(1917- )
Iraqi architect, planner and architectural writer, Makiya was educated in Liverpool, where he received a degree in architecture in 1941, and a degree in civic design in 1942. He completed his studies at King’s College, Cambridge, where he received his doctorate in 1946. He returned to Baghdad the same year. He is a prolific architect, with buildings in Iraq, Oman, Tunisia, Kuwait and Bahrain.
Makiya wrote “The Arab Village”, in 1951 and “The Architecture of Baghdad” in 1969.
At the beginning of his career he designed religious buildings, beginning with the Khulafa Mosque in Baghdad (1960-65). His design incorporated the existing 9th century minaret as part of the overall plan. This was followed by mosques in Islamabad (1970), Bahrain (1973), Muscat (1997), and a design for the Baghdad State Mosque, 1983, which included library, school, guest houses, residences, a monumental minaret and a dome that was to be the dominant feature. This mosque was never built. The Kuwait State Mosque, built 1977-1881, is a very large building that can accommodate 7000 worshippers.
His commercial and residential buildings include bank buildings in Basra and Mosul, 1966 and Kerbela and Kufa, 1968. The Kufa building was heavily damaged during the Gulf war, the one in Kerbela was completely demolished.
Others buildings are:
Sheikh Mubarak Building in Bahrain, 1973
the Entrance Arch and the Center for the Handicapped of Isa Town in Bahrain, 1973
the International Hilton Hotel, a garage and houses in Dubai, 1974
the Al-Andalous housing complex in Doha, Qatar, 1983
the Police Officers Club interior design in Abu Dhabi, 1982-1986.
His educational buildings include:
a plan for Baghdad University, 1965
the Theology College in Baghdad, 1966
a plan for al-Kufa University, a new campus for 20,000 students, 1967
the complex of Rashid University in Iraq, 1981, in collaboration with a German firm
Among his most important projects are:
the headquarters of the League of Arab States in Tunis 1983
the headquarters for the Regional Arab Organizations in Kuwait, 1982-1987
and the ceremonial grounds in Tikrit, 1984
His work includes buildings for the handicapped, a newly acknowledged building type in the Middle East.
Reference: http://arabworld.nitle.org