Foad Rafii ( fa, فؤاد رفیعی) M.Arch. Architect AAA, AIBC. FRAIC (born March 8, 1947) is a

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

architect An architect is a person who plans, designs and oversees the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to provide services in connection with the design of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the buildings that h ...

. In 2001, ''

The Vancouver Sun The ''Vancouver Sun'', also known as the ''Sun'', is a daily broadsheet newspaper based in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. The newspaper is currently published by the Pacific Newspaper Group, a division of Postmedia Network. Published si ...

'' in a headline article, named Foad Rafii as one of the 10 architects who shaped the

Vancouver Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...

of today. In early 2014 Foad Rafii was elected to Fellowship in the College of Fellows of the Royal Architectural Institute of Canada.

Education

Foad is a graduate of

Alborz High School Mandegar Alborz High School ( fa, دبیرستان ماندگار البرز) is a college-preparatory high school located in the heart of Tehran, Iran. It is one of the first modern high schools in Asia and the Middle East, named after the Alborz ...

(Old American College) in

Tehran Tehran (; fa, تهران ) is the largest city in Tehran Province and the capital of Iran. With a population of around 9 million in the city and around 16 million in the larger metropolitan area of Greater Tehran, Tehran is the most popul ...

, who received his master's degree in

architecture Architecture is the art and technique of designing and building, as distinguished from the skills associated with construction. It is both the process and the product of sketching, conceiving, planning, designing, and constructing building ...

with Distinction from the

University of Tehran The University of Tehran (Tehran University or UT, fa, دانشگاه تهران) is the most prominent university located in Tehran, Iran. Based on its historical, socio-cultural, and political pedigree, as well as its research and teaching pro ...

, School of Architecture in 1972. In 1976, he attended the

University of Oslo The University of Oslo ( no, Universitetet i Oslo; la, Universitas Osloensis) is a public research university located in Oslo, Norway. It is the highest ranked and oldest university in Norway. It is consistently ranked among the top universit ...

, and completed a course in "Urban and Regional Planning and Environment Protection". In 1987, he completed work on "Urban Waterfront Development" at the

Harvard Graduate School of Design The Harvard Graduate School of Design (GSD) is the graduate school of design at Harvard University, a private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. It offers master's and doctoral programs in architecture, landscape architecture, urban ...

Career

In 1973 together with some colleague friends he started the consulting firm ORBIS Institute for Environmental Design, Foad being the Managing Director. While practicing in

, in addition to multiple residential projects, he worked on two major department stores and a few hospitals. Foad moved to

in 1979, and after working for an architectural firm for a couple of years, established his practice in 1983. The name of the practice was changed to Rafii Architects in 1985. In more than a quarter century, Rafii Architects has designed numerous major projects in Vancouver, the rest of

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...

Alberta Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Ter ...

, and some projects abroad. "The Greater Vancouver Book", an urban encyclopedia- The year 1997- notes: Iranian Architects like Foad Rafii, who designed the first buildings constructed on the North shore of False Creek after Expo 86 and the new mixed use Woodward's building Downtown, have made and are continuing to make a significant impact on the changing face of Vancouver. The Woodward's Building project was abandoned later, as a result of the sale of the property from the province of British Columbia to the City of Vancouver. In fall 2009 an article published in ''Canadian Builders Quarterly'', focused on "Vancouverism" quotes Foad Rafii as an Architect who shares a significant role in this movement. File:Spring Project-Austin-Texas-2010-Rafii.JPG, Spring Tower,

Austin Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of Texas, as well as the seat and largest city of Travis County, with portions extending into Hays and Williamson counties. Incorporated on December 27, 1839, it is the 11th-most-populous city ...

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

, United States. File:Altamonte-Coquitlam-BC-2008-Rafii.JPG, Altamonte Tower, Coquitlam,

, Canada File:Domus-Vancouver-BC-2005-Rafii.jpg, Entrance to Domus Tower,

, Canada

Award winning projects

* Texo, Distinguished Building Award - Spring (building) Condominiums - Austin - Texas - 2010 * Georgie Award - Gold - For Best Multifamily High Rise – Donovan Residential Tower - Vancouver - 2009 * UDI Award - For Best Residential High Rise – Pomaria Tower - Vancouver - 2007 * CARE Gold Project of the Year Award - Coniston + Stonecroft Low Rise Residentials - Nanaimo – 2001 * Georgie Award - Gold - Best Multifamily Low Rise – 18 trees - Burnaby - 2000 * British Columbia Heritage Award – Camelia Residential Tower - North Vancouver - 1993

References

External links

Rafii Architects Inc
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rafii, Foad Living people 1947 births Canadian architects Academic staff of the University of Tehran University of Tehran alumni Canadian people of Iranian descent Alborz High School alumni People from Vancouver

Education

Career

Award winning projects

See also

References

External links