Ahmed and Rashid bin Shabib (AE)

Building an Arab Pigeon Tower II

September 1st – September 7th 2024

Ahmed and Rashid bin Shabib United Arab Emirates

Based in Dubai, Ahmed and Rashid bin Shabib are urbanists and researchers of cities across the Middle East and North Africa. They are the founders of Brownbook, a magazine that focuses on cities across the region. They have also curated several exhibitions and collaborations including the AA (2018), Vitra Design Museum (2017), Serpentine Gallery (2016), UAE Pavilion Milan Expo (2015), Lars Müller Publishing (2019). They both hold degrees in sustainable Urbanism from the University of Oxford, and have been nominated for the Aga Khan Award for Architecture in 2010 and 2019.

www.binshabib.com

Building an Arab Pigeon Tower II

September 1st – September 7th

Workshop Categories

The Workshop

Pigeon houses are perhaps one of the most understudied forms of architecture. Even more unknown is the knowledge and science surrounding their intention. One of the oldest known structures, pigeon houses across the Middle East and North Africa have contributed significantly to their architecture heritage. First and foremost, these were communication towers, where magneto-recepting pigeons exchanged messages between cities, countries and continents. These towers act as a device for agriculture, food, security, and fertilization. The vernacular character of pigeon houses across the region is consistent, and has few iterations. Those ones who continue its craft and tacit knowledge are local craftsmen.

In this workshop, we shall attempt to construct a Pigeon tower following examples from Siwa, a salt Lake District on the western part of Egypt bordering Libya. We are going to work with clay, bricks, wooden beams, and the knowhow of Siwani Craftsmen who across generations continue this tradition of non pedigreed architecture.

BOOK WORKSHOP
Student: €1090 TTC

BOOK WORKSHOP
Normal: €1496 TTC

Housing

  • Accommodation & food are included

  • We can accommodate for special catering

  • All participants sleep in dormitories

  • To book a private room or bring additional guests, get in touch: workshops@boisbuchet.org

Education

  • Our staff are available to help you conceptualize & produce your designs

  • Tools & materials are provided by Boisbuchet

  • All workshops are taught in English

  • The number of participants is limited to 22

Activities