Refugee housing design wins interior architecture award

A student from Victoria University of Wellington has won an Artichoke Magazine Prize for Design Communication for her housing design focused on helping Syrian refugees adapt to New Zealand life.

Sumaiya Abdul Rahman’s living space design, featuring mashrabiya (lattice-like screens to enhance privacy).
Sumaiya Abdul Rahman’s living space design, featuring mashrabiya (lattice-like screens to enhance privacy).

Master of Interior Architecture student Sumaiya Abdul Rahman is one of 12 recipients of the award in 2017, which recognises excellence in the visual and written presentation of an interior design proposition.

Sumaiya’s design proposes a refugee resettlement centre in Wellington with 100 homes and aims to create connections between refugees and the local community.

The design encourages comfortable integration with communal facilities—a community hall, education rooms, childcare centre, prayer rooms and a market place, where locals and refugees can buy and sell goods.

Sumaiya researched Syrian culture, refugee psychology and assimilation and found a key part of assimilation is making people feel comfortable.

“By creating a familiar, welcoming space, the design improves a refugee’s chance of a successful transition to life in New Zealand. Although not all Syrians are Islamic, they are familiar with Islamic design, so my designs include elements of that style,” she says.

“Key features are privacy and use of space. I incorporated Islamic mashrabiya, which are lattice-like screens, to enhance privacy. I also created two living areas, one for visitors and one for family, which is typical of most Syrian homes, and placed bedrooms at the back of the house or upstairs, away from public view and visitors.

“Currently refugees go into council housing. These are generally designed for Western families of two parents and two or three children and are not necessarily suitable for larger or extended refugee families.”

Sumaiya’s supervisor, Victoria School of Architecture lecturer Daniele Abreu e Lima, says: “This research shows how interior architecture can facilitate the inclusion of Syrian refugees. With the increased quota of refugees from 2018, this will become an increasingly important issue for New Zealand.”

Artichoke is one of Australia’s leading interior design magazines. The Artichoke Magazine Prize for Design Communication is an annual award promoted by IDEA (Interior Design/Architecture Educators Association), Australasia.