West Africa: The Latest Architecture and News

Scale dramatically shapes how we experience architecture and the built environment. Whether looking at buildings by volume, square area or height, the larger a project gets, the greater our perception changes. Monumental projects tell incredible stories of spatial experience, programming and design. Towering above us and around us, these large-scale works become landmarks in rural and urban contexts.

This week’s curated selection of the Best Unbuilt Architecture focuses on large-scale architecture located around the world. Drawn from an array of firms and local contexts, they represent proposals submitted by our readers. They showcase a wide array of approaches to designing at larger and larger scales, from an expansive arena in Vienna and a lush memorial in Singapore to the world's tallest tower designed to draw attention to poverty in Toronto.

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In the course of the Cold War, architects, planners, and construction companies from socialist Eastern Europe engaged in a vibrant collaboration with those in West Africa and the Middle East in order to bring modernization to the developing world. Architecture in Global Socialism shows how their collaboration reshaped five cities in the Global South: Accra, Lagos, Baghdad, Abu Dhabi, and Kuwait City.

The Ivory Coast is creating a new design language in West Africa. Located between Ghana and Liberia, Côte d'Ivoire is home to a range of modern architecture. Before colonization, the Ivory Coast was home to Gyaaman, the Kong Empire, and Baoulé, with ties that would shape its identity. Now, local architecture is rethinking past traditions to create a model for the future.

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Skidmore, Owings & Merrill have broken ground on Alárò City, a new masterplan development that will connect to Lagos in southwest Nigeria. The mixed-use model community will feature an international trade gateway with a new seaport and airport. Designed for the Lagos State Government and Africa’s largest urban developer Rendeavour, the project is made to boost foreign direct investment to create an economic and cultural hub for West Africa.

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