Heart of Doha Daily Mosque

This mosque is meant to be a prototype for an inner city daily mosque in Doha. Its simple volume reflects the modesty of daily prayer. It is both welcoming towards the public and protective of the sanctity of prayer. It stands apart from the adjacent building while being integrated with the surrounding context. The volume is carved by a series of cuts that provide access at the base and bring in light from the top. These cuts also create minarets at the corners projecting toward the adjacent public spaces without protruding above the skyline of the city. The sculpted, intersecting vaults of the prayer hall create an inner space carved within the building’s volume, and with light washing in from the oculus above they evoke a feeling of peaceful contemplation.

The ablution courts sit below the cuts that define the two minarets, allowing light to wash down into these areas. The L-shaped courtyard includes all the necessary functions of storage for shoes and coats, reference area, and reception area. A curvilinear wooden wall is the threshold between this courtyard and the main prayer hall. The prayer hall is a stark space with a sculptural vaulted roof that orients towards the qiblah and faces a double mihrab in the Qatari tradition. T

The first floor is accessible either directly from the eastern passageway or from the northern public space. It consists of the women’s prayer hall and service spaces, both of which get ambient light from skylights above. The apartment of the imam is located on the second and third levels on the northern side of the building and it includes reception quarters and an office on the lower level and family quarters and bedrooms on the top floor.

The building’s base is made of polished yellow stone. The top is made of rough textured stucco. These materials help to tie the building in its color palette to the surrounding proposed master plan structures, while also allowing the building to avoid the environmental impact of solar heat gain. The courtyard floor and exterior walls are made of yellow stone. The wall separating the courtyard from the prayer hall is clad with wood. The prayer hall floor is made of yellow stone. The wall base is yellow stone and the upper vaulted areas are made of smooth white stucco.

Credits

Client: Dohaland. 
Project Team: Hashim Sarkis, Penn Ruderman (Project Coordinator), Cynthia Gunadi, Cheyne Owens, Meera Deean, Boulos Douaihy