Yasmin Lari – A prodigy in herself. The first female architect established her name by designing landmarks that stood out of the norm because of their architectural elegance. Our country has produced many highly talented architects who have number of award winning buildings under their names but lari stood out among them with her designs being sleek and above excellence.
Early life
Yasmin Lari was born in Dera Ghazi Khan in 1941. She spent most of her childhood shuffling between her hometown and Lahore before moving to London at the age of 15 years. Her father Zafarul Ahsan was an ICS officer and used towork on major development projects in Lahore and other cities. This was Lari’s first exposure to architecture.
She realized this is the career she wants for herself and pursued it further in England. She graduated from Oxford School of Architecture in 1964. She returned to her native country at the age of 23 with her husband Suhail Zaheer Lari and opened combine practice with him, namely Lari Associates,in Karachi. She faced lot of difficulty in her chosen field. The gender discrimination and the inequality of authority were her main hurdles. But she overcame all of them and became the first female architect in Pakistan.
Career
Once she started Lari Associates, there was no looking back. The first house she designed was her brother’s in Karachi. In 1969, Lari became an elected member of the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA).Throughout the 70s and 80s she worked on many commercial buildings and state owned projects as well. She made her name with a number of prestigious state of commissions in the later years of the 70s and 80s including the AngooriBagh Housing (1978) in Lahore, Karachi’s Finance and Trade Centre (1989), the Taj Mahal Hotel (1981) and the Pakistan State Oil House (PSO Company headquarters) in Karachi 1991.
Taj Mahal hotel:
Karachi’s Finance and Trade Centre:
She took retirement in 2000. But little did she know this won’t last forever and she will be back for a second innings in the field of architecture but this time entirely different than what she did previously. Even after retirement she remained active with historic preservations by being an advisor to the UNESCO projects. She served as the executive director of heritage foundation Pakistan and also as the chairperson of the Karavan initiatives.
After her retirement she took on many humanitarian relief works and historical conservation projects in far fledged rural areas across Pakistan. She is known for her social justice and advocacy for the poor. She authorizes her involvement in the intersection of architecture and social justice.
Humanitarian and conservation projects
In 2005, an earthquake of 7.6 magnitude hit northern areas Pakistan killing almost 80,000 people and leaving more than 400,000 families displaced. This was the time when she felt an urge to go out and help. She never had done disaster management work before but she stepped right into it. According to her, she just came out of her comfort zone and went ahead to help the poor people of her country.
She teamed up with international aid agencies to build houses of concrete and galvanized iron sheets. She built homes for the displaced families out of mud and the debris left from the earthquake.
Since, 2005’s earthquake; Lari has been on her toes in with her team at the heritage foundation n aiding the displaced families from earthquakes and floods across Pakistan. Developing houses from mud and lime, bamboos and initiating the principles of zero carbon, low cost and zero waste to make sustainable houses for the poor.
Lari and her team at heritage foundation have become the pioneer in reconstructing the houses after natural disaster occurs anywhere in Pakistan. Lari has constructed over 36000 houses in areas affected by natural calamities.
Architectural work
Yasmin Lari’s notable projects are:
- Angoori Bagh housing
- Taj Mahal hotel
- Pakistan State Oil house
- Finance Trade Center
- Naval officers housing
Pakistan State Oil House:
This is a mirror glass tower perched on a corner in center of Karachi. It is flanked with polished granite towers. Golden bubbleelevators to compliment the tinted windows. A power-dressed building which serves the officers who deal with petroleum. A benchmark project of Lari that made her famous all around the globe.
Awards and Accolades
Yasmin Lari has been awarded with numerous accolades throughout her prestigious career. She has been recognized by the UN as wellas the Pakistan government for her par excellence services in the field of architecture.
- N. recognition award in 2002
- Sitara-e-Imtiaz by government of Pakistan in 2006.
- 1st wonder women of the year award.
- Fukuoka prize for arts and culture in 2016.
- Jane Drew prize for raising the profile of women in architecture and design in 2020.
Lari is the first Pakistani to receive the prestigious Jane Drew prize.The awardwas given to the architectural designer for her work and commitment to design excellence and has raised the profile of women in architecture.
Yasmin Lari continues to work on her motto which is to provide dignity to the marginalized and preventing damage to the planet through her humanitarian and social services and further inspire many new comers with her exceptional work of art and architecture.
Also Read: Nayyar Ali Dada – The Legendary Architect of Pakistan
