page_title: Basil Al Bayati
section_title: King Saud University Entrance Gate, (Faith & Knowledge), Riyadh
hierarchical_section_title: Basil Al Bayati / Notable works / King Saud University Entrance Gate, (Faith & Knowledge), Riyadh
caption_attribution_description: English: The entrance to the King Saud University in Riyadh, designed by Dr. Basil Al Bayati
context_page_description: Basil Al Bayati is an Iraqi-born architect and designer who has lived and practiced for the most part in Europe, in particular, London and who Neil Bingham, in his book 100 Years of Architectural Drawing: 1900-2000, has described as "an architect in whom East meets West." Al Bayati is considered to be one of the most important names in metaphoric architecture, an area he was at the forefront of pioneering, which uses analogy and metaphor as a basis for architectural inspiration as well as the "exploration of geometric and design patterns found in nature".
  He is also the inventor of what he termed "the mechanism of the wasitah" a geometric feedback mechanism for generating form and a method he himself often uses in the design process.
  Throughout his almost 50 years working in the field of architecture, he has also designed furniture and artistic pieces for the household using such varied techniques as metalwork, inlay, glass and ceramic work and stonework as well as authoring 9 books, principally on architecture but also fantasy/fiction and autobiography.
context_section_description: Dr. Bayati’s design for the entrance gates to the King Saud University is based upon the theme of faith and knowledge; two pillars of Islam that must be taken together, "Knowledge cannot do without faith nor can faith ignore knowledge for Islam calls always for faith and knowledge to run in parallel."
  "The design consists of two books representing knowledge and faith. They have been so placed so that their pages are interlocked thus showing the close connection between faith and knowledge. Verses from the Quran on faith and knowledge are written in beautiful script on the cover of each book."
caption: King Saud University Entrance Gate, Riyadh
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