Hello Steemit! I’m a Designer born in Iraq now Studying Architecture in War

Hello Steemit,


I am an Architect who’s was born in Iraq during the Iraq-Iran War and happens to be half Iraqi-Half Iranian from my mother side, I’m also an American Citizen (naturalized after migrating from Iraq post Iraq-US war. As you can see I come from a slightly conflicted background but I love it. My background taught me a lot about tolerance and empathy; two words are extremely needed in this age.

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  • Me in Africa during my 3rd Semester at Columbia University.

When I was a little I was lucky enough to discover the tools of art and architecture to express my most happy, sad, angry and controversial thoughts without getting into trouble. I studied and practiced Architecture in various global cities including, Baghdad/Iraq, Amman/Jordan, London/UK, Washington DC/ US, Kumasi/Ghana and New York/US. I have obtained my Masters from Columbia University in Architecture and Urban Design, there I worked on numerous research topics , tackling issues that deals with urban design, ecology, housing, post war architecture, sprawl and urban regeneration.

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What I have been doing Lately:


Architecture in War:

I am collaborating with Studio-X Amman (of Columbia University) to conduct a year-long research in the Middle East, primarily in Iraq to understand the physical and cultural condition of cities during a state of war. I believe that cities are witnessing an erratic condition due to the war against terror. Through my research "Architecture in War" I am aiming to explore the role of the destabilization of security in the culture and architecture of a place. My area of focus is Baghdad since it's a perfect example of a city withstanding volatile instability for over fourteen years. However I shall be looking at other cities as case studies to enhance my research.

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  • From the short story War Frankenstein, written and illustrated by me.

My objective is to study the current behaviour of architecture and understand the factors and outcomes of this behaviour and its effect on the social order of the city. Choosing Baghdad as my city of focus, I intend to conduct interviews with the citizens, academics, intellectuals, practitioners and government agencies. My ultimate goal is to gather research and data to support a comprehensive publication on the context and roles of war in Baghdadi architecture and urbanism.

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  • Invincible Cities, Illustrated by me.

Triplicity Architects:

I also Co-founded “TripliCity,” an all-female research and design platform dedicated to the study of architecture and urban design issues around the world, with a focus on Iraq. The first design project, a competition held by the Mayoralty of Baghdad to rebuild two shopping centers that were destroyed by a terrorist attack, was short-listed with one other proposal among numerous submissions.

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  • Condolences banners hang by the family of the victims of the Karada shopping center.

Teaching:

I also taught Sustainable Urbanization: New Designs for the Future City for high school students. This course was designed for high school students interested in the fields of sustainable development, design, and engineering. Students are introduced to emerging trends in urban design in an interdisciplinary workshop environment in which they explore new solutions for sustainable cities in the context of a real-world project.

Non-Profit:

I am also a junior board member at Asia Initiate non-profit organization, whose mission is to leverage the power of social capital to promote healthcare, education and sustainable development, striving to bring positive change in the quality of life of people in under-served communities.

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Looking Forward

I’m currently traveling in middle east between, Iran, Iraq, Jordan, UAE and Lebanon for my Architecture in War research. I am very excited to inform the Seemit community about the architecture and culture of my origin and help shed another perspective of what really happens in these countries, a perspective that is much different from what you hear and see in the media.


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Welcome @noor.makkiya, I so look forward to hearing more of your experiences and perspective - it is MUCH needed! I've never heard anyone discuss these issues of design and war...fascinating.

"My objective is to study the current behaviour of architecture and understand the factors and outcomes of this behaviour and its effect on the social order of the city." - I'm very interested in this as well.
Your post reminds me why steemit is so valuable and why I learn so much here!

ps. I love your "invincible city" drawing!

Thank you you so much @natureofbeing for your great observations. I look forward to share my thoughts with you and the steemit community

Lovely post Noor! Welcome to the Steemit community!! Eagerly looking forward to hearing more about your work and experiences!

Thank you so much @sunjana for your nice comments !

Hi @noor.makkiya, after reading your introduction post, I have no doubt that you will be overflowing with experiences to blog about. Very noble aspirations you have in conflicted areas. Safe travels.

Thank you @wakeupsheeps for your encouraging comments. I do feel a duty and responsibility for what I've been doing but sometimes I feel I'm not actually doing anything to improve the situation or even shed some light on the issues. I was told that Steemit is a good medium to post my ideas so I'm trying it out :)

You should do well spreading your message on Steemit.

I definitely 100% agree! I hope @noor.makkiya can share more of her travel experience and designs. Love it!!

Thank you @tiffanyrej I will try to post as much as I can, there are so many things to talk about I don't know from where to start!

Hello @noor.makkiya , Welcome TO Steemit and #esteem
Thank you good friends to meet you.
The best and amazing
Nice to Meet You All #steemians
My name is @mahrizal I came from the National Liberation Front of Sumatra (ASNLF)
I Say Welcome And Happy For You Here #steemit or #eSteem.
Vote @ good-karma As Our Witness.
Do not Forget Follow Me Also @mahrizal
I would like to express my gratitude.

Welcome to steemit, it's interesting to have different point of views

Thank you :)

Hi, Noor

I love this "Invincible Cities" image - very apt depiction of a castle in the sky.

Thank you @techwizardry it's actually inspired by a book I read " invisible cities by Italo Calvino "

Ahhh...I will check this book out asap. Thanks for the suggestion. Hope to see more posts from your travels in the middle east.

Welcome to Steemit! It's an amazing place.

Welcome to Steem @noor.makkiya I have upvoted and sent you a tip

Thank you so much

Having fought in Iraq during the 2nd battle of Fallujah and during the surge of 2007, I can say that Iraq was once a very beautiful country. Cities such as Samarra, Mosul, Tikrit, and Baghdad were once gems of the Middle East and now have visible scars that will take decades of healing. Best of luck on your work and travels. I hope to follow you along your journey and learn more and more.

thank you @superdavey . indeed I was shocked at the state of my city when I saw it recently. I doubt that the scars will fully heal but I'm hoping that gradually a new tissue will emerge and help heal the urban fabric of the cities.

I absolutely love your artwork and illustrations. You appear to be a very talented and creative woman of accomplishments. I am really looking forward to reading your post. You have inspired me!

Thank you for your kind words @mitneb