Milan has paid a lasting tribute to one of the most influential architects of the modern era by naming a pedestrian street in her honour. The street, officially named Via Zaha Hadid, has been reportedly dedicated to the late Iraqi-British architect Zaha Hadid, marking a decade since her untimely passing. The naming forms part of a series of commemorations marking the tenth anniversary of her death and is set within the CityLife development, which is one of Milan’s most significant contemporary urban regeneration projects. The newly named street runs in close proximity to the Generali Tower, the striking 44 storey skyscraper that Hadid herself designed and which remains one of her most celebrated built works in Europe. Know more about it on SURFACES REPORTER (SR).
The unveiling of the street sign was reportedly attended by city officials, collaborators and representatives of Hadid’s family, and was marked by a formal ceremony that reflected both the personal and professional significance of her connection to Milan. Among those present were Aric Chen, the director of the Zaha Hadid Foundation, structural engineer Hanif Kara and Davide Giordano, a long-standing collaborator who worked alongside Hadid for many years.
Zaha Hadid was widely regarded as one of the most pioneering and recognisable architects of her generation. She remains, to this day, the only woman to have won the Pritzker Architecture Prize as a sole recipient, which truly is a distinction that underscores both the rarity and the magnitude of her achievement in a profession historically dominated by men. Her sudden death from a heart attack on March 31, 2016, cut short a career that had been continuously evolving and pushing the boundaries of architectural possibility.
Image credit: Aric Chen