Al-Taqwa Mosque that locates in the suburb of Mirrabooka, Western Australia was developed in 1997 as a response to an increased demand for a Muslim prayer place in the northern suburbs of Perth. Located behind a large cement courtyard, the building presents a grand double storey brick veneer construction with the prayer hall and ablution areas located at ground level and ancillary community spaces and classrooms on the first level.

The borrowing from diverse forms is most evident in the masonry construction and formwork. Most notably, the repetition of pentagonal thresholds that puncture the front façade alludes to a distinctive Mayan form of the corbel arch. These thresholds use a corbeling construction technique which works in the way of offsetting successive courses of brick at the spring line, so that they project towards the archway’s centre from each supporting side until the bricks meet at the apex of the archway.

Besides the arched form, the symbolic element of the crescent-topped hemisphere dome further confirms the building as a mosque. Modern advancements in architecture have allowed for domes to be prefabricated and ready to be installed on-site with low labour costs. Evidently, the mosque uses a fibreglass dome – “pie” shaped sections are bolted together to create the dome and it is then fixed to the top of the structure to where it attaches to the top of the double-storey volumes.

The interpretation of more common architectural conventions in Al Taqwa Mosque, such as the corbel arch and the prefabricated fibreglass dome are minute constituents that suggest that the of architectural symbolisms that form the Islamic mosque identity are ever-transitional in appearance and form. The identity of the Australian-Islamic community provides opportunity for the interpretation within tradition, as mosque architecture draws on sources and possibilities as diverse as the nation-wide communities it serves. In the case of the Al Taqwa Mosque, the familiar archetypes of the dome and the repetitive archways are interpreted in accordance with the circumstances of their construction as well as the ambitions of the community to position itself overtly within the urban fabric of Australian society.

The mosque is used by Perth’s diverse Muslim community. Its creed is based on the Qur’an and the Authentic sunnah of the prophet Muhammed Peace and blessings be upon him. It is also by far the most active masjid in the state of Western Australia. People from the north and south of the Swan River travel to pray in the congregation of Mirrabooka simply to enjoy the brotherhood that is available within the mosque.