Designer of the Year Awards 2017: Lifetime Achievement Award- Zaha Hadid

Dubbed as “Queen of the curve” who gave “architectural geometry 3 whole new expressive identity”, Zaha Hadid’s career took off in 1977 and ended in 2016 upon her death and has been described by many as an extraordinaire presence in the design scene; the only woman ever awarded the Royal Gold Medal from the Royal Institute of British Architects in 2015.

In 1972, she studied with Elia Zenghelis — a heavyweight in architecture. Zenghelis described her as the most outstanding pupil: “We called her the inventor of the 89 degrees.

Nothing was ever at 90 degrees. She had spectacular vision,” he said of her. Among her countless projects were: the Guangzhou Opera House (2010), Guangzhou, China and 2012 Summer Olympics, London, United Kingdom.

An inventor, pioneer and a revolutionary in her field, people will forever speak her name as she leaves behind prodigious work that has changed the landscape of architecture.

For more information about Zaha Hadid and her work, please visit Zaha-Hadid.