Abu Dhabi National Theatre. Antonie Robertson / The National
Abu Dhabi National Theatre. Antonie Robertson / The National

An Iraqi legacy celebrated on Abu Dhabi’s streets



Name an Iraqi architect who has built something in Abu Dhabi. Simple, no? As most people will tell you, the answer is the late Zaha Hadid (1950-2016), “Queen of the Curve” and all things amorphous, multi-millionaire starchitect and designer of the Sheikh Zayed Bridge.

Prior to the completion of the US$300 million (Dh1,102m), 842-metre-long crossing in 2010, however, the answer may have been quite different.

Before projects such as the Vitra Fire Station, Innsbruck’s Bergisel ski jump and Cincinatti’s Contemporary Art Centre propelled Hadid to the ranks of architectural megastardom, Rifat Chadirji’s was the most illustrious Iraqi name in the modern architectural history of the region.

The designer of 96 buildings in his native Baghdad between the 1950s and the 1980s such as the Monument to the Unknown Soldier (1958) in Firdos Square, which was later destroyed by Saddam Hussein, Chadirji was also responsible for creating an enormous, 100,000-image archive that chronicles Iraq’s heroic moment of modernisation.

A selection of Chadirji's drawings and images were displayed in Every Building in Baghdad: the Rifat Chadirji Archives at the Arab Image Foundation, which was exhibited at Columbia University's Arthur Ross Architecture Gallery in 2016 and as the title suggests, the archives are now housed at the Arab Image Foundation in Beirut.

As well as including drawings and images of Chadirji’s acknowledged masterworks such as Baghdad’s 10-storey Central Post Office, Telegraph and Telephone Exchange (1970) it also contains overlooked and unexamined evidence of a link between the architect and Abu Dhabi.

In 1977, Chadijri won a competition to design Abu Dhabi’s new national theatre, a new cultural institution for a young nation that was being developed at the same time as The Architects Collaborative (TAC) were designing and building Abu Dhabi’s new Cultural Foundation and National Library, which is currently undergoing restoration alongside Qasr Al Hosn.

TAC won the Cultural Foundation competition in 1974 thanks to the work of another Iraqi architect, Hisham Ashkouri, who completed the competition proposal in 1973 at the tender age of 25 during his gap year between postgraduate studies at the University of Pennsylvania and ­Harvard-MIT.

Ashkouri was assisted by another Iraqi expatriate, Basil Hassan, who was working as an associate architect with TAC and the submission was overseen by Louis McMillen, one of the seven partners who had founded the firm in 1945 alongside Walter Gropius, the founder of the Bauhaus in Weimar, Germany, in 1919.

So is The National Theatre Chadijri’s? At the moment nobody seems sure, but what is certain is that the theatre and the Cultural Foundation were both completed in 1981.

If it is the product of Iraq’s master Modernist, then the theatre lacks the bravura detailing and finishes of projects such as Chadirji’s Tobacco Monopoly Company Headquarters (1974), but its arches, windows and coffered concrete ceilings are the product of a moment when Abu Dhabi’s megaprojects were designed by Arabs for Arabs and also reflected on the region’s forms and history.

Infirm and recently recovered from a stroke, the architect celebrated his 91st birthday this week at his home in London but Chadirji’s name continues to make headlines thanks to a new competition that bears his name.

In November the winner of the inaugural Rifat Chadirji Prize was announced following a competition that challenged architects to find solutions to the housing challenges that now face the city of Mosul, which was declared liberated by the Iraqi government in July.

The competition was won by Ania Otlik, a graduate of Wroclaw University of Science and Technology in Poland, who devised a flexible housing system that allows families to design their own homes and neighbourhoods in a way that is reminiscent of the national housing programme that was first launched in Abu Dhabi in the late 1960s.

The programme was the subject of Yasser Elsheshtawy’s UAE National Pavilion at the 2016 Venice Architecture Biennale, an exhibition about Emirati home-making that is yet to find a permanent home of its own.

Even if it isn’t Chadirji’s, might the old National Theatre not serve as the perfect venue for a show about the national house and a more general history of architecture in the UAE?

In advance of the forthcoming Sharjah Architecture Triennial in 2019 one is certainly needed, as is confirmation of The National Theatre’s authorship, the possible product of an Iraqi architect whose influence and legacy just might outlive Hadid’s.

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F1 drivers' standings

1. Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes 281

2. Sebastian Vettel, Ferrari 247

3. Valtteri Bottas, Mercedes 222

4. Daniel Ricciardo, Red Bull 177

5. Kimi Raikkonen, Ferrari 138

6. Max Verstappen, Red Bull 93

7. Sergio Perez, Force India 86

8. Esteban Ocon, Force India 56

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Singham Again

Director: Rohit Shetty

Stars: Ajay Devgn, Kareena Kapoor Khan, Ranveer Singh, Akshay Kumar, Tiger Shroff, Deepika Padukone

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Jeff Buckley: From Hallelujah To The Last Goodbye
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COMPANY PROFILE

Name: Qyubic
Started: October 2023
Founder: Namrata Raina
Based: Dubai
Sector: E-commerce
Current number of staff: 10
Investment stage: Pre-seed
Initial investment: Undisclosed 

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Director: Magizh Thirumeni

Stars: Ajith Kumar, Arjun Sarja, Trisha Krishnan, Regina Cassandra

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Game Changer

Director: Shankar 

Stars: Ram Charan, Kiara Advani, Anjali, S J Suryah, Jayaram

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Formula Middle East Calendar (Formula Regional and Formula 4)
Round 1: January 17-19, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
 
Round 2: January 22-23, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
 
Round 3: February 7-9, Dubai Autodrome – Dubai
 
Round 4: February 14-16, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
 
Round 5: February 25-27, Jeddah Corniche Circuit – Saudi Arabia
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Install an air filter in your home.

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Shower or bath after being outside.

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Stay indoors when conditions are particularly poor.

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Dubai Bling season three

Cast: Loujain Adada, Zeina Khoury, Farhana Bodi, Ebraheem Al Samadi, Mona Kattan, and couples Safa & Fahad Siddiqui and DJ Bliss & Danya Mohammed 

Rating: 1/5

The specs

Engine: Direct injection 4-cylinder 1.4-litre
Power: 150hp
Torque: 250Nm
Price: From Dh139,000
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COMPANY PROFILE
Name: ARDH Collective
Based: Dubai
Founders: Alhaan Ahmed, Alyina Ahmed and Maximo Tettamanzi
Sector: Sustainability
Total funding: Self funded
Number of employees: 4
Emergency

Director: Kangana Ranaut

Stars: Kangana Ranaut, Anupam Kher, Shreyas Talpade, Milind Soman, Mahima Chaudhry 

Rating: 2/5

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Wallabies

Updated team: 15-Israel Folau, 14-Dane Haylett-Petty, 13-Reece Hodge, 12-Matt Toomua, 11-Marika Koroibete, 10-Kurtley Beale, 9-Will Genia, 8-Pete Samu, 7-Michael Hooper (captain), 6-Lukhan Tui, 5-Adam Coleman, 4-Rory Arnold, 3-Allan Alaalatoa, 2-Tatafu Polota-Nau, 1-Scott Sio.

Replacements: 16-Folau Faingaa, 17-Tom Robertson, 18-Taniela Tupou, 19-Izack Rodda, 20-Ned Hanigan, 21-Joe Powell, 22-Bernard Foley, 23-Jack Maddocks.

What can you do?

Document everything immediately; including dates, times, locations and witnesses

Seek professional advice from a legal expert

You can report an incident to HR or an immediate supervisor

You can use the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation’s dedicated hotline

In criminal cases, you can contact the police for additional support

Other workplace saving schemes
  • The UAE government announced a retirement savings plan for private and free zone sector employees in 2023.
  • Dubai’s savings retirement scheme for foreign employees working in the emirate’s government and public sector came into effect in 2022.
  • National Bonds unveiled a Golden Pension Scheme in 2022 to help private-sector foreign employees with their financial planning.
  • In April 2021, Hayah Insurance unveiled a workplace savings plan to help UAE employees save for their retirement.
  • Lunate, an Abu Dhabi-based investment manager, has launched a fund that will allow UAE private companies to offer employees investment returns on end-of-service benefits.
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Transmission: Single-speed automatic

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Engine: 3.0-litre six-cylinder turbo
Power: 398hp from 5,250rpm
Torque: 580Nm at 1,900-4,800rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed auto
Fuel economy, combined: 6.5L/100km
On sale: December
Price: From Dh330,000 (estimate)
The specs

Engine: 1.5-litre turbo

Power: 181hp

Torque: 230Nm

Transmission: 6-speed automatic

Starting price: Dh79,000

On sale: Now

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THE APPRENTICE

Director: Ali Abbasi

Starring: Sebastian Stan, Maria Bakalova, Jeremy Strong

Rating: 3/5

The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre flat-six
Power: 510hp at 9,000rpm
Torque: 450Nm at 6,100rpm
Transmission: 7-speed PDK auto or 6-speed manual
Fuel economy, combined: 13.8L/100km
On sale: Available to order now
Price: From Dh801,800
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Paatal Lok season two

Directors: Avinash Arun, Prosit Roy 

Stars: Jaideep Ahlawat, Ishwak Singh, Lc Sekhose, Merenla Imsong

Rating: 4.5/5

Famous left-handers

- Marie Curie

- Jimi Hendrix

- Leonardo Di Vinci

- David Bowie

- Paul McCartney

- Albert Einstein

- Jack the Ripper

- Barack Obama

- Helen Keller

- Joan of Arc

Key facilities
  • Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
  • Premier League-standard football pitch
  • 400m Olympic running track
  • NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
  • 600-seat auditorium
  • Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
  • An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
  • Specialist robotics and science laboratories
  • AR and VR-enabled learning centres
  • Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills