Working across cultures

Start by listening

We do not arrive with a ready-made solution. We begin by learning how people live and work in the place: how a family uses a house, how a town uses its streets, how a congregation prays, what the weather does. The same programme, such as a house, is very different in the desert, on the coast and in a village. See also Architecture begins with use.

Culture shapes the plan

Many things that look like style are really culture.

• Privacy. In many places the family home is turned inwards, with courtyards and screens, and guests are received in a separate room. In others, openness to the street is normal.
• Hospitality. The way guests are welcomed, fed and seated shapes entrance halls, reception rooms and kitchens.
• Family structure. Some households are multigenerational, with several families under one roof, and the plan reflects this.
• Worship. Prayer, ablution, orientation and separate provision shape the buildings in which people pray. See also The mosque as a public building.
• Time of day. In hot places life moves to the evening, and public space must work after dark.

We try to understand these things from the people who live them, and not to assume.

The same programme, such as a house, is very different in the desert, on the coast and in a village.

Climate is the second teacher

Climate varies from hot desert to wet coast to cold hillside. It decides orientation, shade, materials and construction. See also Designing for the desert, Building on the sea and Rain, brick and timber.

Local rules and local professionals

Each country has its own codes, approvals and professional registration. In each, we work with companies and professionals registered and licensed there, who know the rules and the authorities. See also Jurisdictions and governing law.

Two languages

We work in English and Arabic, and the two do not always map neatly. A word for a room or a custom may not translate. Our site is in both languages, and the Arabic is written to be read as Arabic, not as a translation. We check important documents in both, and where legal documents are in English only, we say so.

Respect for the craft

Wherever we work, we try to learn from local builders and craftspeople, and to use materials and methods that suit the place. See also Local stone, local craft.

Avoiding the copy-and-paste building

The greatest risk in working across borders is to repeat one solution everywhere. A glass tower that suits one city may be wrong in another. Our method is the same everywhere, which is to begin with use and place, but what it produces is different each time. See also Why JOOM.

Communication

Clear communication matters more across distance. We use drawings, models and plain language, hold regular meetings and make decisions visible. A clear written agreement says who is responsible for what, and who signs and stamps drawings where the law requires it. See also Working with JOOM: agreements.

What we learn

Working in several places makes us better in each. A courtyard idea from Egypt can help in a London street, and a rain-detail from Britain can help on the Mediterranean. The point is not to bring one style, but to carry knowledge from place to place.

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