M.Arch. Architecture with a focus on Digital Theory from The Bartlett - University College London, UK
B.Arch. Architecture with a minor in Arabic Literature from the American University of Beirut, Lebanon

Leyla El Sayed Hussein is an architect, researcher and writer. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in Architecture with a minor in Arabic Literature from the American University of Beirut, and a Master’s in Architecture with a focus on Digital Theory from The Bartlett - University College London. Her research falls at the intersection of architectural narratives and the boom of the digital age.
El Sayed Hussein teaches, researches and writes about digital philosophy and history in architecture. Alongside her teaching, she worked on several projects, such as the LevantCarta, a temporal mapping platform that illustrates the urban evolution of Beirut; and the Digital Archives of the Karantina residents, the first platform driven towards an egalitarian mode of archiving. She also worked on multiple design projects in different offices in Lebanon. Her masters project focusing on mereological relations between parts and wholes in the digital age was exhibited at the Bartlett Prospective Show and London Design Week. She is currently working on a new publication, co-written with an AI engine.  
 

Research Interests

El Sayed Hussein’s research interests include digital theory and the history of architecture, their modes of intersections and new means of digitizing historical narratives. In addition to new discretization modes of operation across design disciplines.

Some of the research is listed here:

https://www.diverselevant.org/

https://issuu.com/leylaelsayedhussein

https://www.rehlamag.com/team-members/leyla-elsayed-hussein

Select Publications

MEROS, large city architecture: mereologies. The Bartlett School of Architecture, UCL. Edited by Dr. Daniel Kohler.

A Comparison and symbiotic relation between the poem of Abu-l-Baqa’A Baqa’ al-Rundi “Ya salib al-Qalb” and the dome of the Hall of the Two Sisters in AlHambra” 14th Annual FEA Conference at the American University of Beirut.

On Burying and Buried Meanings – عن الردم والمعنى المردوم. The Derivative - المشتقّ / Beirut Art Center.

“Tahhay’ Li Dawiyy Hodouri” / Dar Nelson. Edited by Rachid al Daif, translated to German by Hartmut Fähndrich “Kleine Festungen”, edition FAUST, 2021.

Writer, REHLA MagazineWriter, Magazine. Monthly contributor on themes related to: architecture, urbanism, literature and philosophy.

Oral Narratives by the Residents of Karantina

Awards, Fellowships & Grants

2021           AFAC, creative and critical writing