World-famous Iraqi-British architect Zaha Hadid has sadly passed away at the age of 65.
Zaha Hadid is said to have passed away from a heart attack while in a Miami hospital where she was being treated for bronchitis.
Sheikh Zayed Bridge in Abu Dhabi designed by Zaha Hadid
Her company issued the following statement: “It is with great sadness that Zaha Hadid Architects have confirmed that Dame Zaha Hadid, DBE, died suddenly in Miami in the early hours of this morning.
Read: First Look At The ME Dubai Hotel By Zaha Hadid
“She had contracted bronchitis earlier this week and suffered a sudden heart attack while being treated in hospital. Zaha Hadid was widely regarded to be the greatest female architect in the world today.”
Hadid, who was the first female recipient of the Pritzker Architecture Prize (2004) is the most famous female architecture in the world, specialising in neo-futuristic design categorised by powerful curving forms of her elongated structures.
Guangzhou Opera House in China designed by Zaha Hadid
Most recently she was awarded the RIBA’s 2016 Royal Gold Medal, becoming the first woman to be awarded the prestigious honour in her own right.
In the GCC, the architect has worked on the Sheikh Zayed bridge in Abu Dhabi and has designed the ME Dubai hotel as well as the Al Wakrah Stadium in Qatar.
Read: Zaha Hadid Exhibition At Leila Heller Gallery
Recently, some of her great works were on display in Dubai at the Leila Heller Gallery. The exhibition focused on all aspects of her work from architect to interior design.
London Olympic Aquatics Stadium designed by Zaha Hadid
Born in Baghdad in 1950, Hadid studied mathematics at the American University of Beirut before starting her architectural journey in 1972 at the Architectural Association in London. In 2002, she was appointed by the Queen of England as Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) and Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire (DBE) in the 2012 Birthday Honours for services to architecture.
Although she was once described as “famously extravagant”, she remained humble despite her global success, once commenting: “I will never give myself the luxury of thinking, ‘I’ve made it.”
