Another look at UAE Culture.

Professor Ron Hawker of Zayed University's College of Arts and Sciences joins us for a conversation about the culture of architecture in the UAE and beyond.

http://www.amazon.com/Traditional-Architecture-Arabian-Gulf-Building/dp/1845641353
Review
Ronald Hawker expertly analyzes the change in Persian Gulf architecture within a larger framework of political, economic and social information. Provides an intelligent and accessible study of this region. Ronald Hawker should be commended for providing such a unique and in-depth study of this little known region. --Great New Books That Are A Must Read, December 2008

This volume fills a void in the study of traditional Arabian gulf architecture, will be a crucial reference for further study of particular buildings, regions and domestic or public structures. The breadth of the study will appeal to a wide audience interested in sociopolitical history, vernacular architecture, postcolonial history, and regional buildings practices. Essential. --Choice, Vol 46, No 7, March 2009

Product Description
This book chronicles the florescence of architecture in the Arabian Gulf
after the expulsion of the Portuguese in the early 1600's. It demonstrates
how the power vacuum created by the collapse of Portuguese control over the
trade routes in the Indian Ocean encouraged a growth in fortified
architecture, especially in Oman, that radiated out to the surrounding
region and was then slowly replaced by new patterns in domestic and public
architecture and town planning throughout the Gulf as the trade lines were secured and the individual countries took the first steps towards the formation of today's modern nation-states.

The book documents the buildings and crafts of this era and analyses them
within the framework of the political, economic, and social information
available through primary sources from the period in a way that is both
intelligent and accessible. It considers the settlements as part of a
larger-connected network of cities, towns and villages and focuses both on how the buildings provided innovative solutions to the demanding climate and yet incorporated new decorative and functional ideas.

Topics are extensively and richly illustrated with colored photographs of
the buildings as they are now, black and white and color historic
photographs from archival and museum collections, line drawings, and
computer-generated reconstructions.

The book is therefore attractive to a number of audiences, including those
who live in or travel to the Gulf as well as people with an interest in Arab
and Islamic design, culture and society, vernacular architecture, and
post-colonial approaches to colonial history.