspired hundreds of students of architecture in Iraq, where he set up the first Department of Architecture in Baghdad University in 1959. He was also a promoter of Iraqi art, which he displayed at his Kufa Gallery in London that had been set up to build a bridge between the East and the West. This compelling biography reveals the life of a visionary who achieved remarkable feats in Iraq and whose philosophy and humanity crossed all borders and cultures.