Manon Elysia Ijaz

Architecture (MA)
Manon Elysia Ijaz
Cross section drawing through Jetty site, showing the demarcation of the two zones: militarised CPEC port and the fisherman neighbourhood.
Cross section drawing through Jetty site, showing the demarcation of the two zones: militarised CPEC port and the fisherman neighbourhood.
Cross section drawing through Jetty site, showing the demarcation of the two zones: militarised CPEC port and the fisherman neighbourhood.
Axonometric drawing of main intervention of the fish processing centre.
Axonometric drawing of main intervention of the fish processing centre.
Axonometric drawing of main intervention of the fish processing centre.
This port city has attracted significant attention from both Pakistani and Chinese policymakers due to its strategic location near the mouth of the Persian Gulf, a vital route for global oil shipments .My attempt to evidence some of these complex systems can be seen in the research based images here that illustrate the stakeholders involved in and around the site as a way to understand the systems of production and the various forms of social and environmental exploitation that operate within the established Special Economic Zone (SEZ) (first formed after the Second World War, originally meant to act as a temporary tools to attract investment but have since become long-term strategies for states to drive growth). Currently The COPHC (Chinese Operating Port Holding Company)- a [100%] Chinese state owned company have the long term contract to lease, develop and operate Gwadar
This port city has attracted significant attention from both Pakistani and Chinese policymakers due to its strategic location near the mouth of the Persian Gulf, a vital route for global oil shipments .My attempt to evidence some of these complex systems can be seen in the research based images here that illustrate the stakeholders involved in and around the site as a way to understand the systems of production and the various forms of social and environmental exploitation that operate within the established Special Economic Zone (SEZ) (first formed after the Second World War, originally meant to act as a temporary tools to attract investment but have since become long-term strategies for states to drive growth). Currently The COPHC (Chinese Operating Port Holding Company)- a [100%] Chinese state owned company have the long term contract to lease, develop and operate Gwadar
Data visualisation maps of various stakeholders involved in the CPEC project. The first image shows International and national actors involved and how they intersect at social, political and environmental levels. The second image shows the fish processing sector in Gwadar at different levels of involvement from initial catch to process and production and then to export.
Project render made in Unreal Engine.
Project render made in Unreal Engine.
Project render made in Unreal Engine.
Cross section drawing through Jetty site, showing the demarcation of the two zones: militarised CPEC port and the fisherman neighbourhood.
Axonometric drawing of main intervention of the fish processing centre.
This port city has attracted significant attention from both Pakistani and Chinese policymakers due to its strategic location near the mouth of the Persian Gulf, a vital route for global oil shipments .My attempt to evidence some of these complex systems can be seen in the research based images here that illustrate the stakeholders involved in and around the site as a way to understand the systems of production and the various forms of social and environmental exploitation that operate within the established Special Economic Zone (SEZ) (first formed after the Second World War, originally meant to act as a temporary tools to attract investment but have since become long-term strategies for states to drive growth). Currently The COPHC (Chinese Operating Port Holding Company)- a [100%] Chinese state owned company have the long term contract to lease, develop and operate Gwadar
Project render made in Unreal Engine.

About

Manon Ijaz is an architectural designer, artist and researcher whose work spans architecture, art and set design. Her work engages with social and political systems that affect the future of landscapes.  Her thesis project investigates the biases and conflicts inherent to postcolonial environments. She has a strong interest in architectural research, spatial ethics and the political potential of architecture and how design can be used to highlight complex political and social issues. 

My thesis project, The Unstrung Pearl explores the intersections of infrastructure, geopolitics and local livelihoods in Gwadar Pakistan; proposing an architectural counter-narrative to dominant state-led development from the CPEC (China Pakistan Economic Corridor). The project is centered around how architecture can return agency to local fishing communities, reframing the role of design as a tool for social and political empowerment. Anchored in community needs, the proposal directly responds to the mass closure of fish processing facilities in the area through the design of an autonomous, worker owned fish processing facility with a fish auctioning house and market area. The project engages with indigenous knowledge, the porous boundaries between land and sea and the symbolic and spatial registers of resistance to protect local fisherfolk from exploitation, policing and SEZ corporate control and logics. 

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