logo
episode-header-image
Oct 2020
36m 43s

Zaha Hadid: Queen of the Curve

Al Jazeera
About this episode

Eccentric, demanding and unapologetic, Dame Zaha Hadid was one of the most innovative architects in modern times, even though her designs and her temperament weren’t for everyone. Decades after moving to the UK from Iraq, she would finally find her place in this male-dominated industry, but she wouldn’t have long to enjoy it.

Support the show: https://www.aljazeera.com/podcasts/hindsight/

Up next
Jul 2
Asmahan: The Druze Diva
Asmahan was a rebel in a world of expectations. From a Druze Princess to exalted singer in 1930s and 40s Egypt – she lived in extremes and did exactly what she wanted. Asmahan also moonlighted as a messenger during the Second World War and when she was killed under mysterious cir ... Show More
43m 28s
Jun 18
Faisal I of Iraq: The Making of a King
King Faisal I of Iraq was born in the age of the Ottoman Empire. A key figure in the Arab revolt, his patience, curiosity and diplomacy endeared him to many, including the man who would come to be known as Lawrence of Arabia. But in hindsight, did Faisal drive Arab nationalism or ... Show More
36m 32s
Jun 4
Shajarat al Durr: From Slave to Sultana of Egypt
Shajarat al Durr was born in the golden age of Islam. Despite her beginnings as a child slave, she went on to become the first woman to sit on the throne of Egypt since Cleopatra nearly 13-hundred years before. But in hindsight, Shajarat al Durr’s life is a Cinderella story witho ... Show More
44m 34s
Recommended Episodes
Oct 2018
Zaha Hadid Architects with Tariq Khayyat (09.10.18)
Zaha Hadid was dubbed the "Queen of the Curve", being responsible for some of the most ground-breaking buildings the world has ever seen, including the London Aquatics Centre, the Heydar Aliyev Cultural Center in Baku and Guangzhou Opera House amongst many others. Zaha Hadid also ... Show More
1h 4m
Sep 2019
Ep. 16 | Zaha Hadid
di Michela Murgia | Ci sono donne che non si limitano a cambiare le regole, perché preferiscono ridefinire direttamente i confini, reinventando l’idea dello spazio. Per farlo, se ne fregano dei fallimenti, li considerano un incidente di percorso necessario, mentre cercano di dare ... Show More
49m 49s
Mar 2022
Sarah-Neel Smith, "Metrics of Modernity: Art and Development in Postwar Turkey" (U California Press, 2022)
Metrics of Modernity: Art and Development in Postwar Turkey (University of California Press, 2022) is a vivid portrait of the art world of 1950s Turkey in which Sarah-Neel Smith offers a new framework for analyzing global modernisms of the twentieth century: economic development. ... Show More
51m 49s
Sep 2023
Interview with Rana Salam: the Queen of Arab Pop Culture
Rana Salam's name is synonymous with Arab pop culture, which she has managed to carefully gather and construct turning old objects and posters into 'vintage chic'. She has partnered with glowing collaborators such as Harvey Nichols in London, the Victoria and Alber ... Show More
32 m
Jun 2024
Amrita Sher-Gil | Bride's Toilet
Amrita Sher-Gil, born in 1913 to a Sikh aristocrat and a Hungarian-Jewish opera singer, was a trailblazing artist who blended European and Indian influences. After studying art in Paris and achieving early success at the Grand Salon, she returned to India in 1934. Though initiall ... Show More
10m 38s
Mar 2022
Zaha Hadid's Cincinnati Arts Center
When the Contemporary Arts Center in Cincinnati opened to the public in 2003 it wowed both the public and critics. With its undulating curves and galleries that interlock, it was the first major project that the renowned architect had completed, and also the first American museum ... Show More
11m 10s
Nov 2023
Women Behind the Curtain: Sorghaghtani Beki
Sorghaghtani Beki (c. 1190-1252) was one of the most powerful people in the Mongol Empire. Daughter-in-law to Genghis Khan, she used unique forms of diplomacy to cement her place in Mongol society and create a path forward for all four of her sons to become Khans in their own rig ... Show More
5m 27s
Jun 2010
Harem wall painting fragments
Neil MacGregor's world history as told through objects at the British Museum. This week, he is exploring life and intrigue in the great courts of the world at the same time as the European medieval period. Today he is with the women of Samarra in Iraq. This ancient city, north of ... Show More
14m 8s