Marina Tabassum

Marina Tabassum
Tabassum in Pinakothek der Moderne, Munich (2023)
Born	1968or1969(age 55–56) Dhaka, Bangladesh
Nationality	Bangladeshi
Alma mater	Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology
Occupation	Architect
Awards	See full list
Website	mtarchitekts.com

Marina Tabassum (born 1968or1969) ^[1] is a Bangladeshi architect. ^[2] She is the principal architect of Marina Tabassum Architects.

Tabassum won the Aga Khan Award for Architecture twice - in 2016, for the design of Bait-ur-Rouf Mosque in Dhaka and in 2025, for the design of Khudi Bari, in various locations in Bangladesh. ^{[3] [4]} In 2020, Tabassum was listed by Prospect as the third-greatest thinker for the COVID-19 era, with the magazine writing: "At the forefront of creating buildings in tune with their natural environments, this Bangladeshi architect is also embracing the design challenges posed by what we are collectively doing to the planet." ^[5] Tabassum was the first South Asian to receive the "Lisbon Triennale Lifetime Achievement Award" (2022). She was named on Time magazine's list of the 100 Most Influential People of 2024. ^[6]

Early life and education

Tabassum was born in Dhaka, Bangladesh, the daughter of an oncologist. Her family migrated to Dhaka, Bangladesh from India during the partition of Bengal in 1947. She attended Holy Cross Girls School and College. She then graduated in architecture from Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology in 1994. ^[7]

Career

In 1995, Tabassum founded URBANA, an architecture practice based in Dhaka, Bangladesh with Kashef Chowdhury. ^{[8] [9]} The firm designed a number of projects for about ten years.

In 2005, Tabassum established Marina Tabassum Architects, and she serves as its principal architect. ^[7]

Tabassum designed the Bait Ur Rouf Mosque in Dhaka, completed in 2012. ^[10] She won her first Aga Khan Award for Architecture for this project in 2016. ^[11]

As of 2025, Tabassum is a professor of Architectural Design for Climate Adaptation at the Department of Architecture at Delft University of Technology, Netherlands. ^[12] She held the Gehry Chair at the University of Toronto during 2022–2023. ^[7] She taught in Harvard Graduate School of Design, University of Texas, Bengal Institute and BRAC University. ^[13]

Tabassum chairs Foundation for Architecture and Community Equity (F.A.C.E) and Prokritee, a fare trade organization. ^[7] She is a fellow of the Royal Society of Arts (RSA). ^[7]

Notable works

Museum of Independence

• 1997–2006: Museum of Independence, Dhaka, Bangladesh
• 2001: A5 Residence, Dhaka, Bangladesh
• 2006–2011: Comfort Reverie, Dhaka, Bangladesh
• 2009: Vacation House at Faridabad, Dhaka, Bangladesh
• 2012: Baitur Rouf Mosque, Dhaka, Bangladesh
• 2018: Panigram Eco Resort and Spa, Jashore, Bangladesh
• 2020: Khudi Bari, Chars in the coastal areas of Bangladesh
• 2025: 24th Serpentine Pavilion in Kensington Gardens, London. ^[14]

Awards and honors

Baitur Rauf Mosque

• First prize for the Independence Monument and the Liberation War Museum by the Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina (1997)
• Architect of the Year Award, by the Indian Vice President Bhairon Singh Shekhawat (2001)
• Anannya Top Ten Awards (2004) ^[7]
• Finalist of Aga Khan Award for A5, a pavilion apartment (2004) ^[10]
• Second runner-up of Nishorgo Architectural Competition (2006) ^[15]
• Aga Khan Award for Architecture (2016)
• Arnold W. Brunner Memorial Prize (2021) ^[16]
• Soane Medal (2021) ^[17]
• Lifetime Achievement Award (2022) ^[18]
• Time list of 100 Most Influential People of 2024 ^[6]
• Aga Khan Award for Architecture (2025)

Exhibitions

• Marina Tabassum Architects: In Bangladesh (2023) ^[19]

References

1. "The Soane Medal 2021". YouTube. 16 November 2021. Retrieved 16 November 2021.
2. "Architecture fuses engineering, arts". The Daily Star. 19 March 2016. Retrieved 20 April 2024.
3. Fixsen, Anna (3 October 2016). "BIG, Zaha Hadid Architects Among 2016 Aga Khan Award Recipients". Architectural Record. Retrieved 11 October 2016.
4. "Aga Khan Award for Architecture 2025 winners". Aga Khan Development Network. Retrieved 3 September 2025.
5. "The world's top 50 thinkers for the Covid-19 age" (PDF). Prospect. 2020. Retrieved 8 September 2020.
6. "Time 100 Most Influential People 2024". Time. 2024. Retrieved 31 July 2024.
7. "Home | MTA". marinatabassumarchitects.com. Retrieved 3 September 2025.
8. Hockin, Rowena (17 June 2014). "Marina Tabassum: Ideas over gender". Architecture AU. Retrieved 11 October 2016.
9. Mortuza, Shamsad (5 April 2008). "'New styles of Architecture, a change of heart'". The Daily Star. Retrieved 29 July 2024.
10. Karim, Naimul (17 June 2016). "Marina Tabassum: An architect in search of roots". The Daily Star. Retrieved 11 October 2016.
11. Frearson, Amy (9 May 2016). "Zaha Hadid among architects shortlisted for 2016 Aga Khan Award". De Zeen.
12. "Prof. M. Tabassum" . Retrieved 2 September 2025.
13. "Marina Tabassum". Bengal Institute. Retrieved 3 September 2025.
14. "Serpentine Pavilion 2025 by Marina Tabassum". Serpentine Galleries. Retrieved 6 June 2025.
15. "Nishorgo Architectural Competition Winners awarded". The Daily Star. 10 August 2006. Retrieved 11 October 2016.
16. "Marina Tabassum Awarded the Arnold W. Brunner Memorial Prize by The American Academy of Arts and Letters" . Retrieved 11 June 2021.
17. "The Soane Medal 2021". YouTube . Retrieved 16 November 2021.
18. "Received the prestigious Lisbon Triennale Millennium bcp Lifetime Achievement Award". ArchDaily . 10 August 2022. Retrieved 10 August 2022.
19. "Marina Tabassum Architects: In Bangladesh". www.architekturmuseum.de. Retrieved 21 February 2023.