The Queen and architecture. The two seem a bit incongruous together in a sentence, but among Queen Elizabeth?s many royal duties is the approval of England?s Royal Gold Medal from the esteemed Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA). And the 2016 winner, for the first time ever, is a woman ? a dame no less.

The revolutionary experimental artist Dame Zaha Hadid received the medal for her lifetime?s work in London on February 3, 2016. She?s in the noble company of famous heads such as Frank Lloyd Wright (1941), Norman Foster (1983), Ludwig Mies van der Rohe (1959), Le Corbusier (1953) and Frank Gehry (2000). This prestigious award has been around since 1848, so it?s quite monumental for a female artist to be honored.

The Royal Institute of British Architects has acted “to right a 180-year wrong” by giving its highest honour to a woman, RIBA President Jane Duncan said at the awards ceremony.
?I am very proud to be awarded the Royal Gold Medal, in particular, to be the first woman to receive the honour in her own right. [?] We now see more established female architects all the time. That doesn?t mean it?s easy. Sometimes the challenges are immense. There has been tremendous change over recent years and we will continue this progress,” Hadid said.
?Part of architecture?s job is to make people feel good in the spaces where we live, go to school or where we work – so we must be committed to raising standards. Housing, schools and other vital public...