In pursuit of a humanistic architecture for the poor, and in his concern with the authentic egyptian architectural medium, hassan fathy ultimately. Hassan fathys is a name that is instantly recognisable among arab architects and conjures up idyllic images of handsmoothed walls and domes covered in. He embraced traditional, vernacular forms, techniques and materials and throughout his career promoted their use as part of a campaign to improve the conditions of egypts rural poor. New gourna was a housing project masterminded by hassan fathy with the objective of rehousing the seven thousand people of gourna, a village built on the site of the tomb of the nobles, part of the ancient cemetery of thebes now luxor, egypt. Architecture for the poor describes hassan fathys plan for building the village of new gourna, near luxor, egypt, without the use of more. Fathy utilized ancient design methods and materials. Architecture for the poor describes hassan fathy s plan for building the village of new gourna, near luxor, egypt, without the use of more modern and expensive materials such as steel and concrete.
Hassan fathys great contribution to modern egyptian architecture is the rediscovery of traditional methods of clay construction. The house was a legacy of hassan fathy 19001989, a renowned egyptian architect dubbed the father of architecture for the poor. Hassan fathy believed in the social responsibility of the architect and acted accordingly throughout his life. Aug 06, 2012 in 1946 hassan fathy, egypts green architect, built a model village near luxor called new gourna out of mud. Abdelmoniem elshorbagy and others published hassan fathy. Hassan fathy died in 1989 but left behind a legacy of 160 buildingprojects ranging from small projects to largescale communitiescomplete with mosques and schools. Fathy worked to create an indigenous environment at a minimal cost, and in so doing to improve the economy and the standard of living in rural areas. See more ideas about vernacular architecture, architecture and building design. Hassan fathy is the default setting for social housing in architecture. May 09, 2020 hassan fathy believed in the social responsibility of the architect and acted accordingly throughout his life. Using mud bricks, the native technique that fathy learned in nubia, and such traditional egyptian architectural designs as enclosed courtyards and vaulted roofing, fathy worked with. Architecture for the poor describes hassan fathy s plan for building the village of new gourna, near luxor, egypt, without the use of more. The countryside if you were given a million pounds, what would you do with them. Pdf ma the architecture of hassan fathy ahmed ragab.
Using mud bricks, the native technique that fathy learned in nubia, and such traditional egyptian architectural designs as enclosed courtyards and vaulted roofing, fathy worked with the villagers to. Her publications include the architecture of yemen 2007 and al diwan al amiri, doha 2011, and has curated a number of exhibitions in london, paris and madrid. Egypts visionary architect 9 it is somewhat ironic that hassan fathy, whose name is so closely associated with architecture for the poor, built much for wealthy patrons. We know you wrote in your book, architecture for the poor, that the peasants needed decent houses, but houses are. He has received the union of international architects gold medal, the egyptian governments national prize for arts and letters, and the aga kahn award for architecture. Published for the united nations university by the university of chicago press chicago and london. Pdf natural energy in vernacular architecture 2009 tulu. To most near eastern architects, hassan fathy was the dominant figure in the architecture of egypt in the 20th century.
Unfired earth is the most common building material in the world. Early in his career he began to study the preindustrial building systems of egypt to understand their aesthetic qualities, to learn what they had to teach about climate control and. Using mud bricks, the native technique that fathy learned in nubia, and such traditional egyptian architectural designs as enclosed courtyards and. In this article originally published by the cairo observer as hassan fathy. He worked to reestablish the use of traditional building methods and materials.
Architecture and environment by hassan fathy since antiquity, man has reacted to his environment, using his faculties to develop techniques and technologies, whether to bake bread or make brick, in such internal psychological balance with nature that humanity historically lived attuned to the environment. Ismail serageldin 8 hassan fathy served on the first steering committee of the aga khan award for architecture, and was technically barred from being considered for a prize. An indispensable architect in the history of modern islamic architecture is the egyptian hassan fathy 1900 89. He designed and built superb villas of adobe and stone, but. The architecture of hassan fathy max nobbsthiessen bachelor of. This first dedicated and cohesive book on egyptian architect hassan fathy 190089 compiles an exhaustive amount of diverse material on the modernist architect known for his work developing traditional arab architecture alongside principles of modernism. Hassan fathy, born in 1900 in alexandria, egypt, was an egyptian architect, artist and poet who had a lifelong commitment to architecture in the muslim world. Pdf natural energy in vernacular architecture 2009. The first book on egyptian modernist hassan fathy wallpaper. Hassan fathy s great contribution to modern egyptian architecture is the rediscovery of traditional methods of clay construction. Principles and examples with reference to hot arid climates hassan fathy chicago.
Architecture for the poor describes hassan fathys plan for building the village of new gourna, near luxor, egypt, without the use of more modern and expensive materials such as steel and concrete. However, when one looks at the photographs of his works, they do not look like modern architecture but traditional, moreover vernacular, buildings. Hassan fathy was a noted egyptian architect who pioneered appropriate technologies for buildings in egypt. Mar 28, 2016 in this article originally published by the cairo observer as hassan fathy. But hassan fathy began this real life story as a young civil servant in the municipal buildings offices. He is one of the few architects who gained his fame not through flashy and complicated structures but through simple, costeffective designs for the people. Hassan fathy is the middle easts father of sustainable. Article pdf available march 2009 with 2,535 reads how we measure reads. The article tries to delve into the idea of why hassan fathy perhaps emerged as a. A question they were always asking us when we were young, one that would start our imagination roaming and set us daydreaming. Flintstone modernism, or the crisis in postwar american culture, by jeffrey lieber. Architecture for the poor quotable quotes architecture is music frozen in place.
He used his knowledge of mathematics and music investing them in simple domestic. The new gourna village was an experiment project built between 1946 and 1952, it was meant to relocate a community living on top of ancient egyptian pharaonic tombs to reduce damages to ancient treasures. Hassan fathy s is a name that is instantly recognisable among arab architects and conjures up idyllic images of handsmoothed walls and domes covered in adobe, nestled in a verdant countryside. Baragwanath transport interchange and traders m architecture for the richthere is a critical relook and rework of the principles and philosophies of hassan fathys work in new gourna and his. In 1946 hassan fathy, egypts green architect, built a model village near luxor called new gourna out of mud. Hassan fathys new gourna model village lies shambles. Green prophet has railed against projects like dubai burj tower we have pounded our chests at the audacity of masdar citys zero footprint claim, and we have decried the potential consequences of unsustainable approaches to building and planning. The unacknowledged conscience of twentieth century architecture.
Hassan fathy devoted himself to housing the poor in developing nations and deserves study by anyone involved in rural improvement. Abdelrahman ahmed and walter shearer, natural energy and vernacular architecture. Architecture for the rich, there is a critical relook and rework of the principles and philosophies of hassan fathys work in new gourna and his deliberates vis a vis. Vernacular architecture hassan fathy, an egyptian architect, has taught on the faculty of fine arts in cairo and served as head of its architectural section. He designed and built superb villas of adobe and stone, but mainly hegrappled headon with housing the poor.
Hassan fathy was born in 1900 in alexandria, egypt. May 9, 2020 admin sex leave a comment on architecture for the poor hassan fathy pdf. His visits to neighborhoods where the public monies were being spent were revealed to him as modern, expensive housing that also would be nearly impossible for its new, poor, inhabitants to maintain. The use of earth in the architecture of hassan fathy and fabrizio. He was far ahead of the thinking of the times and was widely known for his ideas. Hassan fathy is one of egypts most wellknown and revered architects. Hassan fathy biography childhood, life achievements. Designer we love hassan fathy for more information remembering the master and hassan fathy. Hassan fathy march 23, 1900 november 30, 1989, egyptian arabic. Hassan fathy believed in the social responsibility of the architect and.
He was a cosmopolitan intellectual, with knowledge of western and eastern literature and philosophy, absorbing the influences of very different traditions. Pdf test on hassan fathys architecture for the poor. Hassan fathy 19001989 was an egyptian architect and engineer who has been credited with bringing the vernacular architecture of egypt to a wider audience, and for putting neglected traditional building systems to work for the poor. The substantial volume combines previously unpublished drawings, personal anecdotes, interviews and. Buy hassan fathy ebooks to read online or download in pdf or epub on your pc, tablet or mobile device. Architecture for the rich, there is a critical relook and rework of the principles and philosophies of hassan fathy s work in new gourna and his deliberates vis a vis personal ideologies. Jan 29, 2012 the house was a legacy of hassan fathy 19001989, a renowned egyptian architect dubbed the father of architecture for the poor. He was an egyptian architect, artist and poet who had a lifelong commitment to architecture in the muslim world. Hassan fathys vernacular architecture linkedin slideshare. Salma samar damluji is an architect who worked with fathy. This book, which has since become a classic, describes in detail fathys experience in planning and building the village of new gourma, using mud bricks and employing traditional egyptian architectural features. With the publication of architecture for the poor, university of chicago press 1973, fathys work came to international attention. Green prophet has railed against projects like dubai burj tower.
He was the epitome of sustainable no pretence living, a man whose life and work spoke more to people within his community than perhaps any other architect in the world. Oct 09, 2018 the first part of the book follows fathys research and participation within egyptian culture, community and construction, alongside architecture, that all became integral to his design thinking. Abdullah nuridin durkee, hassan fathy in new mexico, via, 1984, 5875. Architecture for the poor hasan f athy 1 prelude dream and reality paradise lost. Before it was fashionable or even fathomable, he was championing earth architecture in the hopes of bringing decent. Hassan fathy is egypts bestknown 20thcentury architect. Before it was fashionable or even fathomable, he was championing earth architecture in the. Hassan fathy 19001989 is arguably the most widely known and influential egyptian architect of the 20th century. Hassan fathy egyptian architect 1900 1989 the master builder, hassan fathy 19001989 was one of the first architects to break with modern architecture and to found a new approach based on a conception of interpreting forms and masses from the past. Just like the great master of western architecture, frank lloyd wright, hassan fathys genius was initially appreciated mostly by an intellectual. Sustainable architecture for the poor here and there. His major contributions were to socalled vernacular architecture which, inspired by traditional nubian and islamic materials and styles, urged an approach to the built environment that was economically and ecologically sustainable and responded to contextual needs of the. Architecture for the poor describes hassan fathys plan for building the village of new gourna, near luxor, egypt, without the use of more modern and expensive materials such as.
1294 1362 317 1271 69 24 1256 420 646 394 324 618 319 617 723 293 563 725 513 695 1192 572 256 731 1168 968 302 1054 516 1186