East Architecture Studio, led by principal and founding partner Nicolas Fayad MArch II ’10, was awarded the Aga Khan Award for Architecture 2022 for the renovation of a Niemeyer designed Guest House located in Tripoli, Lebanon. The Aga Khan Award is one of the largest in the field of Architecture and is governed by a Steering Committee chaired by His Highness the Aga Khan, including Dean Sarah Whiting, Dr. Nasser Rabbat and Sir David Chipperfield.

The Niemeyer Guest House Renovation project is one of this cycle’s six winners, selected by an independent master jury, including Francis Kéré, Amale Andraos MArch’ 99, Anne Lacaton and Nader Tehrani MAUD ’91. The Master Jury cited the renovation as an “inspiring tale of architecture’s capacity for repair, at a time of dizzying, entangled crisis around the world, and in Lebanon in particular, as the country faces unprecedented political, socio-economic and environmental collapse”.

Founded in 2015, East Architecture Studio is a collective practice committed to architectural design and experimental research. The studio yields innovative built environments of various scales ranging from master planning to interior design and adaptive reuse, engaging both contemporary society and traditional culture. Projects emerge from the studio with optimism, translating visionary ideas into an architecture of the present. A reality that the team embraces, with a particular interest in intellectual pursuits and design research. Emphasis on history, culture and the territory are an integral part of the adopted design methods, defining an architectural response that engages with the challenges of our time. Along with a growing team of talented architects, partners, and consultants, the practice is constantly evolving in the shifting landscapes of modern life.

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