The Vitra Design Museum (VDM) in Weil am Rhein, Germany, will celebrate African design and architecture with an African theme for the next six months. The programming starts with the exhibition “Architecture of Independence – African Modernism,” which opened on February 20th and runs until May 31st, and “Making Africa – A Continent of Contemporary Design,” which opened on March 14th and will be on view until September 13th.
© Iwan Baan
La Pyramide, Abidjan (Côte d’Ivoire), by Rinaldo Olivieri, 1973. Photo © Iwan Baan.
Curated by Basel architect and academic Manuel Herz, “Architecture of Independence – African Modernism” is largely a photography exhibition that focuses on futuristic and heroic architecture in five African countries. It features Iwan Baan photography of more than 80 buildings in five countries: Zambia, Kenya, Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana, and Senegal.
© Iwan Baan
FIDAK – Foire Internationale de Dakar, Dakar (Senegal), by Jean Francois Lamoureux & Jean-Louis Marin, 1974. Photo © Iwan Baan.
During the 1960s independence movements, architecture became a primary means by which these young nations expressed their national identities. The architecture shows a civic commitment to nation-building, but also illustrates the contradictions of breaking free of colonialism, as the architects were often imported and sometimes brought in from former occupying powers.
© Iwan Baan
University of Zambia – UNZA, Lusaka (Zambia), by Julian Elliott, 1965-1970. Photo © Iwan Baan.
Curator Okwui Enwezor organized the second and larger show, “Making Africa – A Continent of Contemporary Design,” which showcases the work of 120 African designers. The show illustrates how design accompanies and fuels economic and political changes on the continent. Africa is presented as a hub of experimentation generating new approaches and solutions of worldwide relevance — and as a driving force for a new discussion of the potential of design in the 21st century.
© Iwan Baan
Kenyatta International Conference Centre, Nairobi (Kenya), by Karl Henrik Nostvik, 1967-1973. Photo © Iwan Baan
There are 650 million registered mobile phones in Africa — more than in Europe or the US. These are a major factor in its development, as they provide a platform for information exchange. The show focuses on how artists and designers are working across various media to address issues of material culture and everyday aesthetics.
School of Engineering at KNUST (Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology), Kumasi (Ghana), by James Cubitt, 1956. Photo © Alexia Webster
Some highlights include the eyewear sculptures by Kenyan artist Cyrus Kabiru, the furniture of Cheick Diallo from Mali and the photography of Mozambican Mário Macilau and Nigerian J.D. ’Okhai Ojeikere. It shows the architecture of Francis Kéré, David Adjaye and Kunlé Adeyemi, remarkable cardboard city models by Bodys Isek Kingelez and animation art by Robin Rhode, a South African based in Berlin.
© Iwan Baan
Both exhibitions are accompanied by extensive publications. The Making Africa show is accompanied by a star-studded events program and is a collaboration with the Guggenheim Museum Bilbao, where it will travel next.
Architecture of Independence – African Modernism
Through May 31, 2015
Making Africa – A Continent of Contemporary Design
Through September 13, 2015
Vitra Design Museum
Charles-Eames-Str. 2
D-79576 Weil am Rhein
Stadium at KNUST (Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology), Kumasi (Ghana), by KNUST Development Office, 1964-1967. Photo © Alexia Webster
© Manuel Herz Architects
Mfantsipim School (Ausschnitt), Cape Coast (Ghana), von/by Fry, Drew and Partners, 1958, Photo © Manuel Herz