Aaron Betsky

The first Complete Zaha Hadid came out in 1998, when it was published by Rizzoli and featured primarily drawings, paintings and models, since Hadid's only building at the time was the Vitra Fire Station. Aaron Betsky penned the introduction then, as well as in the 2009 update and the latest in 2013, when the title switched to publisher Thames & Hudson. The 2016 title expands and updates the 2013 version, but thankfully Hadid's beautiful paintings from The Peak and other early projects are still an important part of the monograph. The buildings and projects here are presented in chronological order by start date, so some projects appear in unlikely places. In one instance, Spittelau Viaducts, which started in 1994 and was completed in 2005, is inserted between the unbuilt Cardiff Bay Opera House and a pavilion built in Birmingham in 1995. This is not a drawback as much as it is a result of updating a book that strives for completeness. Even with her sudden death in March, there are still plenty of updates to come, as the projects she had worked on in recent years get built and the firm carries on the spirit of her work without her.… (altro)