With Sky-Blue Ceilings and Floating Prayer Halls, Houston’s Ismaili Center Demands You Look Up | AD Middle East
Set within nine acres of sloped terraced gardens and reflective pools, the Ismaili Center in Houston, Texas, invites the local community to learn, socialise and dwell among its intimate spaces and calming landscapes. Described by its architect Farshid Moussavi as a building that “celebrates the architectural heritage of the Muslim world” while maintaining a contemporary expression, the approximately 14,000 square-metre complex, which opened in 2025, is the first Ismaili Center in the United States and is among the most architecturally ambitious projects Houston has seen in decades. Awarded LEED Gold certification in June 2026, the project has since been recognised for the environmental thinking woven throughout its architecture and landscape.