Burkina Faso-Born Architect, Becomes The First African To Win The Prestigious Pritzker Prize
Burkina Faso-born architect, Diébédo Francis Kéré, has become the first African to win the prestigious Pritzker Prize, which is often referred to as the Nobel Prize of #architecture.
His highly esteemed work, including permanent and temporary structures, has been erected in his country of birth, but also across #Africa, Europe and the United States.
Mr Kéré, 56, was elated to receive architecture’s most renowned award. But his decades-long journey to the top of his field was not easy. Born in a remote village without running water or electricity, he began his career by building a mud-brick school for his community, before being selected to design the country’s national parliament less than 15 years later.
Beyond his designs in Burkina Faso, the award-winning architect has also designed permanent and temporary structures across Europe and the US, such as London’s 2017 Serpentine Pavilion.
Mr Kéré has also done designs for the famous Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival, which runs each year in California and attracts celebrities and big names in the entertainment industry.
He is the first black #architect to be recognised in the prestigious award’s 43-year history, reflecting the profession’s overwhelmingly white, male, middle-class bias – a product of systemic discrimination that still plagues the industry.
Source:The Africa Centre
Email: elora.akpotosevbe@yahoo.com
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