Zaha Hadid: I’m a Woman Who Gets Things Done

To realize this groundbreaking structure, the total amount of steel used exceeded four times that of the wrought iron used to build the Eiffel Tower in Paris. For industry insiders, these details are enough to reveal the designer behind the project. Indeed! The Morpheus Hotel is the latest "posthumous work" by Zaha Hadid—the so-called "Maverick Dame" of architecture, who passed away two years earlier from a heart attack. 

"Previous hotel buildings in Macau drew inspiration from architectural styles around the world, but Morpheus evolved from Macau’s unique environment and site conditions; it is a completely new kind of architecture for this city. It draws on Zaha’s 40 years of research, encompassing her thoughts on exterior and interior spaces, public and private domains, and the tangible and intangible—even incorporating Cartesian philosophy and Einstein’s ideas," explained Ms. Viviana Muscettola, Project Director of the Morpheus Hotel at Melco Resorts & Entertainment Macau and Associate Director of Zaha Hadid Architects.

On March 31, 2016, due to long-term work pressure and overexertion, Zaha Hadid suffered a myocardial infarction and passed away suddenly in Miami, USA. In the first two decades of the 21st century, the works of this admired woman spread across the globe. Her decisive work style and bold, radical architectural ideas continue to be remembered by all. 

Source | Visual China

In contrast to her "sudden" departure, architecture—from design bidding to physical completion—is a massive and lengthy process. At the time of her unexpected death, 36 projects in 21 countries worldwide were still under construction. In the same year she passed away, three of her works were successively completed and put into use: the Port House Antwerp (at Europe’s second-largest shipping port), the Oil Ministry Training and Research Center in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, and the new Mathematics Gallery at the Science Museum in London. 

In the first 20 years of her architectural career, Zaha had almost no physical works completed. Yet, for a long time to come, a large number of her designs will stand in the world as "posthumous works." This seems to echo the fate of many great artists: controversial during their lifetimes, but celebrated profoundly after death. 

For the Chinese public, just before the National Day holiday, the China Eastern Airlines Base Hangar at Beijing Daxing International Airport—Zaha’s largest work created during her lifetime—was officially capped. This marked the completion of structural construction for all supporting hangar projects at Beijing Daxing International Airport, with full completion scheduled by June 30, 2019.

Some say Zaha Hadid gave us a "passport to the future," valid for 5 to 10 years. Perhaps only during this period will people give her the most fair and comprehensive evaluation. 

In 1950, Zaha Hadid was born into an affluent Arab family in Baghdad, Iraq. Her father, Mohammed Hadid, studied economics in London in the 1930s, returned to Iraq to become a renowned economist, and pursued a long career in politics. As a child, Zaha lived with her family in a large house; her parents not only held high social status but also fostered an atmosphere of democratic discussion at home.

Zaha had two older brothers but was the only daughter in the family, so she naturally received more affection from her elders. The liberal family education and the open cultural mindset of Iraqi society at that time left a deep impression on her. She once recalled her childhood, describing Baghdad as a city that "welcomed guests from all over the world" and where "new ideas and cultures were constantly emerging."

Zaha’s first encounter with "architecture" was at the age of 11. She mentioned having an irregularly shaped mirror in her bedroom that she loved deeply—perhaps the starting point of her lifelong passion for "irregular" design. The young girl was also influenced by her mother’s taste and took a keen interest in the unconventional furniture her mother bought.

Hadid recalled: "When I was six or seven years old, my aunt built a house in Mosul, northern Iraq. The architect was a friend of my father’s; he often came to our house to draw blueprints and make models. I was fascinated by that—it was my first impression of architecture."

Although she had long aspired to a career in architecture, Zaha deliberately chose to study mathematics for her university education. Later, she explained that if she had chosen engineering at that time, she would likely have been the only woman in her class. Additionally, "studying mathematics shaped my rational thinking—it is a way of thinking, not a rigid pattern."

In the 1970s, Zaha’s family moved to London. Driven by her personal aspirations, she enrolled at the Architectural Association (AA) in the UK—a natural choice for a budding architect.

At that time, British architecture schools still followed the old European guild apprenticeship system. However, perhaps influenced by the sweeping international movements of the 1960s and 1970s, Zaha and her classmates felt free to openly express differing views—or even challenge—the ideas taught by their teachers in class. This environment nurtured her courage to stand up to authority and her innovative spirit.

Her teacher, Léon Krier, once recalled: "Zaha was always full of energy." At that time, the Dutch architect Rem Koolhaas was also studying and teaching at the AA, making him one of Zaha’s mentors. In 2003, when the two competed for the Guangzhou Opera House project in China, Zaha did not let "mentor-student loyalty" hold her back and ultimately won the bid. 

In 2010, the Guangzhou Opera House—designed by Zaha—was completed. It was named one of the "World’s Top 10 Opera Houses" by  USA Today  and the "World’s Most Spectacular Theater" by the UK’s Daily Telegraph.

In 2010, the Guangzhou Opera House—designed by Zaha—was completed. It was named one of the "World’s Top 10 Opera Houses" by *USA Today* and the "World’s Most Spectacular Theater" by the UK’s Daily Telegraph.

During her studies at the AA, Zaha developed a passion for Soviet avant-garde art from the 1920s, including the constructivism of Malevich and Kandinsky. Although the October Revolution had split Soviet Russia from the Western world, the artistic traditions dating back to Peter the Great’s era could not be easily severed.

While cubism, futurism, and surrealism were sweeping the West, Soviet artists made even bolder and more forward-thinking explorations. For example, Kazimir Malevich and his "Suprematism" emphasized using mathematical polygons to express artistic forms—sometimes with just a few simple strokes or shapes to convey "pure emotion," and using black-and-white contrasts to represent the "limits of simplicity."

Staring at abstract forms composed solely of rectangles, circles, and straight lines every day, Zaha had a sudden insight: Why can’t architecture have a sense of weightlessness? For a long time afterward, she was more of a painter than an architect. A painter’s formal expressions ignore gravity, while an architect’s must constantly contend with it.

Zaha’s graduation project at the AA was Malevich’s Tektonik (1976-1977), designed based on Malevich’s Suprematism.

Zaha Hadid’s graduation project at the Architectural Association—Malevich’s Tektonik—was more like a painting than a traditional architectural blueprint.

This conceptual design aimed to build a 14-story hotel on Hungerford Bridge, spanning the River Thames in London, connecting the 19th-century historic buildings on the north bank with the brutalist architecture on the south bank. The project featured a bridge (or linear) complex with integrated hotel functions.

Zaha described the design as an exploration of "mutation": the bridge connects buildings of vastly different styles on both banks, integrating imaginable architectural tension into new spatial possibilities. Suprematism originally belonged to the fields of painting and sculpture; with this design, Zaha pioneered the integration of Suprematism into architecture—a groundbreaking idea that became the starting point for her future innovations in architectural design.

In 1982, the "Peak Club Hong Kong" project marked a pivotal shift in Zaha’s style and brought her widespread recognition. With its unique angles and explosive drawing style, the design earned praise for its "geological" characteristics. The renowned architect Arata Isozaki, one of the judges at the time, commented: "I was captivated by her unique expression and profound philosophical depth."

In fact, throughout the 1980s, Zaha only developed architectural designs through drawings. Thus, she made a name for herself in the architectural world as a pioneer in radical architectural concepts and forms—her creative work focused on research through sketches rather than physical construction.

During this decade, her design talent was fully displayed in these futuristic "conceptual" drawings, and she won numerous design competitions. However, architecture has a unique professional trait: unlike artists, philosophers, or writers, architects rely entirely on patrons—wealthy investors—to fund the realization of their blueprints. Building is expensive, even for a small structure.

Consider the Pritzker Architecture Prize, often called the "Nobel Prize of Architecture." Established in 1979 by Jay Pritzker and his wife Cindy, it is sponsored by the Hyatt Foundation. The Pritzker family is one of the ten wealthiest families in the United States, and the famous Hyatt Hotel Group is part of their portfolio.

It can be said that in today’s social context, architecture is a complex hybrid of public opinion, capital operation, symbolic power, and the architect’s own capabilities and reputation. Zaha was free to pursue "metaphysical" creativity, but to turn her ideas into reality, she had to present more convincing arguments and plans.

The aforementioned "Peak Club Hong Kong" remained a concept only, derailed by the Asian financial crisis. A similar fate befell her 1994 win in the competition for the Cardiff Opera House in Wales, UK; despite taking first place, the project was canceled due to opposition from the Cardiff local government. In an interview with Yang Lan One-on-One*, Zaha described this experience as a "major setback in her career."

As early as 1988, however, some had already recognized Zaha Hadid’s potential to stand alongside her mentors. That year, New York’s MoMA held a landmark exhibition on "Deconstructivist Architecture." Among giants like Frank Gehry, Rem Koolhaas, and Daniel Libeskind, Hadid was the only female architect.

Interestingly, she had not yet completed a single physical building at the time. Her works on display were abstract paintings and impressionist pieces—not the standard architectural drawings audiences were used to. Some critics even noted that standing in front of her design sketches felt like looking at illustrations from Isaac Asimov’s sci-fi novels.

As a woman, Zaha Hadid was already an outsider in the male-dominated field of architecture; her Arab background made her even more so. She once lamented: "It was almost impossible to integrate into the old-school gentlemanly London society with my background and gender."

At the time, London’s mainstream society could not accept Zaha Hadid—with her headscarf, heavy accent, and dark skin. She remained on the margins of the industry, particularly excluded from male-dominated social spaces like golf courses. The conservatism of British society at that time was one of the reasons she sought breakthroughs in other markets. 

It was not until 1993 that Zaha received her first commissioned project: a fire station in Weil am Rhein, Germany, on the banks of the Rhine. This building was destined to stand out from its surroundings—its shape resembling a dart, with bold, unyielding lines exuding freedom. A sense of dynamic instability and structural fragmentation permeated every corner of the building.

The structure feels remarkably dynamic because the vertices between the walls both overlap and conflict; their convergence creates a sense of fluidity. The canopy at the entrance is the finishing touch of the entire building—its sharp angle, like a pair of scissors, pierces the sky. By creating a sense of detachment between the building and the ground, Zaha achieved a mirage-like effect—inevitably evoking Malevich’s maxim: "We can only perceive space when we break free from the earth and let go of our support." These words could well serve as both the preface and epilogue to all of Zaha’s works.

Although the fire station remains a topic of discussion to this day, its completion as a physical structure finally marked the "official launch" of Zaha Hadid Architects. She no longer needed to rely on the stacks of money her father secretly sent to sustain her dream.

The Vitra Fire Station in Weil am Rhein, Germany, was Zaha Hadid’s first commissioned project.

In 1998, Zaha won the bid to design the Contemporary Arts Center in Cincinnati, Ohio, USA—a project that truly made her a household name in the industry. This time, she not only created a stunning architectural exterior but also pioneered a new "anti-gravity" architectural experience.

This 8-story building resembles a delicate stack of boxes perched on a glass base. Hailed as an "oasis in the countryside" by The New York Times, it was unanimously praised by architectural critics as "the most important new building in the United States since the Cold War."

The Cincinnati Contemporary Arts Center was officially completed and opened in 2003. In 2004, the Hyatt Foundation awarded Zaha the Pritzker Prize, making her two records: the first woman to win the award in its 25-year history, and the youngest recipient at the time. Carlos Jiménez, an architecture professor at Rice University and one of the judges, commented on her contribution: "She has made architecture a siphon for urban energy, allowing us to see the surging and flowing vitality of the city."

Rem Koolhaas, the 2000 Pritzker laureate, once asked her: "How do you see your current status in the architectural world? Does winning this award mean greater achievement or greater pressure?" Zaha replied: "For many years, I have struggled to gain recognition. From this moment on, people truly accept me—and know I am a woman who gets things done."

There is no doubt that no matter how future historians write the history of architecture in the first half of the 21st century, Zaha Hadid will undoubtedly be remembered as a pivotal figure. When it comes to "the surging and flowing vitality of the city," there is perhaps no other place in the world that witnessed a more turbulent wave of urbanization than China—the world’s second-largest economy—at the turn of the century.

Zaha’s victory in the 2003 Guangzhou Opera House project introduced Chinese people to this "Maverick Dame of Architecture," who was often seen in a black corseted top, black satin slim-fit trousers, and black Prada sandals. 

Completed in 2014, Wangjing SOHO—designed by Zaha Hadid—has been dubbed "Beijing’s First Impression Building."

Thanks to its flowing lines, the three towers blend harmoniously into their surroundings, standing on the green belt like rolling hills and exuding a strong sense of dynamism. When comparing high-rises in Beijing, Rem Koolhaas’ CCTV Headquarters feels sharp and rigid, like a structure clad in armor; in contrast, Hadid’s Wangjing SOHO features softer curves. Its walls seem to "peel outward," revealing the internal framework—evoking the image of Eve’s ribs.

At the turn of the century, Zaha Hadid’s firm was merely a converted schoolroom in London: a small space with just two or three assistants, and highly unstable finances. As the saying goes, "Ten years of obscurity, then overnight fame." In just a few short years, her firm expanded to occupy most of that office building, growing into one of the largest and most successful architectural practices in the world.

Correspondingly, Zaha began receiving numerous international commissions. Developers and government representatives queued to work with her in cities including Cairo, Kabul, Abu Dhabi, Taipei, Guangzhou, Shanghai, Beijing, and even her hometown of Baghdad. A rough count shows she designed approximately 950 projects across 44 countries—her prolific output and rapid pace left everyone in awe.

Her achievements in architecture catapulted her to global fame, sending her market value soaring. A few years ago, a British furniture company collaborated with her on a design; a single table model—dubbed the "Water Table," with its streamlined blue silicone surface—sold for $296,000 at an auction in New York. This piece was, in fact, a miniaturized version of a sleek, cutting-edge "Zaha-style" skyscraper.

Beyond being a world-renowned architect, Zaha Hadid was a versatile designer who dabbled in numerous fields: jewelry, footwear, handbags, yachts, and furniture, to name a few. She also partnered with many brands on cross-border projects—her signature streamlined aesthetic made her designs instantly recognizable. This style was an extension of her architectural beauty; when integrated into these products, it never felt out of place, but rather created a unique sense of design.

Her designs spanned multiple categories, including jewelry, footwear, handbags, yachts, and furniture, with numerous cross-border collaborations. The image here shows her collaborative design with Bulgari.

For example, her jewelry for Swarovski and Fendi Peekaboo handbags evoke the silhouettes of Shanghai Linkong SOHO and Beijing Wangjing SOHO; the streamlined shape of the Louis Vuitton Leone bag bears striking similarities to the fluid spatial design of the Heydar Aliyev Center in Azerbaijan (designed by her in 2012). The yacht she co-designed with Blohm+Voss introduced an innovative concept: its upper exoskeleton is an interwoven support network, with varying thicknesses that lend natural aesthetics to the yacht’s exterior, creating an organic shape reminiscent of marine structures.

Meanwhile, this yacht—along with the new footwear line she collaborated on with Brazilian brand Melissa—features smooth lines and streamlined cut-outs that call to mind the recently opened Morpheus Hotel at City of Dreams Macau (mentioned earlier). The exposed structural framework of the hotel undoubtedly amplifies the vitality of its design.

The new footwear line Zaha Hadid co-created with Brazilian brand Melissa features streamlined cut-outs that also evoke the Morpheus Hotel.

In February 2015, Zaha Hadid was awarded the Royal Gold Medal—the highest honor bestowed by the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA). This marked the first time RIBA had ever presented this prestigious award to a woman. As a female architect, her breathtaking works transcended architectural traditions and broke through established norms—effacing the "female" qualifier before her title and cementing her place among the world’s top male-dominated architects.

Her works delivered powerful visual impact, forging a brand-new architectural aesthetic. Architecture, by nature, provides humans with shelter and stable living spaces; as the ancient Roman architect Vitruvius noted, the discipline should also offer "convenience and delight." Iconic buildings go even further: they greatly amplify a space’s social significance, and their very existence becomes a topic of widespread discussion.

Today, the architect is gone, but her legacy endures. She left behind not just design works, but also a vital question for contemporary female architects: how to express their individuality and create buildings with a unique style.

Completed in 2015, the Changsha Meixi Lake International Culture & Art Center consists of three petal-shaped exhibition spaces with smooth, flowing curves. This bold, imaginative design originated from Zaha Hadid’s vision.

Source | Beijing Youth Weekly