Behind every great building is a story of ambition, imagination, power, rivalry and sometimes extraordinary genius.
In Stories of Architecture, architectural historian Jonathan Foyle, art historian Katherine Alcock and architecture critic Edwin Heathcote explore the people and places that have shaped the world around us. Some episodes follow the lives and careers of great architects, uncovering the influences, ideas and defining moments behind their work. Others tell the extraordinary stories of iconic buildings and monuments, from the Eiffel Tower to Windsor Castle, revealing how and why they were built, the people who created them and the events they have witnessed.
From architectural masterpieces and engineering triumphs to palaces, homes and buildings that changed the course of history, Stories of Architecture brings the human stories behind architecture to life and reveals why the buildings of the past still matter today.
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How do you become one of the most exciting architects in the world before you’ve even built a building?
In the first of two episodes, Jonathan Foyle and Edwin Heathcote explore the extraordinary story of Zaha Hadid; the visionary who would shatter expectations and transform contemporary architecture.
From a cosmopolitan childhood in Baghdad to the radical world of London’s Architectural Association, they uncover the people, art and ideas that shaped her extraordinary imagination. Inspired by Russian Suprematism and Constructivism, Hadid created explosive drawings and paintings of buildings that seemed to float, fragment and defy gravity.
By the 1980s, her audacious designs were winning competitions and attracting international attention, even if they remained stubbornly unbuilt. Brilliant, uncompromising and decades ahead of her time, Zaha Hadid was already changing architecture. The buildings were still to come.
Images used in this Episode:
Zaha in her family living room
Iraq, 1950, Public Domain
Walter Gropius and the office tower of the University of Baghdad, 1967.
Frank Lloyd Wright, 1954, Public Domain
Walter Gropius, 1954, Public Domain
Gio Ponti, 1950s, Public Domain
Perelli Tower, ca. 1949, public domain
Martyr’s Square, Beirut, 1970, public domain
American University of Beirut, 1970, public domain
Architectural Association, London, Creative Commons 4.0
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:T01-Architectural-Association.jpg
James Wines, Best, 1975,
Kaaba, Mecca, Saudi Arabia, Creative Commons 3.0
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Kaaba_%281%29_Makkah_%28Mecca%29.jpg
Tatlin’s Tower, 1919, public domain, Creative Commons
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Tatlin%27s_Tower_maket_1919_year.jpg
Kurt Schwitter Merzbau, Hannover, 1933, public domain
The Walking City, Ron Herron, 1964
Centre Georges Pompidou, competition entry, 1971, Renzo Piano, Richard Rogers, and Gianfranco Franchini
Rem Koolhaas, 1987, by Rob Bogaerts, Creative Commons CC0 1.0 Universal Public Domain Dedication, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Rem_Koolhaas,_de_architect_wiens_ontwerp_voor_Haags_stadhuis_gekozen_is,_Bestanddeelnr_933-8710.jpg
Alvin Boyarsky, 1978
Alexander Calder, Stabile-Mobile – Brazilia, c.1965 by art_inthecity via Creative Commons (CC BY 2.0)
Conical Intersect, Gordon Matta-Clark, 1975
Bernard Tschumi, 1983
Casimir Malevich, 1925 c. Public Domain, Creative Commons
Rotterdam Cube Houses, CC BY-SA 4.0: Renate Hano
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Piet_Blom#/media/File:Kubush%C3%A4user.jpg
Architecton Zeta Malevich, 1926, CC 1.0 public domain
HSBC Main Building, CC BY-SA 3.0: WiNG
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:HK_HSBC_Main_Building_2008.jpg
Philip Johnson, Public Domain, c.1963
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Philip_Johnson.jpg
High West and Victoria Peak from Victoria Gap, Hong Kong (CC BY 3.0: Daniel Case)
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:High_West_and_Victoria_Peak_from_Victoria_Gap_(crop1).jpg
Heni Publishing Images:
Zaha Hadid (with art by Iran do Espirito Santo), during the inauguration of MAXXI, The National Museum of the Arts of 21st Century Arts, Rome, 27 May 2010
Zaha Hadid at The Sparkling Metropolis, 1978, Solomon R, Guggenheim Museum, New York, an exhibition organized by Rem Koolhaas and his colleagues Madelon Vriesendorp, Elia and Zoe Zenghelis and Zaha Hadid
The World (89 Degrees) Zaha Hadid Architects, London, United Kingdom, 1983
Composite plan, Irish Prime Minister’s Residence, Zaha Hadid Architects, Dublin, Ireland, 1980, Ink and acrylic on mylar
The Great Utopia, Tatlin tower and tectonic Worldwind, Soloman R Guggenheim Museum, Zaha Hadid Architects, New York, USA 1992, Acrylic and watercolor on cartridge
Malevich’s Tektonik, Zaha Hadid, , London, United Kingdom, 1976, Acrylic on card
Zaha Hadid at The Sparkling Metropolis, 1978, Solomon R, Guggenheim Museum, New York, an exhibition organized by Rem Koolhaas and his colleagues Madelon Vriesendorp, Elia and Zoe Zenghelis and Zaha Hadid
Zaha Hadid, Rem Koolhaas and Peter Eisenman at the opening of the exhibition Deconstructivist Architecture, MoMA, New York, 21 June 1988
The Peak, Overall isometric, Day view
Zaha cutting The Peak Leisure Centre cake at the opening of the exhibition Planetary Architecture Two, at the Architecture Association, London, 1983
Zaha Hadid, Rem Koolhaas and Peter Eisenman at the opening of the exhibition Deconstructivist Architecture, MoMA, New York, 21 June 1988
Dame Zaha Hadid, 1991
Credits:
Hosts: Johnathan Foyle & Edwin Heathcote
Editor: Sam Bond
Music: Nick Ryan
Sound: Joe Little
Social Producers: Grace Dewar & Eve Smith
Executive Producer: Emma Cahusac
To buy The Zaha Hadid Interviews book, visit:
https://heni.com/shop/books/the-zaha-hadid-interviews
To see more films on Zaha Hadid, visit:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fOYuHEYBBrw
An Introduction to....Stories of Architecture
Season 1 · Episode 1
Monday, November 2, 2026 • Duration 02:40
Behind every great building is a story – of ambition, imagination, power, rivalry and sometimes extraordinary genius.
In Stories of Architecture, architectural historians Jonathan Foyle and Katherine Alcock and architecture critic Edwin Heathcote explore the people and places that have shaped the world around us. Some episodes follow the lives and careers of great architects, uncovering the influences, ideas and defining moments behind their work. Others tell the extraordinary stories of remarkable buildings and monuments – from the Eiffel Tower to Windsor Castle – revealing how and why they were built, the people who created them and the events they have witnessed.
From architectural masterpieces and engineering triumphs to palaces, homes and buildings that changed the course of history, Stories of Architecture brings the human stories behind architecture to life – and reveals why the buildings of the past still matter today.
Hosts: Jonathan Foyle, Edwin Heathcote & Katherine Alcock
Music: Nick Ryan
Social Producers: Grace Dewar & Eve Smith
Executive Producer: Emma Cahusac
For more great art content visit www.heni.com or visit the Heni Talks YouTube channel: www.youtube.com/@HENITalks
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