Mangera Yvars Architects (MYAA)
- Published: 22 October 2007 10:19
- Last Updated: 22 October 2007 10:19
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London and Barcelona-based practice Mangera Yvars Architects (MYAA) was established by Ali Mangera and Ada Yvars Bravo in 2001. Mangera studied structural and environmental engineering at the University of Leeds and the University of Pennsylvania State in the US, before studying architecture at the Architectural Association and the University of North London. He has worked at SOM in Chicago and spent several years at Zaha Hadid Architects, where he was principal architect for the Centre for Contemporary Arts in Rome.
Bravo studied architecture at ETSAB in Barcelona and has worked at Carlos Ferrater and José Luis Mateo in Barcelona and for Florian Beigel’s Architecture Research Unit, Pierre D’Avoine and David Chipperfield Architects in London. She was project architect for Chipperfield’s Macla office building in Barcelona.
MYAA’s workload includes a mosque and Islamic centre in London’s West Ham, an eco-scheme in Bow and various housing schemes in Barcelona and London.
Mosque and Islamic Centre, West Ham
Mangera Yvars Architects’ design for a mosque and Islamic centre in London’s West Ham eschews traditional Islamic building forms in favour of biomorphic shapes. The complex can incorporate temporary inflatable structures, which refer to the tented structures used by Islamic nomads and will be used for peak festival periods. The structure is formed by overlapping ribs in an arrangement based on traditional Islamic geometric patterns. The project will incorporate photovoltaics, wind-turbine minarets and tidal power.
