Marina Tabassum founded Dhaka-based Marina Tabassum Architects (MTA) in 2005. Aiming to establish a contemporary architectural language without losing its roots to place, MTA carefully selects its projects and prioritizes local materials, climate, culture, and history.

For her Current Work lecture, Tabassum will discuss several projects, including:

• Bait ur Rouf Mosque, a place of worship that can also function as school, meeting room, or playground for an underserved neighborhood on Dhaka’s periphery.
• Wisdom of the Land, an installation for the 2018 Venice Architecture Biennale based on the vernacular architecture of Bengali courtyards and their ability to create a sense of community.
• Panigram Resort, a socially and environmentally responsible project in the Ganges Delta.
• Bishal er Bari, an ongoing project for a 10-story residential building in Dhaka.

Tabassum graduated from Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology in 1995. That year, she founded URBANA, where she was a partner for ten years. Tabassum is currently the academic director of the Bengal Institute for Architecture, Landscapes and Settlements in Dhaka. Her design for the Bait ur Rouf Mosque received the Aga Khan Award for Architecture in 2016 and the Jameel Prize 5 in 2018.

The lecture will be followed by a conversation with architect Billie Tsien.

This program is supported, in part, by public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council and the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of Governor Andrew Cuomo and the New York State Legislature.

The event is co-sponsored by The Irwin S. Chanin School of Architecture of The Cooper Union.