Hala Nasr
My work is multidisciplinary, spanning landscape architecture, urban development, design research, and, architecture, at a range of scales. Across these roles, one constant remains: I see myself as a curator of space, a narrator of identity, and an advocate for cultural continuity. Design is my medium, but storytelling is my method; shaping how I approach space, context, and meaning.
Rooted in the poetics of nuance and the granular scales of culture, I am drawn to uncovering the epistemological layers embedded in everyday practices; the raw, the real, the vernacular, the forgotten, the absent, the unseen. For me, design is a tool to question, and ultimately, to shape a potential answer. My continued pursuit is to illuminate what lies beneath the surface: what design does for humans and non-humans, and what it simply reveals about them.
My work today continues to explore landscape as both a marker of identity and a form of cultural advocacy. I have contributed to a wide range of projects across the U.S. and the United Arab Emirates, spanning adaptive reuse, public realm design, and new urban developments.
In Boston, I worked with Stoss Landscape Urbanism as an Associate, focusing on revitalization, adaptive reuse, and deep community engagement. My projects included the Valley Falls Heritage Park Revitalization Plan in Rhode Island [INSERT LINK], LA Tree Equity, an equity-based urban forestry initiative in Los Angeles [INSERT LINK], and the Arnos Vale Airport Redevelopment, a regenerative and vibrant development strategy in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines [INSERT LINK].
In Dubai, I spent six years working on a range of architectural and urban development projects, including the Al Shindagha Museum [INSERT LINK], which highlights the historic district’s role in the trading evolution of Dubai; Lusail Mirage [INSERT LINK] in Doha with X-Architects; and the development of a Cultural Civic Center at the heart of Dubai Festival City with Al-Futtaim (AFGRE).
I hold a Master in Landscape Architecture from Harvard University, where my thesis Identities of Past and Present: Conservation and its Consequence [ADD LINK] explored “radical indigenism” as a framework for reimagining cultural preservation in the Marshes of Southern Iraq. The project has since evolved into ongoing research on form, spatial ritual, and vernacular making, and has been published in PLAT, PAPRIKA!, and A—Z. I also hold a Bachelor of Architecture from the American University of Sharjah.
