29 April 2010

Diébédo Francis Kéré speaks of architectural projects in the rural community of Gando, Burkina Faso amongst others, and the importance of involving local communities in the building process.

As an architect from Burkina Faso, one of the poorest countries in the world with an illiteracy level of over 80%, Kéré regards it as his duty to promote modern and sustainable architecture throughout Africa. His projects are based on the principles of designing for climatic comfort with low-cost construction, making the most of local materials and the potential of the local community, and adapting technology from the industrialized world in a simple way.

Kéré studied in Germany, where he founded Schulbausteine für Gando e. V. to create green buildings and support the Burkinabe people in their development. His projects can be found from Burkina Faso to India, including a primary school in his home village of Gando, which won the Aga Khan Award for Architecture in 2004. Besides his occupation as a self-employed architect, Francis Kéré has been a lecturer at the Technische Universität Berlin, Habitat Unit, since 2004, focusing on the topics of housing and urban development, strategies of climatically advantageous building, sustainable utilization of materials, integration of local labour force, and local construction techniques.

The Learning From… series takes its title from Learning From Las Vegas (1972), Robert Venturi, Denise Scott Brown, and Steven Izenour’s vastly influential publication, which analysed the commercial strips and architectural symbolism of Las Vegas in order to understand urban sprawl. In this spirit, the series brings together experts to explore specific urban conditions and their relevance to the future development of cities.

Presented in French.