Jacques El Moallem
Jacques El Moallem
Founder & Principal Architect · Dubai
A practice can have partners, offices and staff.
It can only have one author.
Jacques El Moallem has twenty-five years in practice, twelve of them independent. He founded ARCHICOB in Dubai in 2014, having left institutional practice to build something with a single point of view. He holds a DEA in urban planning from the Sorbonne Paris IV, a master's in urban project management from the École Nationale des Ponts et Chaussées, and a master's in architecture from USEK.
He has worked with authorities and developers across the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Oman — and remains the author of every commission the practice accepts. Design authority is not delegated.
Architecture is civilisation made visible.
Buildings should not simply satisfy present requirements. They should deserve to exist.
A project should not only answer a brief. It should elevate the people who use it, strengthen the identity of its place, and create dignity, clarity and belonging.
Where the founder is present
One hand authors the work.
Design
Author of every commission, from first geometry to final inspection.
Counsel
Counsel to developers, family offices and authorities, before the brief is fixed.
Review
Competition juries and design quality review.
Teaching
University lectures and invited studios.
Writing
Essays on the economics of design and the future of Gulf cities.
Partnership
Alliances with executive practices, ARCHICOB holding design authority.
El Moallem Residence
Speaking, teaching and counsel
Accepted selectively. Every request is read personally.
Keynotes
Development, investment and urbanism forums.
University lectures
Lectures and invited studios, where the school can carry one.
Advisory
Design review, juries and procurement strategy.
Press
Ideas and market judgement. Project publicity considered selectively.