// Introduction
Bab El Louk is a historic market in central Cairo, built during the early Khedival expansion. Its steel structure and brick envelope made it an important commercial hub serving the surrounding dense neighborhoods.
Today, the area around it feels monotone, heavy, and visually uniform, with little variation in form or public space. Because of this sensitive context, any intervention inside the market must stay familiar and respectful, not visually overwhelming.
// Concept
The new roof treats Bab El Louk’s steel frame as a living structure. Each element attaches lightly to the trusses, bending like a leaf to guide light and air. The triangular panels are inspired by the market’s textiles colors, patterns, and fragments stitched into a larger fabric. Instead of leaving those colors hidden inside the stalls, the roof reflects them outward.
The panels descend in height, the lower they get, the more they guide movement of visitors through the market’s natural paths. The canopy becomes a woven mirror of the place breathable, adaptive, and rooted in the everyday rhythm of the market.
// Workflow Diagram
// Shops and Shading Iterations to path definition
// Simulations
// Perspective views
