Location
Darb El Labana, El Khalifa District, Historic Cairo
Year
2021 — 2023
Firm
Hampikian for Architecture & Heritage Management
My Role
Senior Architect, 3D Visualizer & 3D Modeler
Project Vision
“Upgrade the lives of residents and add touristic and cultural dimensions to the neighbourhood — considering it lives in the heart of heritage Islamic Cairo.”
Urban rehabilitation across Darb El Labana — site survey for 50+ buildings, cadastral drawings, adaptive-reuse design, and new proposals that sit inside the existing visual identity.
Darb El Labana sits in the El Khalifa district of Historic Cairo, behind the Sultan Hassan Mosque complex. The project brief was twofold: upgrade residents' daily lives and open the neighbourhood to cultural and touristic use without erasing what makes it remarkable.
I led the on-the-ground documentation for 50+ buildings — urban surveys capturing age, height, construction method, architectural value and condition; photogrammetric facade models with Agisoft; cadastral sketches to generate building plans; and community interviews to hear the residents' own voice on the neighbourhood's future.
From that base, the studio developed three types of interventions: renovating existing buildings, redesigning empty lands, and renovating facades where interiors stayed intact. The results include a new Culture Center adjacent to Sultan Hassan, the renovation of Zawyat Al-Sukary (a small neighbourhood mosque), and the redesign of 10 Darb Al Maristan into a six-family residential building that revives the original 1980s-era facade ornament.
Mashrabia, proportion, and material were non-negotiable. They're the identity of the place.
Project Highlights
Inside the work
01
Culture Center — 20-22 Haret El Labana
An empty lot, redesigned as a cultural center beside Sultan Hassan Mosque — lecture halls, storage and a restaurant where locals and visitors can share cultural activities. The mashrabia screen (2.40m × 3.00m) is load-bearing of identity, not just ornament.
02
Zawyat Al-Sukary Mosque
A small neighbourhood prayer space. We kept the original structure intact and renovated the space and elevations — minimal intervention, strong visual identity on the main facade with a calligraphic panel.
03
10 Darb Al Maristan — Residential House
A ruin with informal kiosks grew on top. The proposal regenerates the original facade ornament (from an old 1980 photograph and collaged references) and redesigns the building as a new residence for six families.
04
50 Buildings Documented
Cadastral survey and plans generated for over fifty buildings across Darb El Labana. Community interviews recorded alongside the drawings — the neighbourhood speaks for itself.
Documentation
Field documentation & on-site record
Photographs, photogrammetry captures, and condition surveys made on the ground.
Disciplines
Services delivered on this project
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