Symposium Overview

Petroleum Modernism: October 13, 2016

Abstract

Petroleum Modernism: October 13, 2016 This symposium investigated the ways in which the discovery and export of petroleum from the Persian/Arabian Gulf during the first half of the twentieth century led to cultural, economic, and social changes, with significant architectural and urban consequences in the region and beyond. While research at the time focused primarily on exploring contemporary developments, our symposium sought to present and discuss new historical research regarding key decades between the 1960s and 1980s that witnessed the pioneering efforts to transform the built environment of the Gulf. During those years, despite a shared climate, geography, and culture, most Gulf countries developed distinct “national” agendas that generated different “modern” architectural identities. Against the backdrop of historical “modern” developments, the symposium participants also discussed how the national identity of the Gulf countries had been challenged by the rise of a generic globalization. Nota bene: Presentation titles and affiliations are reproduced on the opposite page as they appeared on the symposium poster in 2016.