Born in Baghdad in 1950, Zaha Hadid studied mathematics at the American University in Beirut prior to enrolling at the Architectural Association in London. Upon graduating in 1977, she took a position at the Office for Metropolitan Architecture. In 1979, she started her own office—Zaha Hadid Architects—in London.
During the 1980s, Hadid won several competitions with designs that were never realized, including the Eaton Place Townhouse in London, The Peak in Hong Kong, and an office building on Kurfürstendamm in Berlin. Her first significant constructed work was the Vitra Fire Station in Weil am Rhein in 1993, and her first international sensation was the Rosenthal Center for Contemporary Art in Cincinnati, which led to her 2004 Pritzker Prize for Architecture—marking the first time the honor was awarded to a woman.
Over the course of her career, Hadid's practice investigated the interface between architecture, landscape, and geology, integrating natural topography and human-made systems. Experimenting with cutting-edge technologies, she worked across a range of scales, from urban interventions to furniture and small objects.
Hadid passed away in Miami in 2016.
