What if what unites African architecture isn’t how the architecture looks but what it supports.
Here why:
Or read below 👇👇

I know we've come to understand and/or describe African architecture by physical features: Form, materials & climate.
You'd rarely find any piece about the African building style that doesn't feature mud walls, thatch roofs, ornamentation style, and maybe cultural identity.

What I find interesting, though, is how none of these truly unite African architecture.
There is always a culture, location or climate filter that separates these metrics, at least, by region.

.

And I think this is because we keep looking for it in forms instead of values.
What unites African architecture is a philosophy.

African architecture is spectacularly too diverse to be united by singlar physical expressions.
What can not be separated from these rich and diverse expressions however, is the value they all support.

Relationships.

Across African regions, climates, forms, and materials, one thing remains constant: Architecture is organized around people.
The architecture is about human relationships, interactions and social structure that it supports.
Around family, community, safety, privacy, and togetherness.

.

It is why the courtyard appears everywhere.
Even in the study and documentation of the diverse African heritage, the most common/recurring element is the use of courtyards.

The courtyard didn't exist as an aesthetic choice, it was a pragmatic one.
The courtyard was about bringing and holding people together. For cohesion.

And whether I-shaped, U-shaped, H-shaped, or detached…
Solid walls shielded the boundaries, openings (doors & windows) faced the courtyard.
Life existed within. Security, privacy, and belonging intentionally crafted into shelter.

.

In fact, I believe this is connected to why our cities feel off.
Contemporary African cities feel fragmented today because we built outward-facing houses in inward-facing cultures… (this is where I lost my audio)

To be continued in the next post.