Memory

Kourosh Hajizadeh was born on June 30th, 1975 in Tehran. Iran’s culture and civilization impressed him so much that in the year 2001 he published a book called “Dooman” which was about lost culture and historical values of Tabriz which included many of his sketches on this matter, and was written in verse. He collaborated with famous and important architects such as “Bahram Shirdel” and “Seyyed Hadi Mirmiran” from 2002 to 2007. After many experiences, he founded his personal office called “Hajizadeh & Associates”. By reason of his distinguished mentality, he participated in various competitions, and the result was winning various titles in more than 30 architectural competitions. In 2013 he won “ the Architect of the Year ” prize in Middle East Architect Award 2013 and Architect Magazine selected him as one of the ” 50 Most Influential People ” in the architecture of Middle East in 2014 till 2018. He has been teaching for 14 years in a number of universities such as “Tehran University”, “University of Science and Technology” and “Islamic Azad University-Dubai branch. He has also had several lectures on his architectural works and the design process in his works. In his architectural experiences, his significant aim is to localize architecture and to connect architecture with people and the city by the language of world contemporary art.

Mr. Al Assam has a successful leadership track record of over 40 years with a private practice in GCC, Middle East, and North Africa. Extensive experience and professional knowledge in all types of the projects life cycle from inception to construction and turnkey. He is an effective coordinator and facilitator of team performance and has wide experience in a multidisciplinary context, with the ability to lead Technical and Administrative staff, to achieve a high Architectural Quality and profitable results. Past expertise includes several domains such as Executive in charge of Design Section, controlling a team of Architects, preparation of complete architectural design package for Masterplanning projects, multi-story buildings, luxurious villas, and palaces. As a Chairman of the Board of Directors, Mr. Al Assam has participated in setting the strategic direction of the firm. With his sound strategic awareness in Business Development, the firm has achieved several international awards and nominations. Besides, record profits in 2008 and continues to expand its vision in becoming the most prominent firm in the Middle East and GCC region. Dewan is recently ranked as top 4 architectural firms in the Middle East. Mr. Al Assam has also played a role in leading the firm toward sustainable design. Over the past few months, several of our projects have won LEED accreditation. He is an active speaker and debater and contributes often to public and professional forums.

Arash G Tehrani, is a young Iranian Architect, Designer and University lecturer, whose projects were recognized and published worldwide and translated into different languages. Beside international attention in architectural magazines, books, and websites; he's been selected in ARCHITECT Magazine's list of "50 most Influential Architects from the Middle East", and “The Architect of the Season” by ArchLine Magazine. He is a 7-time nominee of Middle East Architect Awards since 2014 for several categories, such as “YOUNG ARCHITECT of the YEAR”; Shortlisted for “Asia Architecture Awards 2016” in Vienna, shortlisted in 16th and 21st World Architecture Awards and the semi-finalist in Grand Me’mar Awards. His works also were exhibited around the world in cities like Vienna, Venice, Tokyo, Tehran, Yerevan, Baku, Isfahan, and in exhibitions such as 56th Venice Art Biennale 2015. In addition to working on personal projects since 2008, and participating in competitions, he has designed a different variety of projects in size and type for several architectural firms as the design architect. His practice of architecture includes many types of projects, ranging from small monumental projects to great public projects, or even Concept projects. From 2013, he has been lecturing at Islamic Azad University & EYC. Also, he is working on a design process research which is called “Attribute-oriented Architecture”, which was examined on some of his professional projects.

Gijo Paul George Chembakassery is the Co-Founder and Principal Architect of Studio Toggle. He graduated in Architecture from the University of Kerala (T.K.M.C.E) in 2007. From 2007-2009 he worked with multiple practices of varying sizes in India and Kuwait while obtaining his LEEP AP certification. In 2009, he started pursuing his Master’s Degree in Urban Design (Brain City Lab, Wolf D Prix) at the Universität Für Angewandte Kunst (Die Angewandte) in Vienna. In 2011 he Co-Founded the experimental architectural practice Studio Toggle in Vienna with fellow Die Angewandte graduate Hend Almatrouk and relocated to Kuwait in 2012. As the Principal Architect of Studio Toggle he has guided the firm to winning multiple prestigious architecture awards like ‘Middle East Architect Awards 2016’ (Residential Project of the year), ‘Cityscape awards 2017’ (Best low to mid-rise residential building of the year) ‘Middle East Architect Awards 2017’(Highly recommended Boutique Architecture Firm of the Year) etc. He is also an enthusiastic architectural photographer.

Yousef is an Architect and Urban Designer who has practiced in many regions, his work with the world’s most renowned firms in design and architecture like Herzog & de Meuron, AECOM and Gensler enabled him to gain extensive experience in design and planning. During his 9+ years of professional experience, he designed, coordinated and supervised various high-end & landmark projects that vary in type, scale as well as geographical location and was involved the full spectrum of project development from concept to realization. Along with his creative and sustainable approach to design and architecture, he maintains an open and flexible attitude towards new technologies and methodologies. As Jordanian native and due to his world-class communication and leadership skills; Yousef plays a key role in bridging different markets and regions and has extensive project development experience in the MENA “Middle East and North Africa” especially within the GCC region where he commands a deep understanding of building standards, culture, and language. On a personal level, he is self-driven, committed to excellence, passionate and believes in social responsibility towards underprivileged communities.