The Diriyah Biennale Foundation has announced four shortlisted teams for the 2027 AlMusalla Prize, a competition that invites architects to reimagine the musalla as an adaptable and inclusive space for prayer and contemplation. Notably, three of the four shortlisted teams have affiliations with the Harvard Graduate School of Design (GSD).
The shortlisted firms are:
- Civil Architecture, founded by Ali Ismail Karimi (MArch ’16) and Hamed Bulhamseen (MAUD ’15, DDes ’25)
- MILLIØNS, founded by Zeina Koreitem (MDes), design critic in architecture (2017–2020); and John May (MArch), associate professor of architecture and architecture thesis co-director
- NEW SOUTH, founded by Meriem Chabani, Aga Khan Design Critic in Architecture at the GSD
- Al-Jawad Pike, founded by Jessam Al-Jawad and Dean Pike
In addition, three of the four teams include the structural engineering firm AKT II, co-founded by Hanif Kara, professor in practice of architectural technology. Farshid Moussavi, professor in practice of architecture, is one of the competition’s final jurors.
The winning proposal will be unveiled in March 2027 and realized as a centerpiece of the third Islamic Arts Biennale in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, opening November 1, 2027. Following the biennale, the structure will be relocated to JAX District in Diriyah.