Hassan Fathy is The Middle East’s Father of Sustainable Architecture
Tafline Laylin | | 50 Comments | Email this
Hassan Fathy, an Egyptian architect saw the value of natural building long before it became a fad in the west.
Green Prophet has railed against projects like Dubai Burj Tower. We have pounded our chests at the audacity of Masdar City’s “zero” footprint claim, and we have decried the potential consequences of unsustainable approaches to building and planning. “USD22 billion” for a building project and “sustainable” simply don’t belong in the same sentence.
What we really need is a compassionate and sensible voice, a voice that calls for affordable and authentic building practices.
Egyptian architect Hassan Fathy died in 1989 but left behind a legacy of 160 building projects ranging from small projects to large-scale communities complete with mosques and schools. His impact can still be felt from Egypt to Greece and even New Mexico, where in 1981 he designed the Dar Ar-Salam community. Fathy received several awards for his work, including the Aga Khan Award for Architecture in 1980, and founded The International Institute for Appropriate Technology in 1977.
Architecture for the poor
One of his first assignments after graduating in 1926 from what is now the University of Cairo was to build a school at Talkha, a small town along the Nile in Northern Egypt. The absolute squalor of the place “haunted” Fathy: the streets were littered with rotten food and filthy water, the buildings were dilapidated, and the peasants who lived there had accepted their depressing lot. This experience inspired him to improve the lives of those who were powerless to do so without help.
Fathy wrote in his book Architecture for the Poor: “They needed decent houses, but houses are expensive. In large towns capitalists are attracted by the returns from investment in housing, and public bodies…frequently provide extensive accommodation for the citizens, but neither capitalists nor the state seem willing to undertake the provision of peasant houses…”
New is not always better
While other architects were seeking fame and fortune, Hassan Fathy saw the genius of incorporating traditional design and building materials. He wrote “here, for years, for centuries, the peasant had been wisely and quietly exploiting the obvious building material, while we, with our modern school-learned ideas, never dreamed of using such a ludicrous substance as mud for so serious a creation as a house.”
Fathy cared more about improving the standard of living for the people he served than he did about fancy western materials and technology.
In 1946 he was commissioned by Egypt’s Antiquities Department to build New Gourna Village for 3,000 families who were raiding the ruins at Luxor. The villagers weren’t so excited about being displaced, but Fathy committed to smoothing their transition.
He built thick brick walls and traditional courtyards, which both supported cultural values and created passive cooling (see design above), and enlisted the villagers as builders of their own homes. This not only reduced labor costs and created jobs, but also helped the villagers to connect with what Fathy considered a sacred space. Home for him was a place to seek solace and comfort from the outside world.
Finally, Hassan Fathy respected that nature should take precedence in the design of new structures. “Architectural form should consider the forces in nature of wind, rain, even how an earthquake shaking it would make it fall in a pattern that follows the geological formation of a mountain,” he once wrote.
No doubt Dubai’s artificial World Islands would have seemed preposterous to him.
In short, Fathy’s designs were affordable, congruent with nature, elevated the human condition, and they were sustainable. We think this is a model that would better serve the Middle East than other lavish projects taking place.
More on architecture in the Middle East:
Recent Jerusalem Seminar in Architecture Focused on Green Design
Can An Ecological Peace Park Catalyze Peace Between Syria and Israel?
AECOM Teams Up with Ellerbe Beckett to Create More Sustainable Building In The Middle East
50 Responses to “Hassan Fathy is The Middle East’s Father of Sustainable Architecture”
Adrian Ruff • February 26th, 2010 • 2:26 pm
Very interesting design for natural cooling,Has anyone got an idea what the apparatus is on the right side,it looks like an earthen pot with maybe water to cool the warm air,any ideas?
Hassan Fathy is the Middle East’s father of sustainable architecture | Bikya Masr • February 27th, 2010 • 1:02 pm
[...] **Published with permission of Green Prophet [...]
Lesley LEED AP • February 27th, 2010 • 4:05 pm
What's good about Fathy is that he used his common sense! It seems like he saw an injustice and did what he could to make it better for everyone. He didn't just build a building that suited him. I don't know why this kind of compassion disappeared for a while, but I'm glad it's making a comeback with this green movement!
Karin Kloosterman • February 27th, 2010 • 9:11 pm
That sounds about right. People in the Middle East use unglazed ceramics to cool liquids in jars. More design specs of Fathy's can be found here:http://www.unu.edu/unupress/unupbooks/80a01e/80…
JudithI_Isaacson • February 27th, 2010 • 11:24 pm
The Arts' Center at Kibbutz Neot Smadar in Israel's Arava, is an impressive ecologically sound structure that incorporates natural materials and a natural cooling system based on water and wind.
The Best Way to Keep Buildings Green is Not to Build New Ones | Green Prophet • March 17th, 2010 • 12:50 am
[...] Hassan Fathy: the Middle East Father of Sustainable Architecture [...]
Hassan Fathy (1900-1989): Arquitectura, Tradição e Consciência Social « SALA 17: Sentir, Pensar, Criar… • March 24th, 2010 • 2:23 pm
[...] Mais sobre Hassan Fathy aqui. [...]
The Story Behind Jerusalem’s Royal Rock | Green Prophet • April 3rd, 2010 • 3:02 pm
[...] Hassan Fathy is The Middle East’s Father of Sustainable Architecture [...]
Architect Cameron Sinclair Gives a Damn | Green Prophet • April 6th, 2010 • 8:59 pm
[...] Hassan Fathy is The Middle East’s Father of Sustainable Architecture AKPC_IDS += "19490,";Browse topics: architecture, sustainable housing [...]
رويدة نمر مجمد الحتو • January 30th, 2011 • 4:44 pm
بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
شكرا على هذا الموضوع و بالله عليكم اذا كان يوجد شئ اخر عنكم عنهذا الموضوع بالذات ان ترسلوه لي باسرع وقت ممكن فانا في امس حاجة له
و لكم جزيل الشكر
Sanserif Creatius Carves A Cardboard Table With Arabic Devotion | Green Prophet • February 23rd, 2011 • 3:00 am
[...] and Boaz Khan made these lovely ecoolers that mimic ancient Arabic detail and ecological awareness, Hassan Fathy built sustainable structures that cherished the genius simplicity of old, and even Foster & [...]
Foster & Partners Finish Gorgeous Green Building In Morocco | Green Prophet • March 27th, 2011 • 8:00 am
[...] in the Middle East. Although they are visually spectacular, we often wonder at the true sustainability of buildings that cost millions of dollars to construct. But the first of three Moroccan projects commissioned [...]
Beautiful Red Sea Film School Integrates Nature As Teaching Tool | Green Prophet • April 5th, 2011 • 6:13 pm
[...] Hassan Fathy is the Middle East’s Father of Sustainable Architecture AKPC_IDS += "45465,"; [...]
Mohamed Kassas: Egypt’s Prophet Of Desertification | Green Prophet • April 8th, 2011 • 6:20 am
[...] Hassan Fathy is the Middle East’s father of sustainable architecture, then Mohamed Kassas is the prophet [...]
Seven Steps Required To Make Middle Eastern Cities Sustainable | Green Prophet • April 10th, 2011 • 3:17 pm
[...] Hassan Fathy Is the Middle East’s Father of Sustainable Architecture [...]
Serene Japanese-Styled Heiku Resort Lies At The Foot Of Mt. Gilboa | Green Prophet • April 14th, 2011 • 7:35 am
[...] ecological kibbutzes and individual families are building rammed-earth homes in the spirit of Hassan Fathy, homes that have a wider [...]
Stunning Resort In Abu Dhabi Desert Will Celebrate Bedouin Architecture | Green Prophet • April 26th, 2011 • 11:25 am
[...] decidedly impractical glass towers that shimmer along the Gulf (the resort looks a lot like these Hassan Fathy buildings, [...]
Green Prophet Wants to Meet All The UAE Eco-Peeps | Green Prophet • April 28th, 2011 • 8:01 am
[...] an important issue that you think we need to know about, or if you are working in cleantech or sustainable architecture and design, please drop me a line at tafline@greenprophet.com. I’m dying to meet [...]
Former Masdar Director Says The UAE Must End Subsidies | Green Prophet • May 1st, 2011 • 12:02 pm
[...] Hassan Fathy is the Middle East’s Father of Sustainable Development [...]
Hassan Fathy Fan Has High Eco-Hopes For Cairo | Green Prophet • May 11th, 2011 • 2:48 pm
[...] It’s hard not to compare Dubai and Cairo – two cities that occupy many of our worried green thoughts. Although different on so many levels, one thing stands out: despite being relatively young and stroppy, Dubai is definitely the cleaner city. Sure, there is litter along the beaches and in other more isolated areas, but when compared to Egypt, the Emirate comes out squeaky clean. Even so, French Architect Dominique Gauzin-Müller told Almasry Alyoum that she can envision a sustainable urban future for Egypt, particularly if the country embraces wisdom advocated by their very own father of sustainable architecture – Hassan Fathy. [...]
Mashrabiya: 12th Century Light & Cooling For Lebanon’s USJ Campus | Green Prophet • May 23rd, 2011 • 4:11 am
[...] Hassan Fathy is the Middle East’s Father of Sustainable Architecture [...]
17 Lost Egyptian Pyramids Found With Infra Red Technology | Green Prophet • May 26th, 2011 • 6:05 am
[...] Egyptian architect Hassan Fathy, who devoted his career to promoting ancient building materials and techniques, would be proud. [...]
Egypt May Survive Climate Change Thanks to AUC Students | Green Prophet • May 27th, 2011 • 3:48 pm
[...] Hassan Fathy is the Middle East’s Father of Sustainable Architecture [...]
Romantic Desert Lodge Offers Fresh Eggs And Sanity | Green Prophet • June 6th, 2011 • 1:36 pm
[...] traveler looks for: friendly faces who will welcome you with a glass of delicious hibiscus juice, sustainably-built accommodations modeled after an ancient village, fresh food, and resplendent views of the nearby limestone [...]
Earth Architecture All The Way To Timbuktu | Green Prophet • June 8th, 2011 • 5:01 am
[...] Hassan Fathy is the Middle East’s Father of Sustainable Architecture [...]
Egypt’s 1st Private Wind Farm To Power More Boring Brown Buildings | Green Prophet • June 14th, 2011 • 4:54 am
[...] majestic pyramids and self-aggrandizing Pharoanic temples and tombs belonging to a bygone era, few Egyptian architects have distinguished [...]
Starting Over With Two New Cairos | Green Prophet • June 16th, 2011 • 11:18 am
[...] Hassan Fathy is the Middle East’s Father of Sustainable Architecture [...]
Cool Kuwaiti Home Foils Peeping Toms | Green Prophet • June 19th, 2011 • 5:39 am
[...] Hassan Fathy is the Middle East’s Father of Sustainable Architecture [...]
The Mashrabiya House Beats the Heat with Traditional Arabic Technique | Green Prophet • October 17th, 2011 • 2:52 am
[...] lauded the benefits of ancient building techniques many times before. Both Hassan Fathy’s incredible mud structures in Egypt and ancient Syrian beehives are a model for sustainable design because neither require an [...]
Op Ed: Don’t Let Money Rob Egypt’s Green Building Success! | Green Prophet • November 16th, 2011 • 4:15 am
[...] make the country more stable in the face of climate change and diminishing resources. Not since Hassan Fathy, the Father of Sustainable Architecture, has a real pioneer in green building stepped out of the shadows. Until [...]
Croatian Firm to Design Istanbul’s First Disaster Prevention & Education Center | Green Prophet • December 3rd, 2011 • 1:14 pm
[...] the proposals – in many senses of the word. Consisting of a series of domed buildings reminiscent of Islamic architecture, the entire center huddles around a large leafy courtyard with water features that keep the area [...]
Why we Need an Earth Architecture Revolution (VIDEO) | Green Prophet • December 8th, 2011 • 5:22 pm
[...] are many excellent examples of earth architecture in the Middle East, including Hassan Fathy’s work, the Beehives of Syria, and Yemen’s gorgeous clay castles. But SIREWALL has perfected a [...]
architectureworldnews.info » Blog Archive » Why We Need an Earth Architecture Revolution (VIDEO) | Green … • December 8th, 2011 • 5:31 pm
[...] are many excellent examples of earth architecture in the Middle East, including Hassan Fathy’s work, the Beehives of Syria, and Yemen’s gorgeous clay castles. But SIREWALL has perfected a rammed [...]
Sustainable Architecture Saudi Style: King Abdullah Financial District | Green Prophet • December 17th, 2011 • 11:13 pm
[...] have on one end simple earth architecture such as Hassan Fathy’s famous works in Egypt, which requires very little imported materials and have virtually no environmental impact, and then [...]
Iranian Architect Nader Khalili Built Earth Buildings Fit for Space | Green Prophet • December 28th, 2011 • 11:46 pm
[...] Hassan Fathy is the father of sustainable architecture, then Nader Khalili must be his close cousin. The Egyptian and Iranian architects respectively grew [...]
13 Green Building Tips From Nader Khalili Student | Green Prophet • January 12th, 2012 • 3:24 pm
[...] Hassan Fathy is the Middle East’s Father of Sustainable Architecture AKPC_IDS += "63305,"; __spr_config = { pid: '4ef1a3d5396cef53f100007b', title: '13 Green Building Tips From Nader Khalili Student ', ckw: 'earth architecture,eco-building,green building,green design,Hassan Fathy,Middle East,nader khalili,space architecture,Sustainable Architecture,sustainable building', chan: 'architecture-urban', no_slide: '', slide_logo: false, pub: '2012-01-12 20:23:50', url: 'http%3A%2F%2Fwww.greenprophet.com%2F2012%2F01%2F13-green-building-tips-nader-khalili%2F', header: 'RECOMMENDED FOR YOU' }; var content = document.getElementById('simplereach-slide-tag').parentNode, loc; if (content.className){ loc = '.' + content.className; } if (content.id){ loc = '#' + content.id; } __spr_config.loc = loc || content; (function(){ var s = document.createElement('script'); s.async = true; s.type = 'text/javascript'; s.src = document.location.protocol + '//d8rk54i4mohrb.cloudfront.net/js/slide.js'; __spr_config.css = 'document.location.protocol + '//d8rk54i4mohrb.cloudfront.net/css/p/4ef1a3d5396cef53f100007b.css'; var tg = document.getElementsByTagName('head')[0]; if (!tg) {tg = document.getElementsByTagName('body')[0];} if (tg) {tg.appendChild(s);} })(); [...]
معماري الفقراء – حــسن فتـحي ( معماري مصري ) | بيت الشبكة المعمارية • January 19th, 2012 • 7:44 pm
[...] : 1 ، 2 ، 3 ، 4 ، 5 ، 6 حسن فتحي – آن للبناء أن يكتمل الجزء [...]
Piping Sunlight with Solotubes, Plastic Bottles and Islamic Architecture | Green Prophet • February 10th, 2012 • 2:09 am
[...] Hassan Fathy is the Middle East’s Father of Sustainable Architecture AKPC_IDS += "65436,"; __spr_config = { pid: '4ef1a3d5396cef53f100007b', title: 'Piping Sunlight with Solotubes, Plastic Bottles and Islamic Architecture', ckw: 'daylighting,green design,Islamic Architecture,Middle East,Solotubes,sustainable design', chan: 'architecture-urban', no_slide: '', slide_logo: false, pub: '2012-02-10 07:09:12', url: 'http%3A%2F%2Fwww.greenprophet.com%2F2012%2F02%2Fsolotubes-plastic-bottles-islamic-architecture%2F', header: 'RECOMMENDED FOR YOU' }; var content = document.getElementById('simplereach-slide-tag').parentNode, loc; if (content.className){ loc = '.' + content.className; } if (content.id){ loc = '#' + content.id; } __spr_config.loc = loc || content; (function(){ var s = document.createElement('script'); s.async = true; s.type = 'text/javascript'; s.src = document.location.protocol + '//d8rk54i4mohrb.cloudfront.net/js/slide.js'; __spr_config.css = 'document.location.protocol + '//d8rk54i4mohrb.cloudfront.net/css/p/4ef1a3d5396cef53f100007b.css'; var tg = document.getElementsByTagName('head')[0]; if (!tg) {tg = document.getElementsByTagName('body')[0];} if (tg) {tg.appendChild(s);} })(); swfobject.embedSWF("http://www.youtube.com/v/buMyJPQLS9U&rel=0&fs=1&showsearch=0&showinfo=0", "vvq-65436-youtube-1", "560", "453", "10", vvqexpressinstall, vvqflashvars, vvqparams, vvqattributes); [...]
AHMAD HAMID • February 15th, 2012 • 2:48 pm
Read: ‘Hassan Fathy & Continuity in Islamic art & architecture: The Birth of a new Modern’ American university Cairo press.
Tafline Laylin • February 16th, 2012 • 1:25 am
Thanks Ahmad, I’ll try to find it the next time I’m in Cairo!
New Green Roofed School in Kuwait Will Promote Hands on Agricultural Learning | Green Prophet • February 18th, 2012 • 3:52 am
[...] Hassan Fathy is the Middle East’s Father of Sustainable Architecture [...]
Curvy Desert Home Designed by Iranian Students Mimics the Snail | Green Prophet • March 15th, 2012 • 12:19 pm
[...] Hassan Fathy is the Father of Sustainable Architecture [...]
Greenwashing the Brotherhood | Green Prophet • April 18th, 2012 • 4:09 pm
[...] what do the Brothers exactly envisage? Himdan told me that the Muslimbrothers’ example is Hassan Fathy; “because he had the perfect cycle in terms of material use, in terms of ownership of the people [...]
Earth-Friendly Vernacular Date Palm Leaf Architecture Revisited in London | Green Prophet • April 26th, 2012 • 6:32 am
[...] Hassan Fathy is the Middle East’s Father of Sustainable Architecture AKPC_IDS += "71884,"; __spr_config = { pid: '4ef1a3d5396cef53f100007b', title: 'Earth-Friendly Vernacular Date Palm Leaf Architecture Revisited in London', ckw: 'date palm,desert,eco-building,green design,Gulf,vernacular architecture', chan: 'architecture-urban', no_slide: '', slide_logo: false, pub: '2012-04-26 10:32:33', url: 'http%3A%2F%2Fwww.greenprophet.com%2F2012%2F04%2Fearth-friendly-vernacular-date-palm-leaf-architecture-revisited-in-london%2F', header: 'RECOMMENDED FOR YOU' }; var content = document.getElementById('simplereach-slide-tag').parentNode, loc; if (content.className){ loc = '.' + content.className; } if (content.id){ loc = '#' + content.id; } __spr_config.loc = loc || content; (function(){ var s = document.createElement('script'); s.async = true; s.type = 'text/javascript'; s.src = document.location.protocol + '//d8rk54i4mohrb.cloudfront.net/js/slide.js'; __spr_config.css = 'document.location.protocol + '//d8rk54i4mohrb.cloudfront.net/css/p/4ef1a3d5396cef53f100007b.css'; var tg = document.getElementsByTagName('head')[0]; if (!tg) {tg = document.getElementsByTagName('body')[0];} if (tg) {tg.appendChild(s);} })(); [...]
Iraqi Mud Architect Wins Prestigious Sustainability Award | Green Prophet • May 7th, 2012 • 7:20 pm
[...] the verge of quitting. By complete chance she stumbled across Hassan Fathy’s book about his earth-inspired architecture work at Gourna. “I suddenly discovered that I had been studying the wrong type of architecture,” she [...]
Iraqi Mud Architect Wins Prestigious Sustainability Award • May 8th, 2012 • 7:35 pm
[...] the verge of quitting. By complete chance she stumbled across Hassan Fathy’s book about his earth-inspired architecture work at Gourna. “I suddenly discovered that I had been studying the wrong type of architecture,” she [...]
The Mashrabiy… | dezzzme • May 18th, 2012 • 12:10 am
[...] lauded the benefits of ancient building techniques many times before. Both Hassan Fathy’s incredible mud structures in Egypt and ancient Syrian beehives are a model for sustainable design because neither require an [...]
Simple Wave House is a Minimalist Summer Home for Turkey | Green Prophet • May 21st, 2012 • 11:45 am
[...] to favor earth architecture, like Nader Khalili’s wonderful earth bag homes fit for space, or Hassan Fathy’s mud structures in Egypt, Peksen caters to modern urbanites who seek contemporary design solutions to dwindling material and [...]
Simple Wave House is a Minimalist Summer Home for Turkey • May 21st, 2012 • 12:24 pm
[...] to favor earth architecture, like Nader Khalili’s wonderful earth bag homes fit for space, or Hassan Fathy’s mud structures in Egypt, Peksen caters to modern urbanites who seek contemporary design solutions to dwindling material and [...]
(Exclusive Interview) Iraqi Mud Architect Talks Sustainability and Corruption in the Middle East | Green Prophet • May 26th, 2012 • 4:23 pm
[...] For thirty years she has fought what she calls architectural recolonisation in Egypt alongside Hassan Fathy who championed mud architecture practiced by the falaheen (rural peasants). She has also worked in Yemen restoring and renovating [...]