2009 RICHARD H. DRIEHAUS PRIZE PRESENTED
TO ISLAMIC ARCHITECT ABDEL-WAHED EL-WAKIL
ON SATURDAY, MARCH 28TH

Argentine Preservationist Fabio Grementieri received
Henry Hope Reed Award

WHAT:
Abdel-Wahed El-Wakil was presented with the 2009 Richard H. Driehaus Prize at a colloquium at the historic John B. Murphy Auditorium in downtown Chicago. The $200,000 Driehaus Prize is awarded annually to an outstanding architect whose work applies the principles of classicism in contemporary contexts, including sensitivity to the historic continuum, the fostering of community, and the impact on the built and natural environments. It is the largest unrestricted prize of its kind. Fabio Grementieri also will be honored at the event with the $50,000 Henry Hope Reed Award, presented annually to an individual working outside the practice of architecture who has supported the cultivation of the traditional city through planning, preservation or promotion.

At the colloquium honoring the 2009 laureates, Abdel-Wahed El-Wakil discussed his career in a one-on-one interview with New Yorker architecture critic Paul Goldberger. Fabio Grementieri was featured in a group conversation on public policy and preservation with Adele Chatfield-Taylor, president of the American Academy in Rome, and Russell Keune, former director of international relations for the American Institute of Architects.

WHY:
Together the Richard H. Driehaus Prize and the Henry Hope Reed Award represent the most significant recognition for classicism in the contemporary built environment. 

WHO:            

** Abdel-Wahed El-Wakil (2009 Richard H .Driehaus Prize Laureate, Architect)

** Fabio Grementieri (2009 Henry Hope Reed Award Recipient, Preservationist)

** Richard H. Driehaus (Founder and Chairman of Driehaus Capital Management)

** Michael Lykoudis (Dean of the School of Architecture, University of Notre Dame)

** Adele Chatfield-Taylor (President of the American Academy in Rome)

** Paul Goldberger (Architecture Critic for The New Yorker)

** Russell Keune (Former Director of International Relations for the AIA)

____________________________________________________

EL-WAKIL'S WORK CELEBRATES THE PRINCIPLES OF ISLAMIC ARCHITECTURE AND CULTURE
THAT TRANSCEND GEOGRAPHIC BORDERS

Argentine Fabio Grementieri Receives Accompanying Henry Hope Reed Award For Preservation Work in Buenos Aires

Abdel-Wahed El-Wakil, one of the leading voices in contemporary Islamic architecture and a practitioner known worldwide for Oxford University Centre for Islamic Studieshis use of traditional form and technique, is the 2009 Richard H. Driehaus Prize laureate.  

The Driehaus Prize, which is administered by the University of Notre Dame School of Architecture, is awarded annually to an outstanding architect whose work applies the principles of classicism, including sensitivity to the historic continuum, the fostering of community, and consideration of the impact to the built and natural environment. 

Over the past four decades, El-Wakil has built mosques, public buildings and private residences throughout the Middle East maintaining balance between continuance and change. His work --- which includes the Halawa house in Agamy, Egypt, for which he won his first Aga Khan Award for Architecture; the residence of Ahmed Sulaiman in Jeddah; and the Quba Mosque in Medina --- celebrates the overall principles of Islamic architecture and culture while reflecting the regional character and locality in which each structure resides. He works with traditional design principles that use indigenous materials and processes, and integrates them with contemporary technology to create familiar, functional and environmentally sustainable structures that are both timeless and for our time.  

His craftsmanship resonates throughout the King Saud Mosque in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia with its magnificent indigenous brick dome, constructed without concrete. His vision shines through in the Oxford University Centre for Islamic Studies in its sensitive blending of two diverse architectural traditions, integrating Islamic design concepts seamlessly into Oxford’s existing vernacular. Much of El-Wakil’s work grapples with that duality of permanence and change, in individual projects and across cultures. Currently, El-Wakil is working on three projects in Beirut, Lebanon including the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, as well as a master planning project in Qatar that integrates best contemporary low-energy planning with climate-tempered Islamic built forms.

Fabio Grementieri, Argentine scholar and preservationist, is being honored with the 2009 Henry Hope Reed Award. The Henry Hope Reed Award is given to an influential supporter of the classical architecture movement.

Over the past 10 years, Mr. Grementieri has served as the project manager of some of Buenos Aires’ most delicate and culturally significant architectural preservation projects including: the Palacio Bosch (United States Embassy), the Errázuriz Palace (National Museum of Decorative Arts), the Pereda Palace (Brazilian Embassy), and Villa Ocampo (property of UNESCO). 

Today, Grementieri leads a strong campaign to preserve the architectural heritage and treasures of Buenos Aires. One of the sites this campaign aims to preserve is the world famous opera house, Teatro Colón. This week, Grementieri will release a new book co-authored with Pablo Zunino entitled Argentina’s Cultural and Natural Heritage – The Bicentennial’s Album.

Last year, the annual Driehaus Prize was doubled to a $200,000 unrestricted cash award and the Henry Hope Reed Award was doubled to $50,000. Together the two prizes represent the most significant recognition for classicism in the contemporary built environment. Recipients were selected by a jury comprised of Richard H. Driehaus (Founder and Chairman of Driehaus Capital Management), Michael Lykoudis (Francis and Kathleen Rooney Dean of the University of Notre Dame School of Architecture), Paul Goldberger (Architecture Critic for “The New Yorker”), David M. Schwarz (President and CEO of David M. Schwarz Architects), Adele Chatfield-Taylor (President of the American Academy in Rome); Robert Davis (Principal at Arcadia Land Company and Founder of Seaside, Florida); and Léon Krier (architect, scholar and the inaugural Driehaus Prize Recipient).

View a gallery of Abdel-Wahed El-Wakil's work

View a gallery of Fabio Grementieri's preservation projects

Column

The Driehaus Prize

Established in 2003, the Richard H. Driehaus Prize honors, promotes and encourages architectural excellence that applies the principles of traditional, classical and sustainable architecture and urbanism in contemporary society and environments.   It is presented annually by the University of Notre Dame School of Architecture to an outstanding architect in recognition of their work.  In conjunction with the Driehaus Prize, the annual Henry Hope Reed Award is given to recognize the contributions of supporters of classical architecture operating beyond the drafting tables and outside the practice of architecture.  Past Driehaus Prize Recipients include:  Elizabeth Plater-Zyberk and Andrés Duany (2008), Jaquelin T. Robertson (2007), Allan Greenberg (2006), Quinlan Terry (2005), Demetri Porphyrios (2004) and Léon Krier (2003).  Henry Hope Reed Recipients include: Roger G. Kennedy (2008), Edward Perry Bass (2007), David Morton (2006), and Henry Hope Reed (2005).