Basil Al Bayati

In 2008, he moved to Málaga in Spain. There he acquired a five storey listed building at Calle Marques de Guadiaro 3, designed by Jerónimo Cuervo, the Spanish architect responsible for a number of Málaga's most iconic buildings. Shortly afterwards, work began on the full renovation of the building into an architectural centre, as well as the centre for his on-going architectural practice.

In 2003, he relocated his offices to what was already his private studio at St. Paul’s Studios, 141 Talgarth Road – in one of the famous artist studios designed by Frederick Wheeler in 1890.

In 2000 Al Bayati opened ‘Basil Leaf’, the first of a series of organic food shops in London in which all of the specialty gourmet food furniture and displays had been designed by him. The design of these pieces was extravagant and theatrical, using Sumerian mythological figures, chariots, temples, elephants and even Saint Basil's Cathedral as sources of inspiration. At the same time, the pieces were practical, functional creations – cake display cabinets, coffee grinders, fruit cabinets and so on. A number of these pieces can be seen at his centre in Málaga. In 2013, he was introduced by a mutual friend to Sidqa Usta, an expert craftsman from Istanbul. Together they began working on a new line of new furniture that was to include tables, display cabinets and wall units, in a uniquely Arabesque style utilising wood, marble and bronze as the principal materials. A number of these can now be seen in the centre in Málaga.

The interior calligraphy above the doors and in the mihrab was done by Ghani Alani, the last of the Baghdad School of Calligraphy. He was a student of Hashem al-Khattat. Ghani Alani taught Dr. Bayati whilst at the College of Engineering in Baghdad. The building was also nominated for the 1992 Aga Khan Award for Architecture.

In 1990, he designed a collection of cutlery and tableware, called the Palm Banqueting Suite, based upon the motif of the palm tree. It was a one-off commission for one of his buildings for a client in Kuwait and was made by a local Italian artisan. A reproduction of this set, made in Morocco, is on display at the centre in Málaga.

In 1988, Church Island House was exhibited at the German Architecture Museum in Frankfurt in an exhibition titled The Architecture of Pluralism that included work by James Gowan, Terry Farrell, Charles Jencks and some twenty other internationally recognised architects.

This design was awarded the runner-up position and an honourable mention in the 1988, Las Terrenas Competition for Architecture.

In 1986, he was awarded the title of Doctor of Philosophy from University of London, School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) for his studies into Islamic architecture.

In 1983, he moved his offices to an old mill that he had restored and renovated on Miller’s Way in Shepherd’s Bush. This became for him the busiest time in his career so far and was a highly creative period for him, designing and renovating buildings in both London as well as throughout the Middle East. Much of his work at this time was also published in several books, the most notable being 'Basil Al Bayati: Architect' and 'Basil Al Bayati: Recent Works', the results of a fruitful relationship with Andreas Papadakis, of Academy Editions.

In 1982, Al Bayati won the 1st prize in the King Saud Competition to build the main mosque for the university. His design incorporated extensively the motif of the palm trunk, as used in the very first Mosque of the Prophet in Medina. It was highly praised and was even claimed to "mark the beginning of a new era, a new revival in Islamic architecture."

In 1980 he designed a glass fountain for one of the Saudi royal family. The piece was so particular in its design that it took an expert glass-blower seven attempts before being successfully executed.

In 1970 he moved to London to continue his studies and once there, was granted a British Council Scholarship to attend University College London, School of Environmental Studies, Development Planning Unit, studying under Professor Patrick Wakely before attending the Architectural Association School of Architecture, where he worked with Paul Oliver, Geoffrey Broadbent and John Chris Jones. At the A.A he received a diploma in the post-graduate course of ‘Design Method and Creative Process’. From here he continued his research into the psychology of creativity with Andrew Szmidla and spent a year researching structural engineering with Paul Regan before acquiring a BSc (Bachelor of Science) in Professional Practice from the Polytechnic of Central London in 1978. Later that same year he was registered with the Architects Registration Board (ARB) and in 1980 he was elected into corporate membership of the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA). In 1981 he became a Fellow (F.F.B) of the Faculty of Building (now known as the Forum for the Built Environment), in 1982 was elected member of the Incorporated Association of Architects and Surveyors, IAAS (now known as the Chartered Association of Building Engineers) as well as the British Institute of Interior Design (BIID).

In 1970 he moved to London to continue his studies and whilst studying, worked in a number of architectural practices before becoming the Middle East Consultant at Fitzroy Robinson & Partners. Here, in the mid-70s, he worked on a project to redevelop the White City Stadium, as well as a Liverpool Street/Broad Street redevelopment comprising a railway terminal, shops, offices, hotel and civic amenities. In the late 70s he opened his first practice in London, Basil Al Bayati Architect, at 9 Montpellier Street, opposite Harrods, in Knightsbridge, London.

Basil Al Bayati (Arabic: باسل البياتي; born 13 May 1946) is an Iraqi-born architect and designer who has lived and practiced for the most part in Europe, in particular, London and who Neil Bingham, in his book 100 Years of Architectural Drawing: 1900-2000, has described as "an architect in whom East meets West." Al Bayati is considered to be one of the most important names in metaphoric architecture, an area he was at the forefront of pioneering, which uses analogy and metaphor as a basis for architectural inspiration as well as the "exploration of geometric and design patterns found in nature" .

Basil Al Bayati was born on 13 May 1946 in the neighbourhood of Adhamiyah in Baghdad, the sixth of ten children.