Poetics of Structure
Online via Webex
The lecture highlights a selection of work by Najjar-Najjar Architects, informed by their research-oriented design process. Najjar-Najjar is a mid-sized architecture studio based in Vienna and Beirut, founded by brothers Ramez and Karim Najjar in 1999. Throughout their work, the architects advocate highly open and responsive architecture. The lecture underlines several aspects of a performance-driven design process and introduces various projects ranging from kinetic installations to double curved, and floating structures. The lecture also introduces the integrative design approach, engaging scientists and engineers from multiple disciplines in the design process, often culminating in a shift in direction of conventional manufacturing and construction processes.
Biography:
Ramez Najjar graduated from the Technical University in Berlin and Vienna University of Applied Arts. In 1999, Ramez founded Najjar-Najjar Architects in Vienna, alongside his brother Karim, and branched out to Beirut in 2009.Ramez’s design approach led to a series of innovative projects that found international recognition, earning him various international awards, such as “Best Architect Award” in Germany in 2014, the Jacques Rougerie Grand Prix Award at the Institute de France in 2021. Ramez is also the co-founder of “Thinking Hands”, an NGO based in Austria established in 2016 engaged in the design and construction of social projects, which has completed projects in India and Lebanon.