Zaha Hadid is an architect who consistently pushes the boundaries of architecture and urban design. Her work experiments with new spatial concepts intensifying existing urban landscapes and encompasses all fields of design, ranging from urban scale to products, interiors and furniture. She is simultaneously engaged in practice, teaching and research. Hadid’s built work has won her much academic and public acclaim. Those works include the Rosenthal Centre for Contemporary Art in Cincinnati; the Hotel Puerta America (interior) in Madrid; the BMW Central Building in Leipzig, Germany; the Ordrupgaard Museum Extension in Copenhagen; and the Strasbourg Tram Station in France. [Hyperlink these buildings] In 2004, the Baghdad-born Hadid became the first woman to win the Pritzker Prize, architecture’s most prominent award. The Guggenheim Museum recently concluded a showing of her work entitled “Zaha Hadid: Thirty Years in Architecture.” Said a recent Wall Street Journal article of the Baghdad-born Hadid: “Her work seems to change shape depending on where you’re standing, creating the impression of buildings that just can’t sit still….Her designs are products of the analysis of a particular site, making it difficult to characterize her style. Indeed, Ms. Hadid’s buildings seem to flow into the space around them, continuations of the city that surrounds them.” At Knight Foundation’s invitation, Hadid visited Miami to speak to civic and business leaders about the role of architecture in creating cities that build community. She also sat down for an interview with Cathy Leff, director of the Wolfsonian, a modern art and design museum in Miami’s Art Deco District.

Video by Miami’s WPBT Channel 2, for Knight Foundation.