JEDDAH — Dar Al-Hekma University hosted its fifth architecture exhibition that aimed to tell the stories of the evolution of exhibiting students from freshmen to seniors.
The two-day “Threshold” exhibition, which ended on Thursday, showcased the work of the first batch of architecture graduates, among others.
The event aimed to facilitate the students' smooth transition to the job market after graduation through the attendance of industry leaders. Prince Amr Bin Muhammad Al-Faisal, who acted as patron, opened the exhibition and took a tour with university officials.
Dar Al-Hekma University President Dr. Suhair Hassan Al-Qurashi said: “We are very excited to see the first graduates to embark into the job market and we can hardly wait to see the positive effect they will have.
“The success stories and new ventures will be in their imminent future.
“Hekma School of Design and Architecture is one of the biggest schools in Dar Al-Hekma University, and this is the fourth and last exhibition this month organized by this school.”
The university's architecture department chair Dr. Anna Klingmann said: “Since architecture as a program became available for women in the Kingdom, the interest of female students in the field of architecture sky-rocketed.
“After the program was first founded by Dr. Mona Helmy five years ago, the architecture program at Dar Al-Hekma University expanded exponentially and was met with great enthusiasm by the professional community.
“Five years later, we are very proud to feature our first batch of architecture graduates in our annual end-of-year exhibition.
“We hope that our graduates will inspire other women architects and serve as professional role models in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and beyond.” The exhibition featured the 20 capstone projects that the students had worked on for the last academic year, covering a variety of areas like hospitals, residential buildings, train stations and cultural centers.
Samia Khan, one of this year's seniors, said: “My senior project, a 43-story residential tower, has been quite a challenge to pull together.
“However with the support of our expert faculty, the project is now successfully completed. “It was exciting to showcase the skills that have been fostered by the architecture department in our exhibition.”
Another senior, Rola Al-Ghalib, said: “I love architecture because it matches me in every way and I wanted a major that is a little bit of everything.
“The architecture faculty, like the major, is just as diverse.
“You have instructors from different places and backgrounds that bring a new flavor to the table.
“After reaching this final finish line I feel like I can accomplish anything after these tough five years. “I know that this is just the beginning of a lifetime of achievements.”
