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The Cultural Window

Part 2 Project 2020
Elhadidi Elhadidi
University of the West of England | UK
The dwellers of Marrakech street souks often rely on a system of signs and flyers pinned on buildings facades to navigate its maze-like streets. However, when it comes to religious buildings the friendly welcoming language of this sign system starts shifting towards a more excluding tone shrouding mosques in an aura of mystery. Moreover, Al Koutoubia mosque and most of the surrounding mosques in Al Medina are not oriented correctly towards Makkah. This drove the architectural idea of two entangled programmes.

A new correctly oriented underground mosque and a visitors’ education centre. The two architectural programs are linked with the linkage carefully designed to provide accessibility to tourists into the religion while maintaining the worshipper’s privacy. This accessibility is achieved through a series of intersections between the two programmes. The intersections take place at key moments providing a window for tourists into the practice of Islam. The existing mosque minaret will be used to help raise awareness about the widespread problem of incorrectly oriented mosques in Marrakesh.

Elhadidi Elhadidi

Tutor(s)

2020
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