Contemporary applications of “Mashrabiya” as a cultural heritage

Abstract

Contemporary buildings in Arab cities tend to excessive use of new building systems and materials, like; glass, concrete, and a heavy reliance on eclectic air conditioning systems. This usage of unsustainable materials and systems is due to - what we can call - cultural occupation. We should reconsider the imported ideas and theories before they are applied, especially if they are related to specific social, cultural and climatic considerations as in the case of architecture design concept. Sustainable building design is the biggest challenge facing designers and architects at the present time. In Islamic architecture the Aesthetic concepts always were compatible with Islamic traditions and religious ideas, They have adopted to achieve the perfect balance between the physical aspects with the functional and feelings of spirituality through a set of rules and foundations and structures reached by all of the designers, architects and artists. Therefor we chose the “Mashrabiya” as a good architectural Islamic unit to analysis, because of its deep Islamic philosophy, high aesthetic and functional values. The paper analyses some of the contemporary buildings, which used the Mashrabiya as an Islamic architecture philosophy, and combined it with the new contemporary technology, and with the new architectural trends like sustainable design