<p>Royal Gold Medal 2016 was awarded to Zaha Hadid</p>

Photo: © Mary McCartney

Yesterday, news spread around the world that the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) awarded its Gold Medal for 2016 to the world-renowned architect of Iraqi descent. Zaha Hadid, a student of Rem Koolhaas and until recently also a professor at the Vienna University of Applied Arts, achieved in her profession what few men have. Although she began to realize her visions only after the age of forty, she eventually succeeded in establishing at least one building in every major metropolis, where her realizations, thanks to her unmistakable handwriting, immediately became the center of attention, admiration, tourist expeditions, and intense criticism.
Zaha Hadid was the first woman to receive the Pritzker Prize (2004). She became the second female architect in history to receive the highest Japanese artistic recognition, the Praemium Imperiale (2009). Her buildings have twice earned the Stirling Prize (2010, 2011). Now her collection has been joined by the Gold Medal awarded by the Royal Institute of British Architects since 1848. Zaha Hadid is also the first woman to receive the award on her own, as Ray Eames (1979), Petty Hopkins (1994), and Sheila O'Donell (2015) shared the prize with their partners.
In the heated discussions surrounding the Olympic Stadium in Tokyo (2020), one should not forget the notable works of Zaha Hadid, among which the swimming center for the London Olympics (2012) ranks at the highest level.

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