The UIA chosen the theme “Architecture… housing for all”. It will focus on how architects can contribute to the realisation of affordable housing for all; the implementation of the New Urban Agenda; and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), specifically Goal 11, “to make cities and human settlements safe, inclusive, resilient, and sustainable”.
In response to the 2019 theme, “Architecture...housing for all”, the international jury for the competition, consisting of Sonya Dyakova (Russia/UK), Dana Whabira (Zimbabwe) and Chris Ware (USA), selected Ms Gharandouqa’s design from over 100 submissions from around the globe, for its “striking design” and “flowing moiré” imagery that “grabs one's attention from afar.”
Gharandouqa's black and white design depicts an apartment building with human figures silhouetted against its windows. The modular shapes “convey urban life and ‘a sense of community,’ the UIA describes.
Graduating with an Architectural Design degree from The Hashemite University, Gharandouqa works at the Jordan Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities. She tells the UIA that “the simplest forms create the biggest changes” and “given the dire conditions the world is facing, basic shapes and resilient patterns should become the basis for today's architecture and urban development.’’