“You need to have a niche and really invest in yourself.” Tariq Khayyat on architecture in the region; working with Zaha Hadid; and his advice for aspiring architects

We caught up with Tariq Khayyat, one of the leading architects in the region, and a long time guest favorite of our restaurant in d3. Khayyat is the founder of a bespoke architecture firm, TKDP, in Dubai and leads grand scale projects including Shenzhen Luohu in China. But before this, Tariq Khayyat spent 14 years working with the late Zaha Hadid and described what it was like meeting the iconoclast for the first time as an MA graduate in London’s Architectural Association School of Architecture. Tariq also shares his design philosophies; what it actually means to qualify as a “sustainable” building; and the one advice he gives young graduates.