Hossein Amanat

Hossein Amanat
حسین امانت
Amanat in front of the Azadi Tower
Born (1942-03-17) 17 March 1942
Tehran, Imperial State of Iran
Alma materUniversity of Tehran
OccupationArchitect
PracticeAmanat Architect / Arc Design International Corp.

Hossein Amanat (Persian: حسین امانت, born 1942)[1] is an Iranian-Canadian architect. He is best known as the architect of the Shahyad Tower (renamed as Azadi Tower after the 1979 revolution) in Tehran, Iran, the Baháʼí Arc buildings in Haifa, Israel and the House of Worship in Samoa. He has also been designated as the architect of the Shrine of ʻAbdu'l-Bahá currently under construction near Acre, Israel.[2]

Life and practice

As a young graduate from the University of Tehran.[1] He is one of the students of Hooshang Seyhoun. He won a nationwide competition in 1966 to design the Shahyad Tower, renamed the Azadi Tower in 1979.[3][4] This first architectural project led to the opportunity to create some of Iran's most distinctive projects with reference to traditional Persian architecture. Amongst them are the initial buildings of the Sharif University of Technology in Tehran, Iran,[5] the Persian Heritage Center, the Faculty for Business Management of the Tehran University and the Embassy of Iran in Beijing, China.

As a member of the persecuted Baháʼí Faith, Amanat fled the country during the 1979 Iranian Revolution.[6][7] He is the brother of Abbas Amanat, a professor of history and international studies at Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut.

Since moving to Canada in 1980, Hossein Amanat designed the three administrative buildings on the Baháʼí Arc in Haifa, Israel, the Baháʼí House of Worship in Samoa,[1][8][9][10] the Jiang'an Library for the Sichuan University, the media library for the Beijing Broadcasting Institute. He designed religious and cultural centers for the Baháʼí Faith near Dallas, Seattle and Washington, D.C., several multifamily condominiums in Santa Monica, and mixed-use high-rise buildings in San Diego and Burnaby.

On 7 May 2019, the Universal House of Justice announced Amanat as the architect of the future Shrine of ʻAbdu'l-Bahá near Acre, Israel.[2]

List of projects

  • Azadi Tower (1971, formerly Shahyad Tower), Tehran, Iran[4][11]
  • Pasargad Archeological Museum (1973)
  • Sharif University of Technology (1975, formerly Aryamehr University), Tehran, Iran
  • Faculty of Business Management University (1980)
  • Iranian embassy in Beijing, China (1983), Beijing, China
  • Seat of the Universal House of Justice (1983), Israel
  • Bahá'í House of Worship Samoa (1984), Apia, Samoa[12]
  • Center for the Study of the Texts (2001), Israel
  • International Teaching Centre (2001), Haifa, Israel
  • International Archives extension (2001)
  • Bahá'í Faith world administrative center 2001
  • Horizons tower 2001
  • Plano Bahá'í community center 2004
  • Sichuan university center library 2005
  • Bellevue Bahá'í community center (2006)
  • Baha`i community center (2007), Loudoun County, Virginia
  • Legacy (2008)
  • Bayside (2009)
  • Amanat office (2009)
  • Beijing broadcasting institute library (2011)
  • zonda (2016)
  • Arris (2017)
  • Savina (2017)
  • One 88 (2018)
  • 777 front (2019)

Awards

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c Baháʼí community of Canada. "Hossein Amanat". Archived from the original on 27 October 2004. Retrieved 29 April 2007.
  2. ^ a b "7 May 2019 – To all National Spiritual Assemblies | Baháʼí Reference Library". www.bahai.org. Retrieved 7 May 2019.
  3. ^ Hossein Amanat's official website. "Shahyad Monument". Archived from the original on 14 September 2008. Retrieved 29 April 2007.
  4. ^ a b "The Man Behind Tehran's Freedom Monument". BBC World Service UK. 8 July 2009.
  5. ^ Hossein Amanat's official website. "Aryamehr University". Archived from the original on 19 November 2008. Retrieved 29 April 2007.
  6. ^ "Tehran's Azadi Tower, witness to history, victim of neglect". Reuters. 20 February 2013.
  7. ^ Dehghan, Saeed Kamali (15 August 2017). "After Azadi: man behind Iran's freedom tower on how his life unravelled". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 21 February 2026.
  8. ^ "Royal welcome at jubilee gathering in Samoa". Baháʼí World News Service. 30 November 2004. Retrieved 5 January 2008.
  9. ^ Todd, Douglas (21 May 2001). "2 B.C. architects designed new world centre for Baha'i faith". Vancouver Sun. Archived from the original on 20 October 2007. Retrieved 6 January 2008.
  10. ^ "Northern Virginia Baháʼí Center Opens Its Door". 23 August 2007. Retrieved 6 January 2008.
  11. ^ Chapple, Amos (19 February 2026). "Azadi Tower: Architect Watches From Exile As Beloved Iranian Landmark Coopted By Regime". Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty (RFERL). Retrieved 21 February 2026.
  12. ^ Gartley, Elizabeth (30 January 2019). "Baha'i House of Worship of Samoa in Apia". Atlas Obscura. Retrieved 21 February 2026.
  13. ^ "15th Bita Prize for Persian Arts: Hossein Amanat". Hamid and Christina Moghadam Program in Iranian Studies. Stanford University.
  14. ^ "UBC announces 2024 honorary degree recipients". UBC News. 2 April 2024. Retrieved 29 November 2024.
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