The Grid as a Base Design in Contemporary Architecture

An Analytical Study of Selected Projects of Zaha Hadid Architecture

Abstract

The (Grid) is one of the most important fundamentals in architectural design and it was adopted from ancient civilizations to contemporary architecture, thus enhancing the creation of products characterized by system, harmony, unity and integration,. Methods and basis of adoption the (Grid) for the twenty-first century have been varied for the diversity of products and architectural trends with correspondence to technology impact in general. The research problem was articulated as: the lack of comprehensive framework to the nature of the adoption of the (Grid) as a design base in contemporary architecture, the goal of research is to introduce the most comprehensive and clear knowledge of (Grid) role in the process of architectural design and to identify the nature and specificity of its adoption as a conceptual basis in contemporary architecture. The research was based on a descriptive and analytical approach to a number of specialized and other backup studies aiming to identify the main terms that define the knowledge related to the (Grid) as a design base in contemporary architecture and applying this framework to selected samples of Zaha Hadid projects as one of the contemporary architecture pioneers. The research hypothesized that Zaha adopted a variety of (Grid) forms to generate and organize architectural configurations according to multiple structural principles. The research reached to a set of theoretical conclusions related to the methods and principles of the use of the (Grid) at varying levels, as well as the conclusions related to the selected case study.