The studio of the late Zaha Hadid, who passed away in 2016, has won a competition for the future Arts and Culture Center in the new city of Jinghe, located in Shaanxi Province in northern Iraq. True to the style of the British-Iraqi architect, the first woman to be awarded the Pritzker Prize in 2004, this project describes a long, sinuous curve. Its silhouette echoes the winding valleys carved by the Jinghe River. Organized as a series of fluid volumes, layers, and surfaces interconnected with the courtyards and landscapes, the Center aims to link the city's new library to the new performing arts theater, as well as the multi-purpose halls, studios, and exhibition galleries it will house. A dialogue made possible by a play of raised courtyards, gardens and walkways that span eight traffic lanes and take place on elegant architectural meanders.
Lisa Agostini
