The Ismaili Center Houston will be the seventh

Ismaili Centre The Ismaili Centres are symbolic markers of the permanent presence of the Nizari Ismailis in the countries and regions in which they are established, characterised by the Aga Khan IV as 'ambassadorial buildings'. Each building is architecturally u ...

worldwide, the first in the United States and the third in North America, after

Vancouver Vancouver is a major city in Western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the cit ...

and

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

Establishment

Aga Khan Foundation The Aga Khan Foundation (AKF) is a private, not-for-profit international development agency, which was founded in 1967 by Shah Karim Al Hussaini, Aga Khan IV, the 49th Hereditary Imam of the Shia Ismaili Muslims. AKF seeks to provide long-ter ...

USA has owned the eleven-acre site since 2006. The establishment of an Ismaili Center was announced by His Highness the Aga Khan during his Golden Jubilee visit to the USA in 2008. A design preview was held on November 15, 2021, where architect

Farshid Moussavi Farshid Moussavi (born 1965) is an Iranian-born British architect, educator, and author. She is the founder of Farshid Moussavi Architecture (FMA) and a Professor in Practice of Architecture at Harvard University Graduate School of Desig ...

discussed the project with KTRK-TV’s Melanie Lawson. In July 2022, McCarthy Building Companies, Inc. announced that it had begun construction. As of this date, no formal ground-breaking had taken place but construction is expected to be finished by the end of 2024. A topping out ceremony was held in October 2023 with Mayor of Houston

Sylvester Turner Sylvester Turner (September 27, 1954 – March 5, 2025) was an American attorney and politician who served as the U.S. representative for from January 2025 until his death in March 2025. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democra ...

Architecture and design

Designed by London-based Farshid Moussavi Architecture, the Center will be a contemporary interpretation of traditional Persian ornamentation, including ceramic mosaics, and screens drawn from various Islamic traditions. The center’s façade will be a combination of different types of stone and steel encased in concrete. The building will feature a series of “eivans,” the Persian word for verandas, which will provide shaded venues for social gatherings at the center. The eivans will supported by 49 columns reminiscent of those used in Persepolis and 17th century palaces in Isfahan, Persia. The 10 acres around the center will be transformed into lush gardens by Thomas Woltz of Nelson Byrd Woltz Landscape Architects. The gardens will include tree canopies, fountains, shaded footpaths, flowerbeds, lawns and walkways.

References

{{Coord, 29.7593, -95.3917, display=title Ismaili centres Religious buildings and structures in Houston Islam in Houston

Establishment

Architecture and design

See also

References