61 The Assimilation of Traditional Practices in Contemporary

Roland Depret

Dakar is a recent city, like all of the coastal , An Islamic City? Dakar at that time is emptied of its popu­ cities of West Fifty-six years ago, it lation and of its public transportation had only 40,000 inhabitants. Something on Dakar has a large Moslem majority, on the system. the order of 80 percent of the present order of a million people - but does that As we will see, this importance of is population has been urbanized only for make it an "Islamic" city? expressed in the built-up environment, but one or two generations, and individual and Islam is a basic fact in , and it is with some specific aspects that are some­ collective memory is fully aware of the times rather distant from those of other traditional environment; the way of life is intensely felt by the population. Like all Africans in general, the Senegalese are Moslem countries This fact is due as much permeated by it deeply religious To be sure, there are to African particularisms as to the very In all sorts of activities linking it with the remnants of the traditional African perceptible effects of colonization built-up part of the environment, the large religions, "weighted syntheses," depen­ Like all other great cities, Dakar is an majority of Dakar's population assimilates ding on the case, of animism, of totem ism , arena of struggle, a "contest area," har­ this traditional past into its contemporary of manism, of naturism, of fetishism and of boring numerous conflicts and internal environment. This point will be the paganism (according to the analysis of contradictions: battles for civic power, for essence of the problem with which we will Thomas and Luneau), and these surviving religious power, for profit This aspect deal. remnants are also intensely felt, since they has already been analyzed during this This traditional-contemporary dynamic are strongly anchored in the African seminar, particularly by Fatou Sow and process is accentuated by other factors. cosmogony. Yet is there a "Black Islam," Jacques Bugnicourt Hence it will no First of all, let us recall that in Dakar there for all that? Hampate Ba says: "There longer be dwelt on here, but we must have always been Lebou village communi­ could not be a Black Islam, any more than nevertheless not lose sight of it. ties (Hann, , Ouakam, etc ), in which there could be a Black Christianity or a a very original type of juxtaposition of Black Judaism. What there is, above all, is traditionalism and of modernism has the Islamic principle, the only thing developed. In addition, the relationships worthwhile studying. Naturally, as my Memory of Signs between the capital and inland areas are master, Tyerno Bokar, the sage of numerous and frequent in a Sahel marked Bandiagara, said to me, it can happen­ The interactions of individuals or of groups by easy communications, particularly in a and it will very frequently happen - that with their built-up environment is condi­ society characterized by great social in Islamizing itself, a country adopts one of tioned, among other things, by the remem­ mobility, family encounters are frequent the various colors that the gigantic, tri­ brances, more or less contemporary, that and diversified Finally, we must mention angular, Islamic prism can offer, when they have of their traditional environment, the important role of the secondary cities, breaking up the divine white truth of which the set of signs, symbols and archetypes to which are intermediaries between the Islam spreads the light." which they can attach themselves in order capital and the rural world. In Senegal, Islam is essentially an Islam of to assert themselves more effectively in an urban environment that is much more vast, Dakar has another specific characteristic. brotherhoods, of "," of which the much less easy to grasp The division between the city and the two most important ones are the Tidjanes, outskirts, which is certainly evident centered around , and the It is the home territory, to which the geographically, is not very distinct On one , whose center is in . The divinities (of the earth, of the forest, of hand, this peripheral area is not comprised links of the faithful with their brotherhood water. .. ) are closely linked. These divini­ of predominantly recent immigrants quite are very close and constitute a very dense ties were present before the book reli­ on the contrary, it owes its emergence to network of relationships throughout the gions, and co-exist with them in forms that Dakar inhabitants who have either been country, and particularly between Dakar have deteriorated to varying extents. They evicted from their neighborhood, or have and the other parts of Senegal These links are rarely given spatial definition, or this left in search of building sites, which are are religious and links of solidarity, but occurs in very diffuse ways, but they often scarce and expensive in the central area. also entail participation in development mark - by means of a set of rites - the On the other hand, under-urbanization is and a struggle for power Among the configuration of the villages (taboo spaces not limited to the outskirts. The same highlights in the life of the population, we or passages, for example). must note the great annual pilgrimages, situation is found in the development area It is religion, Islam to the greatest extent, especially that of Tivaouane, a city of a few known as Parcelles assainies (Improved marked by close links with the religious thousand inhabitants that welcomes, for Parcels of land) Community, the , the Koranic two days and two nights during the school, more than by the physical presence Maouloud, more th~n a million pilgrims of the The latter is rarely the The Assimilation o/Traditional Practices in Contempormy Architectllle 62

central point of the village; it is generally a simple structure, vaguely inspired by and the Middle East (and never by the great African of of Niger). The design is most often that of the "Maraboutic" buildings, with a single dome, the symbol of mediation with the heavens. It is the village community, with its orga­ nization that is always complex, but is understood by all and is accepted. Its visible sign is the penc, the assembly area, marked by a large tree, with one center or several, depending on the structure of the village The spatial organization can be highly variable, depending on the ethnic groups and the regions (see Pelissier, les Paysans du Senegal) The forms are rarely rigid (with the exception of the case of villages laid out by the government), but rather they are flexible, fluid, organic. The func­ tional concept of movement patterns is replaced by that of "open spaces," which are highly differentiated Depending on the regions, the ethnic groups, and the form of village government, the spatial Supple fOl ms of the lIaditionall'illages, differentiated spaces Sut also, replacement of the traditional organization may be centralized (in bv iil'ing SUI I oundings of the urban type (Yenne village) general around the pene, more than Photo R Deplet around the Mosque) or be poly-centered. In contrast with the rather dense grouping of the Wolof villages, for example, one finds the nebulous natUl e of the Diolas The Signs of Power villages.

These are the essential elements of the Readings of the urban environment built-up environment, as well, of course, as require long processes of decoding, and the scale, which will remain in peoples' there are few people who can do it The memory, and which they will try to find signs and symbols are numerous and inter­ again or to reconstitute in urban areas twined, due, among other things: stemming from planned sources. • to the existence of numerous, differing But memory also retains such things as the environments; expectation of rain, monetary indigence, • to a complex culture, many aspects of lack of public facilities and insufficient which are still marked by domination, government, the restrictive nature of the • to a rapid pace of living and dynamics of power structure. "Every young rural man change dreams of the capital, and the converse is One of the most important "chapters" in certainly not true" (Montei!) "reading" the city is power, whether it dates from before, or after, Independance. A mosque in Sm gny, with its qualities of (re5hness and spontaneity It constructs its symbols: monuments, large public buildings, squares, major Photo R Deplet arteries. It does not accommodate spon- 63 The Assimilation of Tladitional Practices in Contemporary Architecture

taneity well, nor the organic aspects, pre­ ferring order, alignment, straight lines and right angles, which have been a sign or Ul ban culture since the city of Catal Hiiyiik Power is a mark left by nume- rous urban civilizations, upon "successful" cities whether they be Roman, Greek, Moslem (the city of Samara, extensions of Ispahan), Chinese (map of Peking), Aztec, etc, not to mention present-day cities It is probably the sign of a strong and centra­ lizing power, but it is also the manifesta­ tion of far-sighted urban objectives (L. P Senghor: "I want wide, straight streets that intersect at right angles") One must make a distinction here between the large urban arteries and the connecting roads. As for wide arteries, they gain being simple, clear, and "adjustable" from generation to generation; in this respect, straight lines and right angles are among the best forms of organization. It is not the same thing for the neighborhood connecting roads, where RUE one could have - either with the help of SOS vii/age of Dakm, BEHC Alchitects creative imagination, or by giving the Fluidity of the inside spaces population a certain freedom in its settle­ ment patterns - more organic, more Photo R Deplet human routes for communication. The form of the Dakar Medina stems from the colonial and military powers who permit itself, or is unable to integrate the urbanized Dakarois, or the Moslem depended upon technicians lacking in people's will into the framework of govern­ Dakarois, identify themselves with this imagination . But at present, we find the ment voluntarism: the only choice is centrality, the symbols of which are still same pratices How many villages have between the "regular city" and the rooted in relationships of domination? We been laid out and "divided up" by the "irregular city" as Fatou Sow has effec­ will come back to this question in conjunc­ agents of the Surveyor's Office? tively demonstrated in conjunction with tion with the Great Mosque. Power also means city planning: the urban Pikine environment leads to the existence of Power also expresses itself by its centrality rules, and hence to a restriction of indivi­ In Dakar, this central nature is symbolized The Signs of Profit dual liberties for the benefit of the com­ by the governmental and administrative munity This, incidentally, was a normal part of Ie Plateau, during the colonial thing in a traditional environment, and was period as well as today (presidency, The colonial period was characterized, respected. But in the urban milieu, espe­ administrative building, ministries, cathe­ among other things, by a rather close cially more recently, the community drals, Independence Square, national alliance between the colonial administra­ becomes a diffuse, anonymous, imposed theater, etc.). There has not been any tion and business, between power and mass, and the rules are then perceived as effective decentralization, despite real profit Essentially, profit found its most constraints which are poorly understood, efforts (including the axis of the Avenue characteristic expression in the commercial and hence poorly accepted Rejection in du General du Gaulle, between and business part of Ie Plateau, the Central one form or another often results from Independence Monument and the Great Business District, close to or mingled with this Mosque), but these efforts have never the governmental and administrative Plateau It was found in the presence of the The power structure, often in spite of been pushed fal enough to profit from the big banks, the office buildings, the resi­ declarations of good intentions, cannot effect of concentration. Do the recently dential buildings and the commercial The Assimilation of Tladitional Practices ill Contemporary Architecture 64

Fund) This is not due to its form - a concrete, steel and glass tower (though it does display modernity) - but rather due to its special function: it is the monument put up in honor of agricultural production, of planters, and this is all the more signifi­ cant in that the liberation movement in the Ivory Coast was originally led by the Ivory Coast planters There is nothing of all that in the Dakar Plateau This is the image of the imbalance between the capital and the inland areas. The perverse effects of profit are also signs. They include the urban land, rele­ gated to the status of merchandise, and an expansion dominated by problematical factors and moves that have already been made, which often leave "official" city­ planning disarmed and merely playing a catch-up role. Speculation on city land leads to segregation by economic classes, contrary to the traditional spirit and con­ trary to the spirit of Islam. In this domain, The Plateall, or cenllal bllsines5 disllict of Dakm Many lIaditional houses among the buildings still probably for different reasons, power and remain profit combine forces in extremely brutal Photo R Depret acts of segregation (Medina), or with similar intentions, such as the Improved Parcels of land which have fortunately been given a new orientation The high areas, which pushed their tentacles toward the little retailer. One must also note that cost of urban land also leads to excessive the lower-class districts over distances of the Central Business District remains the densities The high rents and the small size several kilometers High-rise buildings, the "top model" But for all that, it is not felt of the land plots lead to very high degrees tal u kaw, became a visible sign of wealth, as a symbol with which one identifies: it of land use (sometimes more than 90 per­ from the top to the bottom of the economic was built essentially by the former colonial cent), as well as to the use of rooms by a ladder powers, and it is not pleasant to put on (in number of people that may exceed 8 The Central Business District is the essen­ the absence of others) the clothes left by Here, again, there is a loss of identity: one tial element of centrality in Dakar. How is one's predecessors (the same problems can no longer organize the surroundings in it felt and experienced? were experienced in , and much accordance with traditions (many of which more strongly) But having said this, would are based on the hadiths), nor even simply In its formal aspect, one is forced to note a Central Business District built by Sene­ enjoy acceptable living conditions. its European character, although strong galese for Senegalese be very different, qualifications must be attached to this: a apart from a few formal details? What substantial part of the Central Business would be the specific nature of a Senega­ District is occupied by traditional houses, lese bank, hotel, office building, etc.? Horizontality of the Town single story with an interior courtyard: these are. the lebou "tounds lands" The real plOblem seems to us to lie else­ where: there is nothing in this center of Essentially, the city has excessive high One must also note that the Central Busi­ Dakar that reminds us that, beyond the densities on the ground. Outside the Cen­ ness District is in the hands, basically­ capital, there is a country, a Sahelian tral Business District, Dakar remains hori­ even if it is recent - of the Senegalese country, a rural country One of the zontal, a choice of urban development, the from the highest level (bank directors, buildings that has been felt the most result of administrative and political deci­ managers of government or private firms, strongly in as a symbol is the sions, and of pressure from a population owners of buildings and of businesses) to Caisse de Stabilisation (Stabilization originating in rural environments The 65 The Assimilation of Traditional Practices in Contemporary Architecture

result gives an impression of immensity: whereas the village is perceived, is read, as a whole, here it will take a long period of decoding, and constant efforts, in order to interprete the cityscape. This difficulty of perception is accentuated by the fact that: • there is a uniform character, although it is not all that coherent: juxtaposed districts, created at random, in the process of urban development; • the sea surrounds the city on 3 sides, making it more difficult to orient oneself; • the symbolic center, the Plateau, is very much off-center, in the lower tip of the triangle (One can compare Dakar to a funnel, in which the "heavy" parts pile up at the bottom, as if by gravity.) In this immense cityscape, a substantial part of living time will be spent in transportation Incidentally, the major constraint is not time, but the cost, the uncomfortable­ ness, the uncertainties. Trips do not have just negative aspects. Travel in "fast buses" favors better knowledge of other Dakar University, BEHC Architects people, one adopts an itinerary, one Blicks, shel/s,flo.ihle volumes employed /01 wchitectlllal expression discovers the city every day, by successive Photo R Deplet layers, like a cross-section, like an X-ray In the labyrinth represented by the city, people will find their way round by means of veritable "initiation trips." following an evolutionary process; But in addition, the intention is above all • it is organized around a courtyard space to affirm the nature of a city, and not its (in wolof: diggi-ker) with multiple func­ rural origin, marked by specific ethnic The House tions: religion, welcoming guests, family characteristics People say they are life, households tasks; Dakarois, not Sarakole or Diola This • the construction is simple: coated cement distinction can sometimes be perceived in In this immensity of the city, the habitat blocks (the materials known as "tradi­ the internal organization of the land site, will constitute the first refuge, the first tional" are almost totally lacking in but, at least as far as we know, never in the appropriated space For the great majority Dakar), double-slope roofs or flat slab. facade The house reflects a kind of dual of Dakar inhabitants, the house represents They are most often built by jobbing behavior, introverted on the cOUityard, rather definite continuities between tradi­ workmen (and rarely by real self-help) extroverted toward the street, and it is the tion and contemporary life: But this is where the continuity with facade that expresses the urban quality. • the majority are still ground-floor homes. traditional construction stops. While the European model remains alive, despite This will probably not remain true on a Senegalese rural house varies substantially efforts on behalf of cultural decoloniza­ long term basis, since the present ten­ depending on the ethnic groups (see tion, and a rise on the social ladder is most dency is toward vertical densification L'habitat traditionnel au Senegal, often reflected either by construction of an (ground floor + 1 to 4 rooms in general), published under the direction of P upper floor (apartments), or by giving up • the house is designed more like a succes­ Dujarric), in Dakar there is virtual unifor­ the courtyard house for a "villa". sive addition of juxtaposed rooms than mity of design To be sure, this uniformity like a preconceived composition. We can The same phenomena are experienced in is due in the first place to the constraints: note, simultaneously, the notion of the (, Fes, etc ). financial, technical, lack of information, making the rooms ordinary, especially The complexes of the governmental form and dimensions of the land plots, city the bedrooms, and a tendency of housing companies (HLM, SICAP) are planning codes, etc The Assimilation of Traditional Practices in Contemporary ArchitectUle 66

The Building Craftsman

In this spread of techniques and styles, the building craftsman, or tdcheron, plays a leading role. His social origins are often the same as those of his clientele, and he understands their motivations. He has often worked for big or medium-sized contractors, and he is up to date on the materials and techniques in fashion. The local builder is responsible for one of the important transformations, both from the formal and from the building view­ point, the reinforced concrete slab which is gradually replacing the double-pitched roof This relinguishing of a traditional African form in favor of a Mediterranean fO! m comes both from the example of the Lebano-Syrians, who are great builders and many of whom can be found in Dakar and from "modern" styles imported from' France since the 1950s. The same craftsman is also responsible for Dakar University, BEHC Alchitects the spread of certain formal aspects of African and Islamic symbolic motifs what is called "Sudanese-Sahelian Archi­ Photo R Deplet tecture", of which we will speak below' the affirmation of verticality by means of panels placed on facades; abolition of the acroterions, ocher, sand, brown colors, and not, as is too often said, a simple very instructive African decorative motifs, etc whim for being different; When the inhabitant is the owner, he will • these modifications should be the subject This role of spreading certain practices is first add extra rooms in accordance with of further studies, since the conclusions of basic importance, since it ensures a needs and means This is not just a ques­ might lead to an architectmal research continuity between the type of habitation tion of increasing the built-up surface, but that opens the way to a consensus about of the majority and private or public also of restructuring a plan that is not the architect's language and that of the constructions of greater prestige. considered as adapted to tradition. user To be sure, the local builder has a ten­ In very many cases he will entirely restruc­ In the absence of such a study, one cannot dency to schematize, to keep only a few ture the facade (which, at the outset, is really draw up a "vocabulary" But what signs emptied of their constructive signifi­ almost totally lacking in inspiration) in we can observe is the fact that the "words" cance, to lessen the quality of materials order to express his own language, and not used follow, after a yea! or two, the and execution as he must adapt to his that of an anonymous community. The fashion observed in prestigeous examples clientele's means. But above all, he has signs emitted in this way are extremely (public buildings, villas) taken from the few means and little training, except what variable, since they represent individual large catalogue of facades of the city Is he has learned on the job A gradual visions, desires, and fantasies But in this there a drive for identification with these transition, coherent and well executed, respect, we must note two important constructions because they represent from the traditional to the contemporary points: entrance into a higher economic class, or will entail the training, the supervision, the • first of all, these changes represent a because their present architecture is more structuring of the craftsmen-builders They considerable financial effort, since the "African"? We will come back to this must have the nobility of their trade cost of the remodeling can reach or subject later in this article restored to them, to become maalems exceed the cost of the original house (master-builders) . This effort reveals a real general drive, 67 The Assimilation of Traditional Practices ill ContempOlary Architecture

Many other problems could be touched on The "irregular" districts, the fruit of spon­ The constitutive elements of these in speaking about houses Let us note, taneous building activity, probably display mosques are generally as follows among other things: the characteristics of serious under deve­ • square or rectangular plans, with central • the difficulties in the economic realm, lopment, but the spaces there have evolved dome (reminder of the dome symbol, the which have received considerable atten­ in a way that is clearly better adapted and celestial vault over the flat earth); tion during the seminar; more appropriate. That is one of the • prayer hall, with and often with a • the contradictions of the Senegalese factors - here as in numerous countries in mimbar; urban society: people, divided between the world, whether developed or not­ • , often two of them flanking the two ways of life, have difficulty in "pro­ that creates profound links between the main facade, most often with a square gramming," and even in simply using population and its living environment even base, clearly of North African inspira­ their houses well When Mr. Ben if it is a "slum." tion. The construction, except in very Embarek was responsible for city plan­ Green spaces are missing, except on cer­ recent cases, was carried out without an ning in , he described these tain indicated itineraries, where we note architect, by tacherolls (local builders) same difficulties to us, with a population the survival of a colonial tradition of lawns supervised by the Imam or a religious perpetually poised between the nuclear and flowers, which are expensive to main­ official of the brotherhood. and the enlarged family, between tain and to water, and which must be The Mosque is also a monument, the modernity and tradition; fiercely protected from children and center from which an attempt is made to • if the traditional milieu has transmitted a animals The sign of green spaces in the project an image. certain way of living to the city, in return Sahel is, above all, trees and their shade. 1) If Islam is an ancient phenomenon in the city is transporting its models to an That is what must be generalized. ever greater extent toward the rural Senegal (10th-11th centuries), it is rela­ environment, or, as was the case in Ivory tively recent in Dakar, as is the city itself Coast, it has simply imposed them. But until very recent time, the power structure in Dakar was colonial, with a Religious Buildings very marked mistrust of Islam, which therefore found it difficult to express itself Dakar is a city with a large Islamic Spaces through monuments The result of the majority. What importance do the corres­ recent affirmation of religious power is the ponding religious buildings have in the The habitat also means the environment: multiplication of mosques and their ever environment? Excluding the Great more monumental appearance the neighborhood links, the school, the Mosque of Dakar, of which we will speak 2) An expression is sought, not of an market, the local mosque .. and it also later, we can distinguish the neighborhood African Islam, but rather of an Islam means the spaces, meeting spaces, play mosques, or djaka, and the Friday coming from the Arab countries. The spaces, spaces for celebrations. mosques, or djuma. architectural inspilation and the vocabu­ In what is called a '''regular'' city, in the The djaka plays a capital role in the imme­ lary come essentially from Morocco and systematic grid employed for land develop­ diate environment It is firmly inserted into Saudi Alabia, the countries most visited by ment, these spaces are almost non-existent, the urban fabric, close to the faithful, and the and the faithful (). and a situation of conflict is created. The attracts many users It is the sign of a Although Mali and Niger are well known only free space, the street, sees cars com­ particular realm, of belonging to a group, to them and offer some very fine architec­ peting with the pedestrians, children's to a brotherhood; it is appropriate by tural examples (Jenne, Mopti, etc.), no games, and animals. Religious or family people. Its architecture is of only secon­ trace of them is found in Dakar. This is festivities can occupy it completely and bar dary importance, and in the extreme cases, obviously due to a desire to express an it to traffic. The penc will be reduced to a it may be a mere outline on the ground. It Islam untouched by Africanism As an street corner, a tree, a road cut-off. On the is the function that matters, and not its extreme case, could one say that there is a Niari Taly, a divided street with a wide form. Construction is always the fruit of continuation of a fetishistic attitude? central strip containing trees, tens of penc the efforts of a specific community. are installed 3) In the absence of architectural tradi­ The djllma, generally larger, may produce tions, and of master-builders (maalem) , Only the government real estate com­ a different kind of feeling. It is visited on a the intel pretation of the models is often panies have made some effort in this weekly basis, and it is sometimes a sub­ imitative, and simplified The symbolic direction, but most often without real stantial distance from homes of the faith­ proportions and the major contlOlling out­ study of the needs and the motivations. ful. It is a symbol of the gathering of the lines are forgotten This fundamental Islamic community aspect of Islamic buildings, which unifies The Assimilation of Traditional Practices in Cpntemporary Architecture 68

ENAM Centel, BEHC Architects COlllempolar), translation of the Mourides' The Great Mosque of Dakm and its SUI IDundings deem ations Photo R Deplet Photo R Deplet

as different as those of the tial thing, which is the environment: vacant identity with something, are more impor­ Arab, Iranian or Turkish mosques and lots, workshops, scant urbanization, a tant than the form which has a continuity of proportion boulevard with no activity except cars. between the smallest and the largest con­ It is located on the site of an ancient stituent elements, is neglected here. cemetery, which later became the location Past and Present 4) This "naive" nature must not allow us to for high prayer These burial areas are forget a characteristic of freshness and of traditionally located outside the urban The works of former travelers, Ibn spontaneity, with a high degree of inven­ centers. Between the Plateau and the BattfIta and many others, used to begin tiveness, and, a point of basic importance, Medina, there is a no-man's land. The fact discussion of a city by indicating "the of suitability to the feelings of the popula­ is that the colonial power structure number of its inhabitants and the magni­ tion And this remains in the direct line of excluded the idea of giving the Great ficence of its monuments" Today, the African tradition Mosque a central location, since that location was reserved for the Cathedral. monuments are always the visible signs of The Great Mosque of Dakar is something The dissensions between the different the city, the image that the inhabitants else. It follows the image of a dual brotherhoods, and even within each want to project of it Hence they are a belonging. both introverted and extro­ brotherhood, made it impossible to suggest testimony, but testimony without compla­ verted It is not the result of the efforts of a an alternative, such as a plot of land in the cency, to the past and to the present. local community, it is a contribution from center of the Medina. outside It is a correct pastiche of a MOl occan architecture of the time of the For all these reasons, the Great Mosque is French Protectorate, having no common not often felt as a symbol of Islam, what­ roots with Black Africa ever the monumental nature of the building may be, and this fact links up with The only thing kept of the Karawyine is a Islamic tradition: the function, the sense of formal style, but it has not the one essen- 69 The Assimilation of Traditional Practices in Contemporary Architecture

In Dakar, as a whole they testify to three periods:

The Colonial Period

The dominant symbol is power. the "General Government" (now the Presi­ dent's office), the army (the general staff headquarters), the railroad station, symbol of penetration into the inland I lrt of Senegal, the Chamber of Comllierce, symbol of profit allied with the power structure. At that time, trips to and from France took a long time (it was what Henri Chomette calls the "shipping" period), so there was local autonomy, relatively speaking, and the colonisers were "Africans" by their situation Dakar was then the center of attraction of French (AOF) The image of France was projected there, with all of the styles of the time, moved to the second degree: classical inspiration, "modern style," etc., as well as the "Colonial Expo­ sition" inspiration toward the 1930s, symbolizing the colonial empire, with West African echoes in the Sandaga market and the Polyclinic, among other buildings. Hence there was a definitely foreign characteristic there But this was partly offset by the fact that this architecture was locally produced, with the inferences that this fact represents It is, moreover, an "honest" architecture: The means available did not allow cheating, and there were none of the present artificial systems making it possible to redeem poor design (e g , air-condi­ tioning, etc.). The spaces and the volumes were often generous. The local means imposed an architecture without technical prowess, on a human scale; and it is often a functional success The buildings of that time generally leave a good impression, and appear appropriate The Polyclinic Building in Dakar dates from the post-Colonial Exposition in Paris period of the Above all, the fact of being old confirms, 1930's here as elsewhere, the status of "monu- Photo R Deplet The Assimilation of Traditional Practices in ContempOIary Architecture 70

Today

"Our eyes receive the light of dead stars" Any thought, any action is based on the past The present has its roots in a triple culture, Negro-African, Islamic, European. Cultural independence is the art of being able to take up this triple culture, while suppressing its links with previous forms of domination. Senegal has been politically independent since 1960, and it is looking for the right path to various forms of independence. economic, cultural, and others. It was natural, and necessary, for the search for cultural independence to lead to an immersion, initially, in a Negro-African past that had been denied, ignored, gagged, and in an affirmation of Islam that the dominant culture had tried to push aside. The first manifestations of this renewal, The Administrative Building of the Senegalese govelllment which dates from the "Ail plane" pel iod of under the strong stimulus of Leopold post-World War 11 Sedar Sen ghar , were a new school for Photo R Deplet plastic arts, especially painting. The world festival of Negro-African arts in 1966 showed an extraordinary explosion of artists of works and the Senegalese: Ibou ment " But there is more involved, parti­ designers were more often in Europe than Diouf, Bocar Diong, and many others, but cularly a human aspect giving a feeling of on the spot, and certain ones never even also some from other African countries, security, all the more so in that one finds came to Senegal There was no more local particularly my late friend, the great Ivory numerous models for them in inland areas production, but rather a severe break: Coast sculptor Lattier. In addition, for a long time they inspired radical importation of techniques, of As of the 1970s, first of all with young trends in the dwellings of ordinary people formal aesthetics, and an ignorance of the European architects who tried to under­ local traditions, a rejection of popular stand Senegal, and then with the Senega­ imagination lese architects, who became more and The result is buildings with no evocative The Time ofIndependence more numerous (there are now almost 60), power, without a message, even if some­ architecture struck out in a new direction. times the architecture is not without some Some initial results, in the form of The period preceding and following quality. That period also influenced buildings, preceded the development of a Independence was more confused when it popular architecture, and one result is the position, known as the "School of Dakar" comes to political intentions. innumerable facades, dry and sad, that Its main objectives are: In Europe after World War Two, people fortunately are now beginning to take • original creation, produced locally; re-Iearned how to build, yet with poorly some color. • the search for a real identity in the assimilated techniques and aesthetics, from cultural field, these two points leading to which man was often left out. It was a a return to the Negro-African tradition; transition period for architecture, and the • the refusal to restrict oneself to aesthetics, same was true of Africa, at a further but rather the desire to think in terms of remove. It was the "airplane" period The the environment, economy in construc- 71 The Assimilation of Traditional Practices in ContempOlary Architectllle

tion, etc. • and all this while maintaining a flexible framework ("fOlmalism begins with definition" - Braque) Leopold Sedar Senghor defines the spirit of this "Sudanese-Sahelian" architecture with a poetic image, "asymmetrical paral­ lelism," a strong image, a very open image, leaving great freedom to the creative imagination. At the same time, a School of Architecture and City Planning was established in Dakar. A considerable portion of its instruction is oriented toward traditional African architecture, and more particu­ larly Senegalese architecture, under the inspiration of Patrick Dujarric It is still too early to draw valid lessons from these new tendencies. At the most, and with great care, one could: • make a rapid analysis of the architectural language; • and draw up some initial conclusions.

SOS village of Dakm, BEHC Architects PyramidallOofis a lemilldel of the The Intentions of the Architectural Photo R Deplet Language

Suitability to local needs. a local architec­ The forms: It is probably in this domain • affirmation of a vertical characteristic tural production, by Senegalese or related that present-day architecture has asserted (abolition of the cornices, vertical panels, architects, must guarantee a better dialo­ itself to the greatest extent. There is at etc ), which is also a sealch for dyna­ gue between architect and user, in order to least one clear intention setting oneself mism, for impetus; attempt to find a common language. apart from classicism, hom the strict use of • flexible forms, inspired by certain archi­ An evolutionary character, one of the basic straight lines and right angles. In this tecture of earth construction (particularly elements in traditional architecture, must respect, the new Senegalese architecture Casamance in Senegal, but also Lobis, prevail, as a link with tradition and to meet resolutely separates itself from the etc ); the construction problems of a developing "modern" and links up with the "post­ • rhythms: African culture, first of all, is country. modern." If the results have often been rhythm, music and dancing An architec­ good, or promising, it has also happened The spaces are also among the essential ture that wants to base itself on tradition elements of the African built environment, rather often that a desire to be original at must also be rhythm and music. (One any cost, so as to be "African," have on the one hand, and of the Islamic could make some similar studies on the degenerated into anecdotal approaches environment on the other hand Both on or architecture of Islam "in its initial period disorder. Among the orientations that, in the functional level (wind, sun, etc) and of grandeur") Intuition can playa big on the cultural level, attempts are made to our opinion, are of interest and may lead role here, but there is certainly a lack of to some really original alchitecture, we seek inside and outside spaces with diffe­ serious analyses for theorizing about such may note: rent scales, which are interlocking, multi­ a trend • search for dynamic forms, many of whkh purpose, adapted to the functions and to • formal inspirations through traditional are based on the triangle, a very wide­ the people: enclosed or partly enclosed vocabulary: pyramidal or conical roofs of spread African symbol, spaces, courtyards, patios, etc huts, roofs with impluvium, domes of Fulah huts We are dealing here essen- The Assimilation of Traditional Practices in Contemporary Architecture 72

tially with metaphors, which may extend built for all, is read by all, and can be the to certain details such as porticoes in the pride of all On the other hand, as we have form of pirogues, facades in the form of seen, a fashionable trend once expressed jewels - what one director of architec­ spreads quickly as far as the habitations of ture wanted to express in asking: "Make the majority of people It is too early to tell a building for me in the form of a mask." whether it is at present simply a matter of a This metaphorical language, however fashion, or of a real identification. Let us dangerous it may be when excessive may say that the scale and the rapidity of this also possess an extraordinarily evocative spreading process are an interesting indica­ power, readable by all tion The materials the language concerning the Anecdotal aspects? Any new tendency, as "local" matelials goes a very long way soon as it departs from the 'middle road' of back, and has caused almost as much ink as honest search, may have two dangers: cement to flow. In urban architecture, • a desiccating formalism, the definition of one must not confuse "local" materials a strict vocabulary; with "traditional" materials If it is easy in • anecdotal effects, a free-and-easy a village to dig a hole to get the needed approach, gratuitousness. earth, and one finds palm leaves or thatch There is no reason for the new Senegalese to cover the hut, it is not at all the same in architecture to completely escape these the city. There are local materials (in pitfalls. The sanction for it, here as else­ addition to cement, which is a local pro­ where, will come with time. duct) that are usable, beautiful, practical, and which can be restored to noble uses A new link with an AfIican tradition is the while calling upon a traditional language most positive aspect of the new school, They are used more and more in the city which is still far from having exhausted this facades: stone (in block form or crushed) theme for research A continuous process laterite, basalt, , brick, shells of of going back and forth between contem­ shellfish (whole or crushed), sand of all porary architecture and traditional prac­ colors, from white to red for coatings, etc. tices, between urban architecture and rural architecture (which is also evolving) will be These materials are beautiful, and noble, the principle condition for success and may be interpreted as having a conti­ nuity with tradition. What about the Islamic tradition? In the field of the built environment, Islam, as an They also lead to a rebirth of decoration open religion, a religion of tolerance, has which had been forgotten. Here, the tra­ always been incorporated into local tradi­ ditional African symbolism returns to the tions, but it has also brought them the facades: the geometrical figures (triangles, essential part of its own traditions. The squares, circles), but also the spirals and seminar in Dakar comes at the right time the organic forms (see particularly the for the Islamic tradition to insert itself now Darakoles or Casaman<;ais examples). A into the framework of an African tradition corollary of this nobility of materials, of in architecture that has already been this Iebirth of decoration is the rehabilita­ developed tion of the craftsman of the maalem, of whom we spoke earlier in this article

A Balance Sheet?

Is this architecture reserved for the powers-that-be and an elite? We do not think so. On one hand, a "monument" is