Francis Kéré’s newly launched Goethe-Institut Dakar is a powerful, purpose-built cultural beacon, dedicated to German cultural exchange. It also marks the Pritzker prize-winning, Berlin-based architect's first project of this scale and institutional ambition to reach completion. Conceived following what Kéré describes as an ‘Arcadia architecture’ approach, the project embodies an optimistic vision in which spatial and material limits have been deliberately pushed.
Explore the new Goethe-Institut Dakar by Francis Kéré
Located in the Senegalese capital city's idyllic Corniche Ouest district, the new building appears as if shaped by the wind, the surrounding flora and the soil from which it rises. It reflects both Kéré’s and the Goethe Institut’s shared curiosity in understanding Dakar’s physical and social landscape, and their intention to craft a sustainable architecture that nurtures cross-cultural collaboration.
Strategically oriented toward the seaside, the building fully comes alive at dusk and dawn through the effervescent motion of passersby on their daily commute along the beach. Meanwhile, through the rich programme of cultural events it can now accommodate, the institute positions itself in renewed engagement with Dakar and several neighbouring cultural institutions.
The generous building presents itself as a courtyard typology. Two 'wings' embracing the open-air centre are formed by a one-storey entrance pavilion and a two-storey primary volume. The courtyard is anchored in place by an imposing baobab, a tree considered sacred in Senegal and historically used to shelter community meetings. This significance is reflected in its core position in Kéré’s design.
The two-storey building features a ground floor crafted as an open space, dedicated to public programming. It contains an ample library, auditorium, laboratory and café. The first floor, cleverly screened from direct views, hosts classrooms and private offices. Beyond this, Goethe-Institut Dakar is envisioned as an inclusive building for all, with a programme that accommodates both visiting guests and local workers, inviting everyone in, from support staff to administrators and drivers.
Double-height voids are purposefully placed to bring relief to the busy programme and aid circulation. At the same time, the building's volume twists and turns to accommodate the site’s existing trees, bowing in respect to the landscape.
Wherever possible, passive building principles have been used to mitigate Dakar’s tropical coastal climate and dense urbanity, beginning with the use of compressed earth bricks made from laterite soil local to Senegal (Earth-building experts Atelier Worofila were the local architects during the design phase). Employed as load-bearing masonry, these blocks efficiently generate thermal mass while also enabling the fabrication of latticed walls that also serve as visual screens that allow both view permeability and cross-ventilation. These elements also shelter internal spaces from the harmattan sandstorms (dry, dusty West Africa winds coming from the Sahara).
Above, large and expansive roof forms are executed with a higher aluminium content to resist corrosion from the salty coastal air, underlining the building’s environmental response. This attention to climate conditions continues at the scale of detail, where windows, specially treated to withstand the harsh marine air, playfully adorn the structure and become an architectural statement in themselves.
It all highlights one of Kéré’s priorities - to create a building capable of resisting weathering and standing the test of time, as, unfortunately, ‘clay buildings are always met with scepticism,' he says. Echoing the baobab at its heart, this project positions itself as a vision of resilience, shaped through the use of local materials and a climate-responsive approach. It looks toward the future, formed by a bioclimatic architecture that consolidates a spirit of innovation within the context of the dynamic metropolis of Dakar. ‘We want to create something that inspires,’ Kéré says.
