Hanif Mohamed Kara is a structural engineer and is design director and co-founder of London-based structural engineering practice
AKT II (previously Adams Kara Taylor). He has taught design internationally, is a member of the board of trustees for the
Architecture Foundation and was a commissioner for CABE from 2008 to 2011 (
Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment
The Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment (CABE) was an executive non-departmental public body of the UK government, established in 1999. It was funded by both the Department for Culture, Media and Sport and the Department for C ...
). He is currently Professor in Practice of Architectural Technology at
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 ...
. He also taught as professor of Architectural Technology at
KTH Royal Institute of Technology
The KTH Royal Institute of Technology ( sv, Kungliga Tekniska högskolan, lit=Royal Institute of Technology), abbreviated KTH, is a public research university in Stockholm, Sweden. KTH conducts research and education in engineering and technolo ...
in Stockholm from 2009 until 2012. He lives in London with his wife and two daughters.
Career
Kara was born in
Bombo, Uganda
Bombo is a town in Luweero District in the Central Region of Uganda.
History
Many officers and soldiers of the Uganda Army (UA) settled in Bombo upon their retirement during the Second Republic of Uganda (1971–79). At the time, many inhabit ...
. Following his graduation in 1982, Kara worked for a structural engineering company Allot and Lomax, where he designed tension structures, roller coasters, offshore platforms and power stations. Kara then joined Anthony Hunt in London from 1994–1996, before launching AKT in 1996 with Albert Williamson-Taylor and Robin Adams.
In 2008, Kara was appointed as a commissioner for British Government watchdog
Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment
The Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment (CABE) was an executive non-departmental public body of the UK government, established in 1999. It was funded by both the Department for Culture, Media and Sport and the Department for C ...
, becoming the first structural engineer to be appointed to this position. At CABE he has chaired the design review panels and has been instrumental in raising the importance of engineering through chairing the Inclusion by Design Group and Energy for Waste Facilities Group.
Kara was also appointed a member of Design for London Advisory Group to the Mayor of London, 2007–2008. In 2010 he was appointed to the board of trustees for the
Architecture Foundation.
Kara was a visiting professor of Architectural Technology at KTH Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm in Sweden from 2007 until 2012 and teaches design and engineering at GSD Harvard as the Professor in Practice of Architectural Technology. He previously contributed to a quarterly column in the RIBA Journal on issues that affect the industry and has written in many technical journals and books relating to Engineering and Design.
Awards and honours
Kara was the first structural engineer to be selected for the Master Jury for the 2004 cycle of the
Aga Khan Award for Architecture
The Aga Khan Award for Architecture (AKAA) is an architectural prize established by Aga Khan IV in 1977. It aims to identify and reward architectural concepts that successfully address the needs and aspirations of Muslim societies in the fields ...
.
He is a fellow member
of the
Royal Institute of British Architects
The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) is a professional body for architects primarily in the United Kingdom, but also internationally, founded for the advancement of architecture under its royal charter granted in 1837, three suppl ...
, the
Institution of Civil Engineers
The Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE) is an independent professional association for civil engineers and a charitable body in the United Kingdom. Based in London, ICE has over 92,000 members, of whom three-quarters are located in the UK, whi ...
, the
Institution of Structural Engineers
The Institution of Structural Engineers is a professional body for structural engineering based in the United Kingdom.
The Institution has over 30,000 members operating in over 100 countries. The Institution provides professional accreditation ...
and the
Royal Society of Arts
The Royal Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce (RSA), also known as the Royal Society of Arts, is a London-based organisation committed to finding practical solutions to social challenges. The RSA acronym is used m ...
. Kara was made an Honorary Fellow of the Royal Institute of British Architects in 2004. In 2009 he was curator for the first-ever solo exhibition of the work of AKT at the
Architectural Association
The Architectural Association School of Architecture in London, commonly referred to as the AA, is the oldest independent school of architecture in the UK and one of the most prestigious and competitive in the world. Its wide-ranging programme ...
in London.
In May 2011 the
Association of Consulting Engineers awarded him the Engineering Ambassador award for his contribution to design consultancy and engineering. In 2014, Kara was made a fellow of the
Royal Academy of Engineering
The Royal Academy of Engineering (RAEng) is the United Kingdom's national academy of engineering.
The Academy was founded in June 1976 as the Fellowship of Engineering with support from Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, who became the first senior ...
Kara was appointed
Officer of the Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations,
and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...
(OBE) in the
2022 New Year Honours for services to architecture, engineering and education.
AKT II (Adams Kara Taylor)
AKT II is a structural engineering company based in central London. The company was founded in 1996 by Hanif Kara, Albert Williamson-Taylor and Robin Adams. AKT II is famous for its combination of engineering and design processes.
Selected projects
* (TBC)
Zayed National Museum, Abu Dhabi, UAE. Architect: Foster + Partners
* 2013
Heydar Aliyev Center
The Heydar Aliyev Center is a building complex in Baku, Azerbaijan designed by Iraqi-British architect Zaha Hadid and noted for its distinctive architecture and flowing, curved style that eschews sharp angles. The center is named after Heydar Ali ...
, Baku, Azerbaijan. Architect: Zaha Hadid Architects
* 2012
Eli and Edythe Broad Art Museum
The Eli and Edythe Broad Art Museum (colloquially MSU Broad), is a contemporary art museum at Michigan State University in East Lansing, Michigan. It opened on November 10, 2012.
History
On June 1, 2007, Michigan State received a $28 millio ...
, East Lansing, MI, US. Architect: Zaha Hadid Architects
* 2011
Sainsbury Laboratory Cambridge University
The Sainsbury Laboratory Cambridge University (or SLCU) is located in Cambridge University Botanic Garden. Its aim is to elucidate the regulatory systems underlying plant growth and plant development.
Senior research staff
As of 2022 Senior res ...
, Cambridge, UK. Architect: Stanton Williams
* 2010
UK pavilion at Expo 2010
The UK pavilion at Expo 2010, colloquially known as the Seed Cathedral, was a sculpture structure built by a nine-member conglomeration of British business and government resources directed by designer Thomas Heatherwick. It referenced the race ...
, Shanghai, China. Architect: Thomas Heatherwick
* 2010
Masdar Institute of Science and Technology
The Masdar Institute of Science and Technology was a graduate level, research-oriented university focused on alternative energies, sustainability, and environmental research. In 2017, it merged with two other institutions in Abu Dhabi, Petroleum ...
, Abu Dhabi, UAE. Architect: Foster + Partners
* 2010
Ravensbourne College, Greenwich, UK. Architect: Foreign Office Architects
* 2009
Hunsett Mill
Hunsett Mill is located on the east bank of the River Ant one mile north of Barton Broad in the English county of Norfolk. The Windmill is 1.2 miles south west of the town of Stalham. The mill structure is a grade II listed building.
Descriptio ...
, Norfolk, UK. Architect: ACME
* 2008
Highcross Quarter
Highcross Leicester is a shopping centre in Leicester, England. It was opened as The Shires in 1991 to supplement the Haymarket Shopping Centre, also since re-developed. It was built on a central location within the city centre on Eastgates and ...
, Leicester, UK. Architect: Foreign Office Architects
* 2007
East Beach Café
East Beach Café is a seafront cafe in Littlehampton, West Sussex, United Kingdom. It is owned by Jane Wood and Sophie Murray, who commissioned designer Thomas Heatherwick to create an iconic building for the seaside town of Littlehampton.
Arc ...
, Littlehampton, UK. Architect: Heatherwick Studio
* 2005
Phaeno Science Centre
The Phæno Science Center is an interactive science center in Wolfsburg, Germany, completed in 2005.
The Phæno Science Center
Phæno arose from urban planning by the City of Wolfsburg. In 1998 City officials were developing a plot of vacant, ...
, Wolfsburg, Germany. Architect: Zaha Hadid Architects
* 2005
Blizard Building
The Blizard Building is a building in Whitechapel in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It houses the Blizard Institute, formerly known as the Blizard Institute of Cell and Molecular Science, part of Barts and The London School of Medicine and ...
, London, UK. Architect: Alsop Architects
* 2004
Cadogan Hall
Cadogan Hall is a 950-seat capacity concert hall in Sloane Terrace in Chelsea in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, London, England.
The resident music ensemble at Cadogan Hall is the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra (RPO), the first ...
, London, UK. Architect: Paul Davis & Partners
* 1999
Peckham Library
Peckham Library is a library and community building situated in Peckham in south-east London. It was designed by Alsop and Störmer, , London, UK. Architect: Alsop & Störmer
References
External links
AKT IIHarvard GSD*
ttp://www.building.co.uk/tv/building-tv/make-that-christmas-single-out-now/5010665.article Hanif Kara's Christmas Charity Single“Red Eye Rewards” Hanif Kara, London 2009. Published in: RIBA Journal, June 2009“Credit packs a punch” Hanif Kara, London 2010, Published in RIBA Journal, December 2010“Expand your Mind” Hanif Kara, London 2009. Published in: RIBA Journal, October 2009
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kara, Hanif
Living people
Expo 2010
1958 births
British structural engineers
Harvard Graduate School of Design faculty
Officers of the Order of the British Empire
Ugandan emigrants to the United Kingdom