Zaha Hadid was born in Baghdad, Iraq, and attended the American University of Beirut before transferring to London’s Architectural Association School of Architecture in 1972. After graduating, Hadid worked at the Office for Metropolitan Architecture in Rotterdam. she opened her own architecture firm and began a long career teaching architecture at the Architectural Association as well as at Harvard Graduate School of Design, Cambridge University, and the University of Chicago.

Hadid’s designs are notable for their ambitious use of curves, grand scale, and blend of fluid and geometrical forms. Beginning in the 1980s, she translated her architectural vocabularies into furniture and fashion design, collaborating with companies such as Sawaya & Moroni, B&B Italia, Lacoste, and Adidas.

In 2016 at the age of 65, Hadid passed away. Recognised around the world as one of the greatest contemporary architects.