Google doodle celebrates London Aquatics Centre designer, Zaha Hadid

It’a been a year since the Iraqi born British architect Zaha Hadid died aged just 65 and today Google pays tribute to her in its daily ‘Google Doodle’

Known as the “queen of the curve,” Hadid’s major works include the Aquatics Centre for the London 2012 Olympics, Michigan State University’s Broad Art Museum and the Guangzhou Opera House in China.

Hadid transformed her own abstract paintings into dramatic designs for imaginative structures and once famously told  The Guardian, “There are 360 degrees, so why stick to one?”

To celebrate Hadid’s contributions to the world of architecture, Google has published a doodle that spotlights one of her more impressive works: the eight-story Heydar Aliyev Center in Baku, Azerbaijan – which looks similar to the London Aquatics Centre.

It’s a gigantic cultural and conference centre containing three auditoriums, a library and museum, but not a single straight line.

Thirteen years ago Wednesday, Hadid shattered a metaphorical glass ceiling when she became the first woman to be awarded the Pritzker Architecture Prize, the most prestigious award in architecture.

Hadid was also the first woman awarded the Royal Gold Medal by the Royal Institute of British Architects.

Via Goggleblog

Chris Price