QU Launches First Book on Architecture and Urbanism in Doha

Doha, November 19 (QNA) - A first-ever comprehensive book on contemporary architecture and urbanism in Doha was yesterday launched by Qatar University at a press conference and book signing event. The book entitled "Demystifying Doha: On Architecture and Urbanism in an Emerging City" was authored by QU professor of architecture and chair of the Department of Architecture and Urban Planning (DAUP) Dr Ashraf Salama and Dr Florian Wiedmann, research fellow at the department, and published this month by Ashgate Publishing, UK. The book is a three-year effort (2010-2013) and was partially funded by a grant from the National Priorities Research Program (NPRP) under the Qatar National Research Fund (QNRF). Both Dr Salama and Dr Wiedmann were on hand to discuss details of the book which provides a critical analysis of Doha as an emerging regional metropolis and suggests a framework that can be utilized to clarify, delineate and understand the future role architects, urban designers, and planners will have in shaping the future of the city and other cities that are witnessing similar development patterns. At 276 pages, the book looks at the pre-oil picture of Doha rooted in the desert, tribal tradition and the sea, and follows its urban evolution from vernacular settlement to an emerging service hub. It goes on to discuss the decentralization of urban planning and the implementation of an holistic urban development vision in Qatar, regional pressures and global influences, and the advent of urban space diversity in Doha. Further, the book considers the economic consequences and potential environmental challenges, and provides an outlook for sustainable urbanism in Doha. The authors conclude with a theoretical discourse on space production and an analytical framework for investigating the production of urban qualities in the city. Drs Salama and Wiedmann explained that Demystifying Doha investigates the complex nature of the city's contemporary urban structure by exploring its evolution from a tiny fishing village to a major regional and international hub. "It also analyses the transforming models of urban governance and their impact on current urban development tendencies", they said. Dr Salama noted the timeliness of the book's publication in a period when Doha is burgeoning with construction, development and re-generation projects but a lack of in-depth debate on architecture and urbanism in the rapidly growing city. "This book we hope will begin the dialogue and prompt questions and solutions on the future direction of urban development in Doha and in growing cities in the GCC and Middle East region", he said. Dr Wiedman said: "We hope to expand the research to include parameters that enable future comparisons with other Gulf cities now that we have introduced the preparatory discussions that highlight the various interdependencies between the built environment and emerging society of Doha". Reviewers from North Carolina State University, USA, Albert Speer & Partner GmbH, Germany, and Polytechnic University of Bari, Italy have called Demystifying Doha "a necessary guide for Doha's decision makers in the public and private sector as well as design and planning educators and professionals", a "valuable source for every planner and architect working in Doha as well as those working in neighboring countries of the Arabian Peninsula", and "a great addition to the library of architecture and urbanism in the Middle East". (QNA)