Yasmeen Lari
1961 Part I RIBA from Polytechnic of North London, London
1963 Part II RIBA from the Oxford School of Architecture, now Oxford Brooks University, U.K.
1963 Architect, Zhan & Co., Hameln, Germany
1963 First Woman Architect of Pakistan
1964 Founder, Karachi Artists Gallery (KAG), the first permanent exhibition and studio space in Pakistan
1965 ‘Some Thoughts on House Design,’ presented at the Karachi Artists Gallery, Karachi
1965 Chief Architect, MacDonald, Layton and Costain
1965 Architect, Indus Chemical Factory, Karachi
1966 ‘Our Heritage in Muslim Architecture,’ presented at the Second National Seminar on Muslim Architecture, Islamabad
1966 Lecturer, School of Architecture, Karachi
1968 ‘Architecture in West Pakistan—Islamabad,’ presented at the Third National Seminar on Muslim Architecture, Dhaka
1968 ‘Museum Architecture,’ presented at the All-Pakistan Museum Conference, Dhaka,
1969 ‘Housing for Industrial Workers,’ Report commissioned by the Federal Ministry of Labour,
1969 Associate of Royal Institute of British Architects (ARIBA), UK
1970 Architect, Pakistan Naval Officers’ Housing, Karachi
1973 ‘Tharparkar and Sialkot after the War,’ report commissioned by UNICEF and the Government of Pakistan
1973 Architect, Angoori Bagh Housing, Lahore
1974 Project Coordinator, Slum Improvement, Karachi Development Authority
1975 ‘Slums and Squatter Settlements — their Role and Improvement Strategy,’ presented at RCD Seminar on Urban Development and Housing, Islamabad
1975 ‘Slums are not a Lost Cause,’ published in the Pakistan Economist
1975 Appointed by UNICEF to report on flood affected areas of Pakistan
1976 Speaker, Habitat Forum Self Help and Low Cost Housing Symposium, Vancouver, Canada
1978 Architect, Pakistan Steel Mill Housing, Karachi
1978 ‘Housing — A Personal View,’ presented at the UN Regional Conference for the Economic Commission of Western Asia (ECWA),, Amman, Jordan
1980 Chairman, Aga Khan Award for Architecture Seminar, Karachi
1980 Director, Heritage Foundation, also of the Society for the Preservation of Muslim Heritage), Karachi
1980 Keynote Speaker, Aga Khan Award Seminar on Places of Public Gathering in Islam at Amman, Jordan
1980 Only architect from Pakistan to have a chapter devoted to her life and work in the book, ‘Architects of the Third World’ (in German) by Professor Udo Kulturmann
1980-83 President, Institute of Architects, Pakistan (IAP)
1981 ‘Lines Area Re-settlement Project,’ presented at the seminar on Housing Design in Islamic Cultures at MIT, Cambridge, USA
1981 ‘Search for Identity,’ presented at the Conference on Islamic Art, Architecture and Calligraphy, Peshawar
1981 ‘Thatta: the Beginning of a Case Study,’ presented at the seminar on Architecture in Archaeology and History at Mohenjodaro
1981 Guest Faculty Member, MIT-Harvard Seminar, Cambridge, USA
1981 Member, Expert Group of Government of Pakistan on National Housing Policy, Islamabad
1982 Architect, Finance and Trade centre (FTC), Karachi
1982 ‘Identity and Heritage,’ presented at the All Pakistan Science Conference, Bahawalpur
1982 Chairman, MIT-Harvard Seminar on Housing Design in Islamic Cultures, Karachi,
1982 Named as one of the Seven Visionary Architects of Asia by ‘Asiaweek’ of Hong Kong, 3rd September 1982
1982 Only Architect from Pakistan invited to exhibit work at the prestigious Venice Biennale Exhibition, Italy
1982 Research paper in Thatta, published by Goethe Institute, Karachi
1982-85 Member, Majlis-i-Shoora (Federal Advisory Council), Islamabad
1983 Chairman, Planning Commission Working Group on Housing for Low Income Groups
1983 Member, Selection-Board for Headquarters of League of Arab States, Tunisia
1983 Research Paper on Architecture and Community; Building in the Islamic World Today, published by Aperture, New York
1983-1990 Member, Advisory Council, Ministry of Finance
1983-85 Deputy Chairperson, Architects Regional Council of Asia (ARCASIA)
1983-86 Chairperson, Pakistan Council of Architects and Town Planners (PCATP)
1984 Architect, PSO Head Office, Karachi
1984 ‘Expanding Role of an Architect in the Asian Context,’ presented at the First Asian Congress of Architects, Manila, Philippines
1984 Chairman, 2nd Session, MIT-Harvard Seminar on Architecture in the Spirit of Islam, Cambridge, USA
1984 Coordinator, Council of Architects and Planners of Islamic Countries
1984 Member, Board of Advisors and Keynote Speaker, First Asian Congress of Architects, Philippines
1984 Member, Three-person Pakistan Government Expert Team to Maldives comprising Artists Sadeqain and Gulgee
1985 Architect, Gulistan Housing Colony, POF Wah
1985 Member, WHO/UNEP Working Group on Health Criteria for Urban and Indoor Environmental Quality, held at Moscow, USSR
1985 ‘Women in Development,’ presented at the Conference of Women from Pakistan and Bangladesh, Islamabad
1985 Editor, Challenges of Transformation; Built Environment in Islamic Countries, published by PCATP
1986 Architect, Al-Shifa Hopital, Rawalpindi
1986 Author, Document No 1. Zaibunnisa Street, National Register of Historic Buildings, published by the Heritage Foundation
1986 Only architect invited to Conference of Intellectuals and Thinkers convened by the President of Pakistan, Islamabad
1987 ‘Chat aur Chardiwari’, Report on housing for the Prime Minister's Five Point Programme
1987 ‘Low-income Housing,’ contribution on Housing as member of the Pakistan Delegation to the SAARC Seminar, Islamabad
1987 Member, Pakistan delegation to SAARC Conference of Women, Islamabad
1988 ‘Professional Practice and Education of Architects in Pakistan,’ presented at the Conference on Development and Design in South and Southeast Asia, organised by the University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong
1988 ‘The Lines Area Project: A Concept in Land Sharing,’ presented at the United Nations Group on Land Sharing Conference, Bangkok, Thailand
1988 Member, Advisory Committee on Population & Housing Census, Government of Pakistan
1988 Member, Karachi Aesthetic Control Committee, Government of Sind
1988 Member, UN Habitat Group on Land Sharing, Bangkok, Thailand
1988-1990 Member, Academic Council, N.E.D. University of Engineering and Technology, Karachi
1989 Author, Traditional Architecture of Thatta, published by the Heritage Foundation
1990 ‘Architecture and Politics, and the Politics of Architecture,’ presented at the XVIIth World Congress of the International Union of Architects (UIA)
Architecture 1990: Cultures and Technologies, Montreal, Canada
1990 Member, Board of Governors, National Institute of Public Administration (NIPA)
1990 Speaker, UIA Congress, Montreal
1991 Member, UNDP & UNCHS Expert Panel on Karachi Masterplan — Beyond 2000, Karachi
1991 Research Paper in Housing Parameters, published by Aga Khan Program for Architecture and Urban Design,
1992 Member, Pakistani Delegation to the Second International Symposium on Mohenjodaro, Karachi,
1992-1993 Vice-Chairperson, National Institute of Public Administration (NIPA)
1992-94 & 2004-2006 Member, Board of Governors, National College of Arts (NCA) Lahore
1993 Member, Sindh Chief Minister's Aesthetic Committee
1993 Vice-Chairperson, Pakistan National Committee of ICOMOS
1994 KMA Hospital, Kharadar, Karachi
1994 Author, Document No. 2: Serai Quarter, National Register of Historic Buildings, published by the Heritage Foundation
1994 Author, Document No. 3: Saddar Bazaar Quarter, National Register of Historic Buildings, published by the Heritage Foundation
1995 Architect, Holiday Inn Hotel, Multan
1995-1997 Member Syndicate, N.E.D. University of Engineering and Technology, Karachi
1996 Architect, KMC Women's Sports Complex, Karachi
1996 Author, Document No. 4: National Register of Historic Buildings, published by the Heritage Foundation
1996 Author, Document No. 5: National Register of Historic Buildings, published by the Heritage Foundation
1996 Author, Document No. 6: National Register of Historic Buildings, published by the Heritage Foundation
1996 Author, Document No. 7: National Register of Historic Buildings, published by the Heritage Foundation
1996 Author, Document No. 8: National Register of Historic Buildings, published by the Heritage Foundation
1996 Author, The Dual City: Karachi During the Raj, published by Oxford University Press and the Heritage Foundation
1996-1999 Expert Member, Cultural Heritage Advisory Committee, Government of Sindh
1997 Architect, ABN AMRO Bank, Country Office, Karachi
1997 Author, The Jewel of Sindh: Samma Monuments on Makli Hill, published by Oxford University Press and the Heritage Foundation
2000 Speaker, International Conference of Architects, Bombay
2002 Author, Karachi Heritage Guide, published by the Heritage Foundation
2002 UN Annual Recognition Award for promotion of culture and peace.
2002-2003 National Project Co-coordinator, UNESCO, 2002-2003
2002-2005 Member, Board of Advisors, International Archives of Women Architects, Virginia, USA
2003 Author, Lahore Heritage Guide, published by the Heritage Foundation
2013 Ms. Lari was declared Islamic Development Bank (Jeddah) Laureate, Ms. Lari’s work was exhibited in the First Chicago Architectural Biennale.
2015 invited to Japan to the International Experts Meeting on Cultural Heritage Disaster Risk Management in Tokyo (11-13 March) and Sendai (14-18 March), which was one of the cities affected by the Great East Japan Earthquake, in order to assess and review the implementation of the Hyogo Framework for Action and to adopt a post-2015 framework for disaster risk reduction.
2016 from January to April, Yasmeen Lari is the only Pakistani architect whose work was exhibited at the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) Creation from Catastrophe exhibition, and she was invited to lecture and conduct a workshop on how to work with sustainable materials with low/zero carbon footprint.
2016, September, invited to speak at the Oslo Architectural Triennale due to her innovative approach
2016, September, invited to Japan “for her extraordinary contribution, from all over Asia to receive the prestigious Japanese “Fukuoka Art and Culture Prize 2016 as architect, architectural historian, heritage conservationist and human aid worker”
2017, Barefoot social architecture for poverty alleviation
2018, World Habitat Award for Pakistan Chulah – smokeless stove empowering women and changing lives
2019, September 6th, Yasmeen Lari was invited for Keynote Lecture to Vienna Biennale for Change 2019: for International Conference on Changing Values.
2019, November visit to Amsterdam
- 2019, Secretariat for INTBAU Training and Resource Centre
- Denso Hall Walking Street, Karachi
16th February Departure for London
22nd February Return to Karachi
2020, February, invited to
5th March Departure for London
13 March Return to Karachi
2020, March, Yasmeen Lari, Pakistan's first female architect, was awarded the Jane Drew Prize 2020 for raising the profile of women in architecture. The Jane Drew Award is part of the Architects' Journal (AJ) and The Architectural Review’s W awards series, formally known as the Women in Architecture awards.
2020, awarded honorary degree
The Heritage Foundation was the first organization that began systematic cataloguing and working on saving historic urban structures.
Ms. Lari was the first to start preserving the heritage of Pakistan. The GPO on Mall Road Lahore and Flagstaff House in Karachi.
The Sindh Cultural Heritage (Preservation) Act 1994, proposed by Ms. Lari, was unanimously passed by the Sindh Assembly. Thereby about 600 buildings documented by her in Karachi were preserved, and a committee was formed to implement the law and to document and protect more buildings. But Abdul Hamid Akhund, secretary to the governor and culture secretary, and Hameed Haroon got themselves nominated onto the committee, and did their best to defeat the act by not implementing its purpose which was to document and save the heritage of the whole of Sindh. Akhund used to say that. Lari had got the Heritage Act passed with a gun at his head. By that what he meant was that despite being the blue eyed boy of governor Mehmood Haroon and soul mate of Hameed Haroon, he was helpless before the support she had of Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, Chief Minister Abdullah Shah and the opposition leader Bhopali in the Sindh Assembly.
Ms. Lari created Karavan Karachi to generate public awareness and support for heritage. Karavan Karachi met every Sunday at a heritage building where school bands would start playing in the afternoon to attract people. With thousands of people watching, the chief guest would place a plaque on the heritage building, followed by speeches, plays, skits, and music shows relating to heritage offered by schools and theatre groups.
She devised the Karavan MeraPakistan programme, to safeguard historic buildings, to foster a duty of care for heritage assets, to develop pride and a stake in the city by initiating a sustained process of cleaning and washing Karachi's heritage. This was done by involving school children and by white washing posters from walls and replacing them with paintings by students. These functions were held in Karachi from 2001-2004, followed by several cities ranging from Bahawalpur Palaces, Darawar Fort and the World Heritage Sites of Lahore's Shahi Qila and Buddhist monuments of Taxila.
When one of the important heritage sites in Pakistan, that is the Shish Mahal of Lahore Fort, was endangered, UNESCO appointed Yasmeen Lari National Advisor for conservation and preservation of Lahore Fort.
The documentation of Peshawar city was also taken up in collaboration with UNESCO and a publication on Peshawar city was brought out.
UNESCO also appointed her to co-author the Master Plan of Lahore Fort, which identified problem areas and worked out strategies for the management of the entire World Heritage Site.
UNESCO devoted a chapter to Yasmeen Lari as one of sixty women from all over the world who had made a significant contribution to UNESCO since its inception.
The Heritage Foundation has, without any assistance or funding from the government, helped people build, in about two hundred villages, over forty thousand earthquake and flood resistant houses, over thirty thousand smokeless chulas and hundreds of latrines at almost zero carbon footprint, which is the largest zero carbon intervention in the world.
A test at NED College Laboratory was conducted in the presence of the vice-chancellor himself and representatives of international agencies, and it was found that the Heritage Foundation’s earth, lime and bamboo structures could withstand over twice the intensity of the Kobe earthquake in Japan.
Her work was filmed by a prize-winning Indian film maker named Faiza, and broadcast by Aljazera TV in their series on rebel architecture. Safeeyah Moosa of South Africa sent a photographer to film her work, which was broadcast on TV stations in South Africa.
The Phaidon Press Limited of Regent’s Wharf, All Saints Street, London, and 180 Varick Street New York NY 10014, published an encyclopedia of the 20th Century World Architecture built between 1900 and 1999, in 97 countries of the world, comprising every imaginable building type, from the smallest single houses, cafes and zoo structures to huge utopian housing projects, centres of government, and new universities. The experts from the building industry, chose 757 examples of the most outstanding work done during the twentieth century, from a selection made by over 150 specialist advisors from every geographical region of the world. One of the works selected was her house in Karachi, designed by Yasmeen Lari.
