Dana Almathkoor… When Architecture Transforms into a Living, Lasting Experience

Dec 25, 2025

Dana Almathkoor is the founder and principal of Alma, a boutique architecture and interior design practice focused on creating thoughtful, human-centered spaces across commercial, workplace, and residential projects. Her firm is rooted in a design philosophy that balances intuition with rigor, delivering environments that are intentional, refined, and meant to be remembered.

Dana holds a Bachelor of Architecture from Pratt Institute and a Master of Architecture from Yale University. She began her career at Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM) in New York, where she gained exposure to large-scale, high-performance projects and global design standards. She later returned to Kuwait, where she led design teams on landmark projects, including executive offices at Al Hamra Tower, bespoke residential interiors, and refined workplace environments across the region.

Today, through Alma, Dana brings this international experience into a more personal, hands-on practice, working closely with clients to translate brand identity, function, and emotion into space. Inspired by travel, culture, and everyday details, her work reflects quiet confidence and a belief that well-designed spaces are one’s people are naturally drawn to return to.

What is your idea of perfect happiness?

Feeling aligned, with my work, my values, and the people I surround myself with.

Which talent would you most like to have?

I've always admired furniture makers and woodworkers, there's an intimacy in how they work with material and scale, and how closely they think about the human body. It’s a mindset that deeply influences how I approach my creative practice.

If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be?

I would trust my instincts faster.

If you were to die and come back as a person or a thing, what would it be?

A beautiful building that people love returning to.

What is your most treasured possession?

My sketchbooks and notebooks throughout the years. I love to flip through them and see how my thinking and design instincts evolved

What is your favorite song, book, and movie?

Song: Changes with my mood and the season. Book: The Five Things We Cannot Change by David Richo or The Covenant of Water by Abraham Verghese Movie: A good thriller, the kind that keeps you thinking long after it ends.

What is your most marked characteristic?

Curiosity

What do you most value in your friends?

Honesty, warmth, and depth.

The three words that describe me best are…

Thoughtful. Driven. Intuitive.

I feel most inspired when…

I travel to new cities and allow myself to slow down. That’s when I take in the most, the materials, textures, and layers of history that inevitably find their way into my work.

The place I would love to visit is…

Latin America for a month. A mix of nature, history, beautiful architecture, and great food, the perfect trip.

My favorite journey is…

Creative evolution, watching ideas grow, shift, and take shape over time.

My style icon is…

Regular people authentically expressing themselves. Living in New York taught me how inspiring everyday style can be.

The best item in my wardrobe is…

My suits

The motto I live by is…

Lead with intuition. Create with intention.

Bader Al-Kulaib

Sheikh Fahad Nasser Sabah Al Ahmad Al Sabah

Dr. Noura Almashan

Dr. Munira Al-Arouj

Nour Abdul

Eisa Alhabib

Deema Al-Ghunaim

Lama AlOraiman

Alymamah Rashed

Nadia Bader Al-Hajji

Henadi Al-Saleh

Jafar Islah

Abdullah Ghazi Al-Mudhaf

Abeer Al Awadhi

Shahad Alsabeeh

Abdulrahman Bedah Al-Mutairi

Faisal Alagel

Bader Nasser Al-Kharafi

Shaikha Al Majed

Farah Almutawa

Donna Sultan

Dana Al-Mutawa and Sheikha Sharifa Al Sabah and Alzainah Albabtain

Laila Almutairi

Adel Alwasis

Hashim and Amna Naseeb

Dr. Abdullah Al Sumait

Shaikha Al-Hajeri

Shaima Hassan

Sheikha Bibi Al-Yousef Al-Sabah

Free Jabriya

Lulowa Al-Mulla

Salman Al-Kandari

Al-Jawhara-Al-Mahdi

Abdullatif Al Mishari

Hussain Bumejdad

Soaad Al-Faqaan

Maryam Alrefaei

Abdulmohsen AlMarzouq‏

Dr. Faisal Al-Roomi

Noor Al-Nafisi

Shaymaa Al-Terkait

Khalid Muthafar

Dalal AlHajeri

Yousef Alomran

Fahad Al Ghanim

Abdullah Behbehani

Sara Al-kattan

Dr. Manal Aldaihani

Ali Khajah

Raheel Al Roudhan

Bader Al-Kulaib

Sheikh Fahad Nasser Sabah Al Ahmad Al Sabah

Dr. Noura Almashan

Dr. Munira Al-Arouj

Nour Abdul

Eisa Alhabib

Deema Al-Ghunaim

Lama AlOraiman

Alymamah Rashed

Nadia Bader Al-Hajji

Henadi Al-Saleh

Jafar Islah

Abdullah Ghazi Al-Mudhaf

Abeer Al Awadhi

Shahad Alsabeeh

Abdulrahman Bedah Al-Mutairi

Faisal Alagel

Bader Nasser Al-Kharafi

Shaikha Al Majed

Farah Almutawa

Donna Sultan

Dana Al-Mutawa and Sheikha Sharifa Al Sabah and Alzainah Albabtain

Laila Almutairi

Adel Alwasis

Hashim and Amna Naseeb

Dr. Abdullah Al Sumait

Shaikha Al-Hajeri

Shaima Hassan

Sheikha Bibi Al-Yousef Al-Sabah

Free Jabriya

Lulowa Al-Mulla

Salman Al-Kandari

Al-Jawhara-Al-Mahdi

Abdullatif Al Mishari

Hussain Bumejdad

Soaad Al-Faqaan

Maryam Alrefaei

Abdulmohsen AlMarzouq‏

Dr. Faisal Al-Roomi

Noor Al-Nafisi

Shaymaa Al-Terkait

Khalid Muthafar

Dalal AlHajeri

Yousef Alomran

Fahad Al Ghanim

Abdullah Behbehani

Sara Al-kattan

Dr. Manal Aldaihani

Ali Khajah

Raheel Al Roudhan