Rifat Chadirji
Architect, theoretician, educator.
Born in Baghdad, Dec. 6, 1926.
Professional practise
Founder, director, principle of Iraq Consult IQC, 1952 - 78.
Designed and conducted numerous projects: architecture, industrial, furniture, landscape, gardens, interior decoration, urban and regional studies, etc.
Official appointments
- Director Building dept.,Waqaf,1954-57
- Director, Unit II, Health & Education Buildings, PWD, 1957-8.
- Director General - Housing dept., Ministry of Planning, Iraq; 1958-9.
- Director General - Planning Dept. Ministry of Housing, Iraq; 1960-3
- Counsellor to the Mayoralty of Baghdad, 1980-82.
Academic appointments
- Loeb fellow, Graduate School of Design, Harvard University, 1983.
- Member, Award Committee, Aga Khan Award for Architecture.1983.
- Visiting Scholar, Graduate school of Design, Harvard University, 1984-86.
- Member, Philosophy of Education Research Centre, Harvard.1985- 92
- Visiting Scholar- Graduate School of Education, Harvard University, 1987-92.
- Visiting Scholar, Aga Khan Program, Dept of Architecture, MIT, 1986-92.
Awards and affiliations
- Four international architectural competitions.
- Bronze medal - Barcelona International Furniture Design -1964
- Elected Honorary Fellow of the Royal Institute of British Architects, 1982.
- Awarded the Chairman Award of the Aga Khan Award for Architecture, 1986.
- Elected Honorary Fellow of the American Institute of Architects, 1987.
- Sheikh Zayed’ Book Award 2008.
- Tamayouz Excellence Award 2015
- Honorary PHD from Coventry University 2015.
Chadirji Foundation
- Annual award: Chadirji Award for Lebanese Students of Architecture (2000-2025).
- Chadirji Foundation Association for architecture and Society in Lebanon.
Major publications
- Portrait of a Father, (Arabic, 1985)
- Taha Street and Hammersmith, (Arabic, 1985)
- A Collection of Twelve Etchings, (English, 1985).
- Eight Etchings of Photographs by Kamil Chadirji, (English/Arabic, 1985).
- Concepts and Influences, (English, 1986.)
- The Photography of Kamil Chadirji - Social Life in the Middle East 1920-1940, (English, 1991)
- Kamil Chadirji Photographe - La vie au Proche-Orient 1920-1940 (French Edition 1992)
- The Ukhaidir and the Crystal Palace, (Arabic 1991)
- Dialogue on the Structure of Art and Architecture ( Arabic 1995)
-The seating status in Arif Agha's househould, an anthropological study of the relationship between the formation of identity and seating artifacts,( Arabic 2001)
- Introduction for The Biography of Kamil Chadirji and the History of the National Democratic Party, (Arabic 2002)
- A wall between two darkness, (Arabic 2003)
- Introduction for the book of Ahali Newspaper Editorials , (Arabic 2003).
- Dialectics Causality of Architecture. (2007)
- The Characteristics of Beauty in Man’s Consciousness (Arabic 2013)
- The role of the architect in the development of human civilization (Arabic 2014)
Born in Baghdad, Dec. 6, 1926.
Professional practise
Founder, director, principle of Iraq Consult IQC, 1952 - 78.
Designed and conducted numerous projects: architecture, industrial, furniture, landscape, gardens, interior decoration, urban and regional studies, etc.
Official appointments
- Director Building dept.,Waqaf,1954-57
- Director, Unit II, Health & Education Buildings, PWD, 1957-8.
- Director General - Housing dept., Ministry of Planning, Iraq; 1958-9.
- Director General - Planning Dept. Ministry of Housing, Iraq; 1960-3
- Counsellor to the Mayoralty of Baghdad, 1980-82.
Academic appointments
- Loeb fellow, Graduate School of Design, Harvard University, 1983.
- Member, Award Committee, Aga Khan Award for Architecture.1983.
- Visiting Scholar, Graduate school of Design, Harvard University, 1984-86.
- Member, Philosophy of Education Research Centre, Harvard.1985- 92
- Visiting Scholar- Graduate School of Education, Harvard University, 1987-92.
- Visiting Scholar, Aga Khan Program, Dept of Architecture, MIT, 1986-92.
Awards and affiliations
- Four international architectural competitions.
- Bronze medal - Barcelona International Furniture Design -1964
- Elected Honorary Fellow of the Royal Institute of British Architects, 1982.
- Awarded the Chairman Award of the Aga Khan Award for Architecture, 1986.
- Elected Honorary Fellow of the American Institute of Architects, 1987.
- Sheikh Zayed’ Book Award 2008.
- Tamayouz Excellence Award 2015
- Honorary PHD from Coventry University 2015.
Chadirji Foundation
- Annual award: Chadirji Award for Lebanese Students of Architecture (2000-2025).
- Chadirji Foundation Association for architecture and Society in Lebanon.
Major publications
- Portrait of a Father, (Arabic, 1985)
- Taha Street and Hammersmith, (Arabic, 1985)
- A Collection of Twelve Etchings, (English, 1985).
- Eight Etchings of Photographs by Kamil Chadirji, (English/Arabic, 1985).
- Concepts and Influences, (English, 1986.)
- The Photography of Kamil Chadirji - Social Life in the Middle East 1920-1940, (English, 1991)
- Kamil Chadirji Photographe - La vie au Proche-Orient 1920-1940 (French Edition 1992)
- The Ukhaidir and the Crystal Palace, (Arabic 1991)
- Dialogue on the Structure of Art and Architecture ( Arabic 1995)
-The seating status in Arif Agha's househould, an anthropological study of the relationship between the formation of identity and seating artifacts,( Arabic 2001)
- Introduction for The Biography of Kamil Chadirji and the History of the National Democratic Party, (Arabic 2002)
- A wall between two darkness, (Arabic 2003)
- Introduction for the book of Ahali Newspaper Editorials , (Arabic 2003).
- Dialectics Causality of Architecture. (2007)
- The Characteristics of Beauty in Man’s Consciousness (Arabic 2013)
- The role of the architect in the development of human civilization (Arabic 2014)