Sa’ad Abdul Rahman Al-Zubaidi Studied 1970-1971

Sa’ad Abdul Rahman Al-Zubaidi was born in Iraq and studied at the University of Baghdad, before working for Iraq Consult, the influential practice of Iraqi modernist, Rifat Chadirji. Al-Zubaidi is recorded as enrolled in the 1970-71 postgraduate programme run by the Architectural Association’s Department of Development and Tropical Studies, in London, UK. He was tutored by Mario Novella and duly graduated with a postgraduate Diploma in the summer of 1971. By 1973 Al-Zubaidi had returned to Iraq and was appointed Chief Architect and Head of the Design Department for the National Center for Architectural and Engineering Consultancy, in Bagdad - a position he was to hold until 1987, when he became the Chairman and Director General for the Idrisi Center for Architectural and Engineering Consultancy. After ten years, Al Zubaidi transferred back to the National Center, where he served as Director General for five more years. Just at the onset of the Second Gulf War, Al Zubaidi was appointed as Chancellor to the Iraqi Minister of Housing and Construction. From 2004 until 2012 he worked as Head of the Architectural Design Department for the Iraq-based Sigma Engineering Consultants. Today he lives in Jacksonville, Florida.

Sources

• Architectural Association Student Register 1945-1972. AA Archives
• Architectural Association Diploma Roll Book, 1970-71. AA Archives
• Architectural Association, Membership Register, 1974, 1979. AA Archives
• ‘Saad Zubaidi,’ personal profile, Facebook. Accessed 13th Feb. 2026: https://www.facebook.com/saad.zubaidi/directory_work