Home proud: surveying the work of African architect Francis Kéré
A first survey of the work of Francis Kéré, titled Radically Simple, has been published by Hatje Cantz, tying in with an exhibition of his work at the Architekturmuseum at the Technical University of Munich. Recognised for his socially engaged architectural design, Kéré combines cultural and ecological factors to create buildings which are intelligent to their contexts.
The book curates an overview of his design work, presenting projects from temporary structures and exhibition design to the works he is most well-known for. These include his first project, an elementary school in Gando, Burkina Faso, which won the Aga Khan Award for Architecture in 2004, and also his design for the Operndorf Afrika (Africa Opera Village Africa) with German theatre director Christoph Schlingensief, initiated in 2009.
Currently based in Berlin – he studied at the city's Technical University – Kéré was born in Burkino Faso, where he has completed numerous projects informed by his acute understanding of the cultural landscape, employing local materials and understanding of ecological requirements.
Committed to the communication of his design principles, Kéré has held exhibitions internationally, presenting sensitive installations in locations such as London, Milan, Chicago and Humlebæk, yet the Ayça Beygo-curated exhibition at the Architekturmuseum will be the largest of his works to date.
With contributions from Lesley Lokko, Kerstin Pinther and Peter Herrle, and new images by photographer and video artist Daniel Schwartz, the publication looks to illustrate the international scope of the architect’s designs and inspire a new generation of ethically-minded architects.
INFORMATION
Radically Simple, published by Hatje Cantz, €34.80. ‘Francis Kéré: Radically Simple’ will be on show until 26 March 2017. For more information, visit the Hatje Cantz website and the Architekturmuseum at the Technical University of Munich website
ADDRESS
Architekturmuseum at the Technical University of Munich
Arcisstrasse 21
80333 Munich
Wallpaper* Newsletter
Receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories from around the world direct to your inbox.
Harriet Thorpe is a writer, journalist and editor covering architecture, design and culture, with particular interest in sustainability, 20th-century architecture and community. After studying History of Art at the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) and Journalism at City University in London, she developed her interest in architecture working at Wallpaper* magazine and today contributes to Wallpaper*, The World of Interiors and Icon magazine, amongst other titles. She is author of The Sustainable City (2022, Hoxton Mini Press), a book about sustainable architecture in London, and the Modern Cambridge Map (2023, Blue Crow Media), a map of 20th-century architecture in Cambridge, the city where she grew up.
-
La Vie en Rose: can the Jaguar Type 00 reset the narrative surrounding the brand’s reinvention?
This is the Jaguar Type 00, the first physical manifestation of the reborn brand’s new commitment to ‘Exuberant Modernism’. We take it for a semiotic spin
By Jonathan Bell Published
-
The RIBA House of the Year 2024 winner is a delightful work-in-progress
The winner of the RIBA House of the Year 2024 is Six Columns in South London - the home of architect and 31/44 studio co-founder William Burges
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
Bold maximalism engulfs The Lafayette Hotel and Club in San Diego
The Lafayette Hotel and Club, designed by Post Company, brings together a rich tapestry of patterns, themes and colours
By Dan Howarth Published
-
A Somali café by Omar Degan supports community in Mogadishu
Arbe, a Somali café by Omar Degan, offers a gathering hub for the community in Mogadishu
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
Venice turns into ‘laboratory of the future’ with 18th Architecture Biennale opening
Curator Lelsey Lokko’s theme, ‘The Laboratory of the Future’, brings passion, intensity and imagination to the Venice Architecture Biennale 2023, while placing Africa at its heart
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
Kéré Architecture’s Uganda community centre provides safety and opportunity
A Uganda community centre created by Kéré Architecture was designed with development in mind
By Martha Elliott Published
-
Mariam Issoufou Kamara to design Bët-bi museum in Senegal
Mariam Issoufou Kamara, founder of Atelier Masōmī in Niger, has been selected by a jury to lead the design of the new Bët-bi museum in the Senegambia region of West Africa
By Hannah Silver Last updated
-
Limbo Accra talks African creativity through our series of profiles
In a profile series with Ghanaian spatial design studio Limbo Accra, we meet its rich network of collaborators and celebrate creativity in Africa and its diaspora
By Nana Ama Owusu-Ansah Last updated
-
Diébédo Francis Kéré wins 2022 Pritzker Prize
Architect Diébédo Francis Kéré scoops the 2022 Pritzker Prize for architecture
By Ellie Stathaki Last updated
-
Last chance to see: Studio NYALI's Venice pavilion on African futures
ArchiAfrika Pavilion by Studio NYALI traverses historic and contemporary architectural design coming from practitioners in Africa and its diaspora
By Nasra Abdullahi Last updated
-
Mariam Kamara takes on the architectural challenges of the future
Nigerien architect Mariam Kamara – tipped by Frida Escobedo as one of 25 creative leaders of the future in Wallpaper’s 25th Anniversary Issue ‘5x5’ project – is the dynamic principle of fast-emerging studio Atelier Masōmī
By Ellie Stathaki Published