OPAD / Office for Planning Architecture Design

OPAD / Office for Planning Architecture Design Jihad W. KIAME holds a Master of Architecture [1996-Alba] and Urban Planning [1998-IUAlba] and currently manages his own studio in Beirut City.

KIAME holds a Master of Architecture [1996-Alba] and Urban Planning [1998-IUAlba] and currently manages his own studio where he deals with projects of various scales and types, promoting a multidisciplinary approach. BELIEF
Synergy between Territorial Planning, Urban Planning and Architecture constitutes to JWK a deep conviction as it holds the ultimate guarantee for successful and viable achievem

ents. While Planning has to treat the Territory with consideration, smaller acts such as building have to look for relevant ties with their nearby and faraway surroundings. Each project should therefore be subject to a comprehensive assessment, seeking for a contextual, flexible and sustainable solution. JWK's professional track is shaped by multiple and varied consultancy missions for both local and international Agencies and Institutions [Bahrain Eskan Bank, Parsons Brinckerhoff, General Directorate of Urban Planning-Lebanon, France Telecom, Atelier Drummond-Paris ...]. From 2005 till 2009, JWK partnered with the firm "ZAP Architects & Planners" over a series of significant projects among which Ibrahim Sursock Residential Tower. During that same partnership JWK was also the author of a City Hall Pedestrian Square idea in Beirut Central District along Weygand Street. In 2009, JWK was Head of Urban Planning and Architecture Department at “Eskan Properties”, a subsidiary of “Eskan Bank of Bahrain”, which offers a full range of property development services. JWK’s scope included feasibility studies, RFPs, projects briefs, planning and design guidelines, project management and coordination with design Consultants. In March 2011, JWK was appointed mission pilot within the group Team International / INDDIGO Altermodal invited to present a technical and financial proposal for the development of the "Soft Transportation Plan for Beirut City." JWK took part in the definition of the work methodology and the analytical presentation of the general geographical context of the intervention. In July 2012, JWK partnered with “Francois LECLERCQ Architectes Urbanistes” [France] to qualify for the consultancy services for the extension and renovation of the Grand Lycée Franco-Libanais campus in Beirut. In 2011 and 2012 JWK acted as the Chief Design Architect & Urban Planner for “Consolidated Consultants / Jafar Tukan Architects / Jordan” on two regional architectural and planning competitions: the Ministry of Tourism & Municipalities of Erbil/Iraq and the Royal Oman Police Stables Complex of Wattayah/Muscat Oman. After a first experience in the corporate world in 2001 when JWK designed the offices of France Telecom Mobile Liban [FTML], in 2014/15 he has been entrusted by the “Banque de l’Industrie et du Travail” to design several new retail branches in Beirut and other Lebanese Regions. JWK’s track is also marked by a broad academic experience; teaching since 2001 at the Académie Libanaise des Beaux-arts [ALBA] allowed him to maintain a continuously renewed vision related to career matters.

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 NYCLot  #192 located in Qatteen, a village 600m above sea level north of Greater Beirut, is part of a picturesque rural...
29/11/2022



NYC

Lot #192 located in Qatteen, a village 600m above sea level north of Greater Beirut, is part of a picturesque rural fabric, rich in natural and architectural heritage. It overlooks a valley marked by the monolithic architecture of a 19th century convent, located 200 meters to the south-east, and backs onto a very dense forest belonging to a religious congregation and which will hopefully remain protected on the very long term. In this steep lot, the traces of the past are manifested by the vernacular architecture of a 3*13m barrel vault dating back to the 18th century. The lower part of the plot is dominated by a massive and impressive geological rocky formation. The attention brought to each of the mentioned layers will lead to designing a house composed of two pavilions articulated around a glass-roof atrium. The top of the vault becomes a welcome garden, extended by an elevated walkway to the main entrance. A courtyard on an intermediate level connects the rooms to the multi-functional vault. The cantilevered rock frames a second troglodytic access on the lower side.

 REMI WINEHOUSELot  #4311 runs east-west and slides in a northwest direction towards beautiful, formerly agricultural te...
29/11/2022



REMI WINEHOUSE

Lot #4311 runs east-west and slides in a northwest direction towards beautiful, formerly agricultural terraces that join the Qannoubine Valley in the background. To the north, the open fields reach the village of Qnaiouer, about 1 km away. To the east, the majestic natural rocky amphitheater surrounds what remains of the Cedar Forest. The project’s design will reflect the owner's recent winemaking activity and thus associate his house with the winery below. The main space of the house is designed as a wine tasting hall with the bedrooms suspended above. Two staircases lead separately to the master bedroom on the one hand, and to the guests’ bedrooms on the other. The roof supports a garden that is partly private for the rooms and partly shared. A cantilevered pool covers the main entrance and accentuates the brutalist character of the architecture. A separate rental accommodation unit is located away from the main house and has its own direct access.

 TURTLE HOUSEThe steeply sloping plot of 600m² is located ten minutes from the ski resort "Mzaar" in the Kfarzebyan regi...
29/11/2022



TURTLE HOUSE

The steeply sloping plot of 600m² is located ten minutes from the ski resort "Mzaar" in the Kfarzebyan region, at 1700 m altitude, where weather conditions have to be seriously considered. The main idea of the design is about a compact shell that encloses an elevated box, resting on the load-bearing walls of the central staircase, and housing the bedrooms. Suggesting a "turtle's head", part of the box extends outward, pointing to the larger landscape. In winter under the snow, the light ash-gray carapace tends to fade away, highlighting the warm colors of the interior. The detachment between the shell and the internal structure leaves a peripheral cavity allowing for continuous air circulation between the floors. The openings in the sloping facets of the shell illuminate the attic space, heating it naturally in winter and cooling the house in summer through natural warm air evacuation .

Soft connections and untold stories. Ephemeral situations that must feed imagination for future projects.
29/11/2022

Soft connections and untold stories. Ephemeral situations that must feed imagination for future projects.

Our Contribution in the discussions around “The Action Plan for the Reconstruction of Damaged Heritage Buildings in Beir...
25/11/2022

Our Contribution in the discussions around “The Action Plan for the Reconstruction of Damaged Heritage Buildings in Beirut”, held at the premises yesterday 24-11-2022, focused on issues such , , and rehabilitation. We also shared our views about the Transfer of Development Rights, its reasons and implications. Many thanks for UNESCO, its Representatives and all contributors, namely Eric Huybrechts, Habib Debs and Guillaume Boudisseau for their efforts and valuable inputs.

Damaged grain silos in a wheat field at night. Hundreds of high sharp posts for impalement. Harbor and cranes in the bac...
03/08/2022

Damaged grain silos in a wheat field at night. Hundreds of high sharp posts for impalement. Harbor and cranes in the background.

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